Most of us have had the pleasure of lying on our backs and gazing up at the stars on a clear summer night. We pick out familiar celestial figures and hope to possibly catch a glimpse of a shooting star. But is it possible that there is more behind these pinpricks of white light that dot the heavens? It is estimated that there are around 100 billion stars in the Milky Way Galaxy alone and there are countless galaxies in the universe. With the vast endlessness of what we call space, there is a possibility of other life out there. Only four main atoms (carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen) make up 95 percent of life (Michaud 33). If one of the trillions of planets in the universe has these building blocks and the proper atmosphere it is very probable that intelligent life has the chance to form and develop.
For centuries scientific discoveries and religion have clashed, especially discoveries that shape the foundations of our universe. In the early 1600’s Italian mathematician and astronomer Galileo Galilei testified to the Roman Catholic inquisition that the Copernican model of the Solar System was correct and that the Aristotle model the church followed was incorrect. By saying this, he attested that the sun, not the earth, was the center of the solar system and postulated theorems about the physics of falling bodies and other astronomical observations to support his claim. Despite his evidence, Galileo was confined to house arrest for heresy in 1638 (Galileo). Over time, however, multiple astronomers in differing parts of the world confirmed Galileo’s theory to give us the model of the solar system we have today. Galileo’s struggle demonstrates how even the most logical arguments backed with a plethora of evidence can...
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...en Religion and Philosophy?” Theology and Science 6.4 (2008): 439-50.
“BBC – History – Charles Darwin.” BBC – Homepage. BBC. Web. 18 Nov. 2011.
“Galileo Timeline.” The Galileo Project. Ed. Albert Van Helden. 1995. Web. 18 Nov. 2011.
The Holy Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1984.
Managing Sacred Sites. New York: Continuum, 2001.
Lemarchand, Guillermo A., and Jon Lomberg. “Universal Cognitive Maps and the Search for Intelligent Life in the Universe.” Leonardo 42.5 (2009): 396-402.
Michaud, Michael A. G. Contact with Alien Civilizations Our Hopes and Fears about Encountering Extraterrestrials. New York, NY: Copernicus, 2007.
Parker, Barry R. Alien Life: the Search for Extraterrestrials and beyond. New York: Basic, 1998.
There are consistent patterns or themes regarding Native American world views and the differentiation of cultural elements and society. Native Americans retained control of institutional and cultural orders against the assimilation effort because all aspects of Native American societies are interrelated, guided by the broader cultural world views. Each cultural or institutional element is, in fact, overlapped with other elements, so change in one element inevitably affects the broader cultural and social complex. While adopting to a new environment and small changes was possible in the West, where social and cultural elements are separate from each other, Native Americans were faced with conflicts and a potential, large disruption of the existing social orders.
In his Letter to The Grand Duchess Christina, Galileo challenged the widely accepted religious beliefs of the time, claiming that the conflict lies in their interpretation, not the context. In Galileo’s eyes science was an extremely useful tool that could and should have been used in interpreting the Scriptures. He argued that “the intention of the Holy Ghost is to teach us how one goes to heaven not how heaven goes” (Grand Duchess). The purpose of science was not to counter what the bible teaches; rather its purpose was to help explain the teachings of the scriptures. Furthermore, it was “prudent to affirm that the holy Bible can never speak untruth-whenever its true meaning is understood” (Grand Duchess). However, because of the terminology in which the bible was presented the perception of what the Scripture defined as truth was skewed. The Bible was written so that the common man could understand it and follow its commandments. The people also showed a greater inte...
The main argument which Galileo’s opponents used against his theory was that in many places in the Bible it is mentioned that the Earth stands still and that the Sun revolves around it. Galileo himself was a devout Christian and did not mean to question God’s power or the Holy Writ with his work. As a result, to support his claim, he developed three logical arguments in his letter, which he backed with the opinions of leading Christian authorities, in order to prove that science can reinforce religion rather than discredit it.
Native American history spans tens of thousands of thousands of years and two continents. It is a multifaceted story of dynamic cultures that in turn spawned intricate economic relationships and complex political alliances. Through it all, the relationship of First Peoples to the land has remained a central theme.
Sure we've all seen movies and read books about extraterrestrial beings landing on the Earth and conquering the human race. And millions of us have viewed TV shows like "The X-files" and "Third Rock From the Sun." These forms of popular culture share a common thread -- extraterrestrial life. Yet the underlying question is, does the mass media take extraterrestrialism seriously? Or do they mock it? Or do they simply exaggerate its credibility? In the majority of these cases, the mass media not only takes on the third mode of exaggeration, it shifts focus from more important and serious issues such as extraterrestrial life at the cellular level. The media loves to play with the minds of viewers, making them believe in something which realistically is probably untrue.
From the beginning of the 20th Century, there were nearly 250,000 Native Americans in the United States who accounted for approximately 0.3 percent of the population. This population was mostly residing in reservations where they executed a restricted extent of self-government. Native Americans have experienced numerous challenges related to land use and inconsistent public policies. Actually, during the 19th Century, Native Americans were dispossessed of a huge section of their land through forced removal westwards, through a series of treaties that were largely dishonored, and through military defeat by the United States in its expansion of control over the American West (Boxer par,1). Moreover, Native Americans have experienced
Ornstein, Robert. “Shakespeare for Students.” Shakespeare for Students. Ed. Catherine C. Dominic. Vol. 2. Detroit: n.p., 1997. 404-05. Print. Rpt. of “The Taming of the Shrew.” Shakespeare’s Comedies: From Roman Farce to Romantic Mystery. Delaware: U of Delaware P, 1986. 63-72.
[14] Kukla, A. (2009). Extraterrestrials: A Philosophical Perspective. Lexington Books. p. 20.ISBN 9780739142455. LCCN 2009032272.
Galileo Galilei was an Italian philosopher born in 1564. As an adult, he didn’t believe the universal geocentric theory of the planets and heavens which was established by the Catholic Church. The church taught that the Earth was the center of the universe and everything revolved around our planet. Another theory that the Church supported was that the Earth stood still while the sun rose and set every day. Society in the 1500’s believed that the Pope spoke for God through a divine connection and to against the church was to go against God. To speak out against the church in this time was strictly taboo. If one was to speak against the church was considered to be heresy, which is exactly what happened to Galileo. Galileo invented the telescope and began studying the heavens above and noticed that changes within the stars and planets. He noticed that the “stars” that surrounded Jupiter moved. He came to the conclusion through rational thinking, that the Copernicus’ heliocentric theory was correct. Copernicus was a scientist and philosopher whose theory proposed that the sun was stationary and the heavens orbit around the sun. Galileo tried to convince the church not to aboli...
Crawford, Alexander W. Hamlet, an ideal prince, and other essays in Shakesperean interpretation: Hamlet; Merchant of Venice; Othello; King Lear. Boston R.G. Badger, 1916. Shakespeare Online. 20 Aug. 2009. (April 30 2014) < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/othello/othelloessay2.html >.
To examine the changing identity of America, one must look first at America’s first citizens, the Native Americans. While no one can simply place all Native Americans under the same group, many of the tribes held the same ideals. One ideal
The universe, a vast, ever-expanding space full of mystery, just waiting to be discovered. With the mystery comes speculation; a multitude of researchers focus on one question, are there extraterrestrials out there? While highly controversial, scientists with the help of SETI have proved that this is possible. In order to be prepared for the possible ETs, researchers at SETI work constantly to find answers. Because of the growing research that Extraterrestrial Intelligence is possible, SETI, a credible organization, should receive funding from the government to continue their research.
Frank Drake, an American astronomer made an equation to find the probability of finding aliens in our galaxy. The probability of humans finding extraterrestrial intelligence in our galaxy equals Nfpnef1fifcfL, where N equals the number of stars in the Milky Way, fp equals the fraction of those stars having planets, ne equals the number of those planets that can support life, f1 equals the number of those planets on which life arises, fi equals the fraction of those planets on which intelligent life evolves, fc equals the fraction of those planets where intelligent life developed into a technologically advanced civilization and fL equals the fraction of time a technical civilization lasts. Drake's equation is beautiful, meaningless mathematics. It does not come close to solving the question of the existence of extraterrestrials because it has so many variables that we cannot imagine what they stand for.
Aliens. Extraterrestrial life. Humans have always had an interest in extraterrestrial intelligence. The speculation of extraterrestrial intelligence is popular these days both in mass culture and in science but belief in extraterrestrial intelligence goes back into ancient times. Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth. With the fascination of aliens among human, many became theorist. They believe that extraterrestrials with superior knowledge of science and engineering landed on Earth thousands of years ago sharing their expertise with early civilizations which forever changed the course of human history (Ancient Aliens). An example of this is Stone-hedge. How exactly did human place these heavy giant rocks on top of each other without any heavy machinery or tools. The only explanations one can come up with is with the help of extraterrestrials. So because of this, people have always tried to get in contact with extraterrestrial beings since the day of man.
In the Merchant of Venice, we see a truly anti-Semitic play by Shakespeare. However, we also see a tale of money (greed and generosity), love (heterosexual and homosexual), and emotion (joy and sadness).