God's Second Chance

I was talking to my crazy neighbor lady about my upcoming move and marriage when she told me how happy she was for me that I'd found love again and was moving on.

"God gave you a second chance," she said.

I nodded and smiled.  I agree that I'm very lucky and I am thankful for all the great things in my life.  I have more blessings than I can count. But do I believe that God gave me all those things?  No.  If I did, I could just as easily have responded to my lonely widowed neighbor lady with, "Yeah, it's too bad God doesn't give a shit about you."        

(When I told my fiance this story, she said, "God didn't give you a second chance.  I did.")

But I don't believe God plays favorites.  When good things happen, it's not a reward, and when bad things happen, it's not a punishment.  It's just life.  Sometimes you're the lawnmower, sometimes you're the grass.  Or something like that. 

        

Invisible Gorilla

Here's a new science-y book to add to the Timicist cannon:  The Invisible Gorilla by Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons.

It's yet more evidence that many of our intuitions about how we think are all wrong.  The book deals with several illusions caused by our brain:

1. The illusion of attention
2. The illusion of memory
3. The illusion of confidence
4. The illusion of knowledge
5. The illusion of cause
6. The illusion of potential

True, although stupid and smart people alike are likely to put more trust in confidence.  That's the illusion of confidence.

Study after study shows how we overestimate our brain's ability.  The brain is an amazing machine that does lots of great stuff, but it's not perfect, and we need to recognize its limitations.  This is why we need science:  to remove the personal biases and illusions caused by our brains.

To learn more, see http://www.theinvisiblegorilla.com/videos.html, or read the book. 
 

Social Scientist

I was trying to tell someone recently about the Five (+ 1) Tenets of Timicism, and I think I got most of them right.  I'm such a horrible timvangelist, I have trouble remembering the tenets of my very own cult.  (After a quick review I see that I forgot the third tenet, Humor. D'oh!)


Anyway, after my spiel my friend replied that Timicism sounds more like the rules of a social scientist than a religion.

Hm.  I kinda like that description.

Timicism: the "religion" for social scientists. 

Political Power of Prayer

Respectful Atheists

I've read another book. Much like Kluge, this one deals with the human brain and how it evolved to function in a world that was way different than our current one. Hence, a lot of the things our brains do don't make much sense in the world we live in. I love this stuff.

The book is Brain Bugs: How the Brain's Flaws Shape Our Lives by Dean Buonomano. There's a lot to say about this book, but how it most applies to Timicism is in his chapter on "The Supernatural Bug." Buonomano puts forth some interesting theories as to why our brains evolved a predilection for supernatural beliefs.

What I really appreciate is the following passage:

Throughout history religion has been a wellspring of compassion and benevolence. Today, religious organizations sponsor humanitarian efforts and continue to foster unparalleled acts of altruism-- thousands upon thousands of faithful work tirelessly in the most remote corners of the globe to feed and educate parentless children and others in need. Religion has nurtured the arts and sciences alike; countless scholars and scientists were priests, including Gregor Mendel whom many consider the father of modern genetics. And, of course, religion's most precious offering may be that it has served as a permanent oasis of hope and consolation in the face of often harsh realities.

Yet, when reviewing the vast database of irrational behaviors and repulsive acts that human beings have engaged in throughout history, religion has often stood in the foreground: from the human sacrifices of the Aztecs, through the Crusades and Inquisition, to suicide bombings and religiously motivated terrorism. Past and present religious beliefs have postponed scientific and technological progress, including the acceptance of heliocentrism, evolution, and stem-cell research. Additionally, lives continue to be lost to poverty and disease exacerbated by economic and health policies in which religion trumps reason....Religion has undeniably been the source of both great good and of great harm. [pp. 198-199.]

Unlike so many obnoxious atheists that I know, Buonomano is able to acknowledge that religion has done many good things, while at the same time it's clear he believes that belief in the supernatural is a "brain bug."