“Agnosticism is the philosophical position that it is impossible to know about the nature or existence of God.” The term was invented in 1869 by Thomas H Huxley from the Greek “agnostos”. So one can define the difference between an Atheist and an Agnostic is simply as the Atheist emphasizes that there is no God, whereas the Agnostic maintains only that he does not know. Agnosticism is not a position one can take like theism or atheism, rather it’s more like an rational process.
But when we consider ignorance along with agnosticism which is a mode of the intellective process, there is an obvious contradiction. Because ignorance is not just mere lack of a knowing, conversely, every ignorance is always a process of being ignorant of something quite precise. In other words, one who ignores knows in a particular form what it is that he ignores. For example, a person who has no knowledge on economics is not ignorant of what a Cobb-Douglas equation is, because he lacks information to such equations. Only the man who is told about Cobb-Douglas equations, and does not know what we are talking about because he does not understand the meaning of the words, only then is this man ignorant of what a Cobb-Douglas equation is.
Thus when one takes agnosticism into account when trying to conquer ignorant, inconsistency will arise. Agnosticism that deteriorates into an “I am ignorant about religion” statement is not agnosticism at all because it has already made a decision, that there can be no decision to the subject and that such a decision is not important. A statement like this is not agnostic, but assured of its ignorance and thus not agnosticism at all. A atheist says he absolutely knows there is no God. Such a proclamation is outside his fixed understanding, and can not be convincingly confirmed. Agnostics admits their own finiteness and ignorance. Ignorance and agnosticism are two entirely different things. For instance, I don't know much about quantum physics, but that does not make me agnostic about quantum physics; it makes me ignorant.
In conclusion, The human mind can only be open if there is definitely something to discover and learn about, and we are constantly pursuing those knowledge whether one is agnostic or not.
Nazis treated the Jews inhumanely. The side locks, that some religious men were wearing, were cut off, and sometimes, even pulled, along with the skin. At first, their houses and businesses were taken away and everyone was moved into the ghettos. However, this was not enough for the Germans; their true goals of Jewish extermination led them to ghettos’ liquidations and forcing the Jews to live in concentration camps. During the transition, the Jews’ belongings were taken away. The families were separated and children were taken away from their parents. While some attempted to escape or hide, thousands were
After the period where big businesses operated the country to benefit themselves, the middle class activists began to rise against these unjust actions. The new era was known to be the Progressive Era. Not only were progressives fighting for restoration in social equality, others like muckrakers were revealing the inadequate conditions in factories. Due to these events, African Americans were influenced and they began to seek for their civil rights and equality in a society dominated by the white population. The South, a major area that restricted the rights Africans possessed, began to increase the number of Jim Crow Laws. To deal with this repression, many African Americans including Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois, battled against discrimination and fought for civil rights to make their race equal in social status. Although both men were driven during their career for the same results which was to permit African Americans to have full citizenship, their approaches in getting them varied. While W. E. B. Du Bois utilized a philosophy that involved combative tactics to receive equal social and political rights, Booker T. Washington thought Africans needed to work vigorously for economic equality before demanding citizenship. An example of W.E.B. Du Bois more militant ways included the Niagara Movement that occurred on the Canadian side of the Niagara Fall...
The constant efforts and struggles of African Americans against Jim Crow laws, hate groups, social injustice, and racial bias prevailed and led to the Civil Rights Movement that has shaped our contemporary world. The struggle of African Americans to gain equal rights in a society dominated by conservative, white culture and prejudice along with the endeavor of acquiring the constitutional right to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, can safely place Jim Crow laws in archive of American
The tobacco industry seems like a beneficial addition to our economy. It has basically been a socially acceptable business in the past because it brings jobs to our people and tax money to the government to redistribute; but consider the cost of tobacco related treatment, mortality and disability- it exceeds the benefit to the producer by two hundred billion dollars US. (4) Tobacco is a very profitable industry determined to grow despite government loss or public health. Its history has demonstrated how money can blind morals like an addiction that is never satisfied. Past lawsuits were mostly unsuccessful because the juries blamed the smoker even though the definition of criminal negligence fits the industry’s acts perfectly. Some may argue for the industry in the name of free enterprise but since they have had such a clear understanding of the dangers of their product it changes the understanding of their business tactics and motives. The success of the industry has merely been a reflection of its immoral practices. These practices have been observed through its use of the media in regards to children, the tests that used underage smokers, the use of revenue to avoid the law, the use of nicotine manipulation and the suppression of research.
One’s worldview is usually dependant on how the particular individual interprets life and its occurrences. Additionally, if one believes something to be so, it will be so to them. It’s all a matter of perception. However, which perspective is truly accurate: Agnosticism, Theism, or Deism? These three worldviews have been the subject of countless debates throughout history and that have yet to be concluded. The purpose of this philosophical essay is to suggest that theism is likely to be considered the correct worldview.
Which statement/phrase from the above excerpt is a context clue to the meaning of the word “oblivious”?
Ignorance is bliss as one who is ignorant does not fully understand all the issues occurring around him or her and is therefore somewhat innocent to them. In “Revelation”, by Flannery O’Conner, the main character Mrs. Turpin is ignorant of the fact she is the same as everyone else, but she has different classifications of people of which she is of the higher category. O’Connor uses “Revelation” as a tool to represent people who are both ignorant and not ignorant and what it almost takes for some people to fully overcome ignorance.
The broadest definition of Christianity is also perhaps the simplest. Across the history and branches of the religion, “it is faith in Christ, not the scrupulous and religious keeping of the law...which is the basis of salvation” (McGrath 15). The religion that is now a major global force has grown out of a small group tucked away in one corner of the world, breaking and changing over time, yet united by a faith in this revolutionary man who claimed to be the son of God, Jesus Christ.
The existence of life – Aliens, beyond our planet has been a controversial topic for several centuries, and is a debatable issue even today in the 21st century. What is our topic you may ask? Aliens, Do, Exist. According to theoretical physicist, Stephen Hawking, it would be improbable for life not to exist somewhere other than Earth. This is a bold claim, but there is evidence to support this statement. The evidence we seek is in the many Alien occurrences we have experienced throughout human history.
Throughout time we have pondered the possibility of life existing beyond earth. Movies, television programs, and novels have been written about extraterrestrial beings. Often these beings bear strong resemblances to human beings, with slight alterations. When imagining what exactly an alien would look like, we are biased to believe that extraterrestrial beings are little green men with antenna's protruding from their head and they fly around the universe in huge spaceships. However, these little green men are figments of our imagination, as true life it has yet to be proven that life does, in fact, exist elsewhere in the universe. Scientists have tried for many years to find extraterrestrial life, unsuccessfully. Yet their work has not been completely in vain. There is evidence that life can and possibly does exist on other planets. Our job is to find direct proof of this hypothesis and to attempt to establish communication with these foreign beings.
Biometrics is described as the use of human physical features to verify identity and has been in use since the beginning of recorded history. Only recently, biometrics has been used in today’s high-tech society for the prevention of identity theft. In this paper, we will be understanding biometrics, exploring the history of biometrics, examples of today’s current technology and where biometrics are expected to go in the future.
Massive protests against racial segregation and discrimination broke out in the southern United States that came to national attention during the middle of the 1950’s. This movement started in centuries-long attempts by African slaves to resist slavery. After the Civil War American slaves were given basic civil rights. However, even though these rights were guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment they were not federally enforced. The struggle these African-Americans faced to have their rights ...
“The term -information security- means protecting information and information systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction” (United States Code, 2008). In order to ensure the identity of who is trying to access the information, the concept of “Biometric Technology” has been developed in the last years. This essay will start explaining this concept and the characteristics of its development through the time. Then, the essay will offer a brief explanation of biometric systems operation and a description of different biometric systems developed until now. Finally, this research analyzes the current and future applications and the issues that surround it.
Do aliens exist? For eons, mankind has pondered over this peculiar question and a revealing truth has yet to be answered. However, one thing is known for sure, the discovery of intelligent alien life outside of Earth would provide support to prove and/or disprove fundamental beliefs that have been held for centuries. In any case, the discovery would serve as a cornerstone for humanity to make the quantum leap in understanding the purpose of our existence. Based on numerous examples, it is impossible to deny the existence of extraterrestrial life outside of Earth. Reportings of sightings, ancient civilizations beliefs, and scientific proof from scientists and astronomers are all key factors that contribute to this statement.
One of the most common unanswered questions scientists find themselves asking is "Is there life on other planets?" Since the first famously documented UFO sighting in 1947, the idea of extra-terrestrial life has been debated almost non-stop. The subject has inspired many TV programs, such as The X-Files, and films (Mars Attacks, Independence Day, and the Men in Black films to name but a few). Scientists have come up with many new ideas and ways of trying to either prove or disprove the existence of life elsewhere.