zedvictor4

Yep, Festivus it is.

Never heard of it before.

Probably the same as Winter Festival in the UK.

Doesn't matter really, just enjoy some quality time with friends and family.

Happy Solstice and New Year.

Next step is to,

Find similarly minded people,

And enjoy mutual edging.

And then,

Other options,

Will develop.

OK.

I've just autographed my shopping list Mr Scary.

I'm expecting a boomerang through my kitchen window any moment now.

And I've also just put on some didgeridoo music to add to the frisson.

Tissues at the ready.

Good stuff Stephen.

I see no reason why previously existent people shouldn't not have acquired an in depth knowledge of celestial activity.

After all, intellect and environmental and astrological science, must have been developing for 300,000 years or so.

In that sense 4400BC is not so long ago.

Though in terms of previously existent people from elsewhere, one would assume that viewed from elsewhere, celestial perspectives would be completely different.

So what I'm suggesting is that Sumerian knowledge of the heavens was Earth based knowledge, rather than heaven based knowledge.

Visitations still a valid hypothesis though.

But logically flawed.

Seeding more logical in my opinion.

Though perhaps we will be the ones who sow the seeds.

Do they have waterfalls in Oz?

No globally famous one's come to mind.

Yep, a nice warm tropical one adorned with nubile Asian cuties...Now that would be a beautiful end.

Always check for Ladyboys though...Unless of course.

Grease fires...Never considered death by grease fire.

Is that an Aussie phenomenon.

Phenomenon always takes me two attempts.

That's a phenomenon.

I've heard of these pumps.

But don't think I will bother.

I'll put the $179.99 towards a new bike.

Well.

The music industry is as the music industry does.

And there are hundreds if not thousands of the most respected people in the music industry.

And "Don't Worry, Be Happy" was catchy the first few times, but eventually irritating.

Me; I like certain music, respect good musicianship and occasionally listen to good musicians playing good music.

Though "music industry" sycophant I am not.

Niagara and barrels come to mind.

Have a nice trip.

Is that a euphemism I don't know about Dep?

Do you still fight, fly and pause regularly?

Catchy but eventually irritating.

I would suggest that repetition of any sound will eventually irritate.

Silence has it's rewards.

Nothing worse than people who jabber and take an interminable amount of time to say what could be said in under ten seconds.

Find a niche and be content with what you've found.

Use the onboard computer wisely, and treat the vehicle with respect.

The vehicle needs to be fuelled sensibly and run regularly.

And the best of luck.

Brief and to the point.

I was trying to suggest a reason why "reflective self awareness" might miss out the first year or so.

Wouldn't it be great if all one had to worry about was masturbation.

Though I would suggest that masturbation related signals are triggered by primal automatic  inbuilt switches, over which we have very little conscious control.

Over time inbuilt programmes reduce the need for and therefore frequency of switch gear operations.

True.

The word and concept of happiness are definitely  generalizations.

Yep.

Undoubtedly.

If we can get me in my assessment briefs out there to the ladies.

We will be swamped with intellectual cuties wanting us to probe their innermost recesses.

I would suggest that:

Happy is a readily used word that defines a raft of positive physiological responses to a raft of externally applied or acquired stimuli. 

I would further suggest that:

All people do not necessarily respond in the same way to the same stimulus.

Are you happy with my brief assessment?

I would suggest that:

We are all defined by our DNA and chemistry.

DNA will also possess default survival information.

Awareness relative to environment is acquired data, which needs to be understood before it can be applied.

Interesting stuff Stephen.

At the moment I'm reading The Body by Bill Bryson.

Full of interesting facts.

One in particular, reminding me of something that I'd read before.

DNA can persist for many hundreds of years,

Think of the possibilities.

4

Though I might have lost count after B.

But  don't forget God's blood and the Mary thing.

HaHa.

And then there's the Devils blood.

And Kangaroos.

Wars and earthquakes.

Sort of happening now.

Sort of always happening.

I thought maybe a bit too British.

Give him a go and let me know what you think.

The next best thing.

Has the habit of becoming,

The next worse thing.

Just saying.

And yet,

The Sun bombards us with enough energy in a day to power all our energy needs for a year.

And yet,

We always plough our efforts into the next best thing.

Progress I suppose.

Such is our demand for energy.

And our need to pay for it.

If we worked together,

It could be free.

HaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHa.

They mean stuff on your head, similar to that stuff on your chin.

And the stuff that persistently protrudes from your  nose and ears.

Jesus!! HaHa.

As you and Stephen point out, and as I never actually disagree with. The Alien intervention hypothesis, is a valid hypothesis.

So not so sceptical in that respect.

But:

Here we are, presented with a race of super-beings capable of interstellar travel, yet they leave  us with sketchy images chiselled onto lumps of rock and sketchy second hand written accounts. Accounts so inconclusive that it makes a mockery of the super-intelligence, that it purports to describe. Nope, show me an astounding example of  their super-technology and you might get me interested. All that piles of chiselled stones suggest to me is that humans had mastered the art of stone chiselling. I would expect at least digital technology and composite materials from super-beings.

And given Zed's Law of universal sameness, I'm definitely very sceptical of the "Orbit" excuse Stephen. Light years of separation conquered, and yet these super-intelligent folk are bogged down by a comparatively slight difference in planetary orbits. We sort of know how a planet needs to interact with a star in order for it to be able to sustain life.

So,  seeding is a more likely option, and fits nicely with what we know about species development, species similarities and developmental time scales.

Nonetheless still begs the question as to why life developed, wherever it developed.

Isn't it as likely to develop here as it is anywhere else?

And isn't it also reasonable to suggest, that as Earthbound  intelligence develops, then so hypotheses will also inevitably develop from the highly implausible into the more sensible.

Nonetheless as we are all too aware, old implausibility has a tendency to persist within the human database.

All aspects of evolution are slow, relative to a lifespan.

Yep.

They all saw them flying machines.

So we have to  give some credence to the hypothesis.

Would be doublestandards otherwise.

Though funny how none of them saw the same aliens.

And funny how none of those aliens bothered to come back.

Must be better planets elsewhere.

Hinduism has four armed people.

Obviously from another planet.

Concern is awareness Deb.

Concerns are everything that promotes survival.

Only one sure fire way of escaping awareness.

As an inbuilt coping strategy.

Sleep offers temporary respite.

Myths and legends are good when made into fantasy blockbusters.

For sure, reading them can be a tad tedious and time consuming.

Both true.

Yep, trolling "weird things".

We all have our favourite stand-ups.

Mine is a British guy named Stewart Lee.

Who you probably wouldn't get at all.

Though he does shares a certain sarcastic wit with George Carlin, which is the sort of comedy that I enjoy.

Nope.

In terms of biological and physical function, agelessness means not ageing.

Whereas eternally is a generally applied term meaning lasting for ever.

And I am not suggesting that agelessness would necessarily result in eternal existence.

Within the context of Universal material evolution all that Darwin seeks to explain is the development of living organic species here on Planet Earth.

What you are seeking to explain is the reason for organic life here on Planet Earth

Essentially similar, but nonetheless two different exercises.

And their are plenty of scientists with alternative theories relating to both exercises.

Some might agree in principle with Charles Darwin and some might not.

I was simply pointing out that you refer to Darwin's bogus theories, and yet consider your own theory of alien intervention as somehow not having the same potential to be bogus.

Nonetheless I have previously suggested that alien intervention is a plausible idea, though it comes with what you refer to as "gross holes".

Perhaps more likely, a case of extra-terrestrial seeding rather than a super-intelligence visitation.

And as I have also previously suggested Darwin's theories are just as compatible with the idea of extra-terrestrial seeding as the are with the idea of an Earth based electro-chemical reaction.

So as far as I am currently concerned all options remain open and species evolution is a reasonable theory.

Though I prefer to regard species evolution as a phase of general universal material evolution.

And your theories are easily incorporated into a variable theory of universal material evolution.

Though what is currently certain, is that we have no definitive answers available.

I never suggested "eternally existent".

I suggested genetically engineered agelessness.

And suggestions are not beliefs.

Just a discourse in respect of the future development of life, intelligence and evolutionary necessities.

Evolutionary necessity being one of two options.

The other option being pointless evolution.

Or,

I could also suggest that material development/evolution is perhaps no more than an elaborate process of decline, from one perfect state to another.

You stated that you weren't a fan of bogus theories.

And yet.

When it comes to physical structures, I wasn't suggesting that there was anything more than finite.

Though genetically engineering organic structures to stop the ageing process, is a likely future endeavour.

Amen.

Agree entirely.

I think that the main evidence is attributed to  a bloke called Luke.

Interestingly, other scholars also suggest that he was born  several years prior to the popular date.

Though the reality is that no one actually knows when Jesus was born.

I think that September is the best guess.

Of course, that's assuming there was a real bloke comparable with the biblical character of Jesus.

And I see no reason why there wouldn't have been.

Interesting that modern Americans nor  "First Nations" were named the national mammal.

Especially as the Bison probably got there the same way that everyone else did..

Global migration...But not necessarily in boats.

Yep.

Christians hijacked the pagan festival and renamed it Christmas.

I prefer the pagan ideology, regarding the winter solstice and the new year.

So winter festival for me.

Especially as Jesus was born in September....More of an Autumn equinox baby.

That is a truism.

I was just suggesting that results tend to exceed the expectations of naysayers.

Because we clearly possess the where with all to do so.

Therefore to suggest that  we will never reverse or halt biological ageing mechanisms is somewhat contrary to everything we have achieved thus far.

I generalise.

That as a species, we possess enhanced intelligence which could result in a peaceful collaborative global  society.

But.....Would you say that our intelligent endeavours have resulted in a peaceful collaborative global society?

Just cold, cloudy and damp here.

Can induce gloominess.

Just watched Bill Bailey in sunny Western Australia, thinking that it would heighten my mood. But for some reason it had the opposite effect.

Perhaps I'll try some vitamin D.

Or get one of those lamps.

And Man will never go to the Moon.

Understanding and manipulating, is a human specialism.

Never say never.

Yep, I would agree with most if not all of that.

I pretty sure that there have been no rigorous studies, and certainly no conclusive studies, relative to the causes of the modern phenomenon of transgenderism.