Due November 18, 2013 | hussibhoa

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“Hunter Huss IB Readings”

November 14, 2013 Due November 18, 2013

Does science have an answer, or a potential answer, for everything? Read some of the following explanations, written by scientists, to kids’ questions. Cite a few of the answers and express whether you agree or disagree. Why or why not? What questions do you think that science will never answer and if none, why?

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/

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Permalink # JOELCLARY said

I think that science does have an answer for everything. Everything that we use and have made so far today has had to deal with science. Science is a very important factor in our lives to make new technology and theories. “In the olden days, people believed that our dreams were full of clues about the future. Nowadays, we tend to think that dreams are a way for the mind to rearrange and tidy itself up after the activities of the day.” http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/. I agree that the dreams we have at night are clues about the future, because when i am at school the next day or a couples days from a dream i have had before, it is like deja vu to me. I think it’s pretty weird. Dreams are trying to warn us ahead of time sometimes, but some people don’t pay attention to it. I think that science will answer any question man or nature has to come. Science is a never ending cycle for man kind, there will never be a question that can’t be answered.

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- Permalink # projectmayhem1nas said
  
  wow. such post. very read. wow.
  
  Reply
  - Permalink # projectmayhem1nas said
    
    I am commenting again to make the number of comments even.
  - Permalink # JOELCLARY said
    
    Shut up Nathaniel!!!! >:P
  - Permalink # JOELCLARY said
    
    Ahaaaaaaaa!!!! Not Happening!!!!
Permalink # austinmp88 said

I believe that science does in fact have an answer or a potential answer for everything in due time. Everything is explainable I believe. I understand that some things require extreme calculations and time to explain. Science has not been around long enough to explain all things as of now but I do believe that eventually the biggest questions humans have will be answered by science. I believe that science will be able to answer all questions because I believe that there is an explanation for all things and with enough time these questions could be answered.

Richard Dawkins answered the question that we are all related as distant cousins.
“Two multiplied by itself forty times comes to more than a thousand trillion. Yet the total population of the world at that time was only around three hundred million. Even today the population is seven billion, yet we have just worked out that a thousand years ago your ancestors alone were more than 150 times as numerous.”(http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/)
I agree with his explanation because I think the logic is quite simple. There were not enough people to have completely unique ancestors.

David Eaglemen explains why we can’t tickle ourselves.
“One of its(brain) main tasks is to try to make good guesses about what’s going to happen next.”
I agree with this because unexpected things, regardless of their actually value always add to their impact. I often try to think what will happen soon instead of thinking about what is currently happening. It makes sense that my brain would be doing the same on a smaller level.

Lawrence Krauss says that we are made up of stardust.
“Hydrogen, oxygen and carbon are three of the most important elements in your body.[…]
How did those elements get into our bodies? The only way they could have got there, to make up all the material on our Earth, is if some of those stars exploded a long time ago, spew- ing all the elements from their cores into space.”
I believe that we are made up of stardust because it explains how the elements necessary could have traveled to earth.

Obviously I have no way of knowing for sure on any of these questions but these reasons sound more logical than the other explanations I’ve heard so I choose to believe them.

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Permalink # philipeh842 said

Science can potentially answer every question dealing with the physical world. Any scientist would tell you that you cannot 100% disprove something, even if there is no evidence supporting it. For example, the question “Do people have souls?” cannot really be answered by science because there is no way to measure the existence of a soul (as far as I know). Questions like that will only be answered based on a person’s openness to believe something without evidence, also known as faith. Science may be able to convince people that faith is irrational, but that may take a very long time, if ever.
“Every marriage is between more or less distant cousins, who already share lots and lots of ancestors before they have children of their own. By the same kind of argument, we are distant cousins not only of all human beings but of all animals and plants. You are a cousin of my dog and of the lettuce you had for lunch, and of the next bird that you see fly past the window. You and I share ancestors with all of them.”-Richard Dawkins http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
Coincidentally, I been listening to a lot of Richard Dawkins lately. I agree with his explanation about everyone being related because it makes logical sense. It a good reverse way of explaining evolution and how the further back in time we go, the more different and numerous are ancestors are.
“In fact, it seems to be just as easy to fall in love with someone after you’ve married them as before, which seems the wrong way round. And here’s another odd thing. When we are in love, we can trick ourselves into thinking the other person is perfect. Of course, no one is really perfect. But the more perfect we find each other, the longer our love will last.”-Robin Dubar
I agree with Dubar’s scientific explanation of how we fall in love with brain chemistry, even though it does take away some of the mystery of love that appeals to some people. It seems obvious that you are just as likely to fall in love when you are married, but it is difficult to accept because of how we think about marriage and monogamy being the right way. I think the thing about being tricked to believe someone is perfect is true to a certain extent, but what really makes for a long term relationship is accepting the ways someone is not perfect.

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Permalink # rahnia527 said

I believe that science has the answer to almost anything and eventually everything. without science where would we be? the idea of science has a major impact on the world we live in helping us understand it more (if we decide to believe it ) and also bringing new technologies into it.
‘Because your brain is always predicting your own actions, and how your body will feel as a result, you cannot tickle yourself. Other people can tickle you because they can surprise you. You can’t predict what their tickling actions will be’
“[…]

In the olden days, people believed that our dreams were full of clues about the future. Nowadays, we tend to think that dreams are a way for the mind to rearrange and tidy itself up after the activities of the day”

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
I agree with these two because these two to me you could experiment with or you can try these on or deal with on any ordinary day. the stardust one kind of threw me off because how would I know that billions of years ago star exploded and trickled down blah blah and formed the solar system and the sun . Im not saying science cant prove it and I don’t believe it , it is just that I agree with these to more.
so for the tickling yourself situation I see it like this. I would compare it to someone blowing you horn in you ear and scaring you and then you blowing a horn and not scare you . that’s not one of the best comparison but agreeing with david eagleman you predict whats going to happen when your like doing something …your brain is I would say ahead of your body actions
” Why You Dream?
I agree with alain de botton answer because there are times when my dream coincided with the day I had and to like refresh it from what all went down that certain day. but I also think that dreams could be like clues of the future but I think its a rarity.

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Permalink # sydneymcd said

For the most part, I believe science can answer many of the questions we come across in our daily lives.There are many theories and explanations as the common answers to many of our problems.
One example of scientific answers given from the link is neuroscientist David Eagleman on why we cannot tickle ourselves. Eagleman says, “Because your brain is always predicting your own actions, and how your body will feel as a result, you cannot tickle yourself.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/) This is a very simple answer to a common question. In this case science has found a legitimate theory for why we cannot tickle ourselves.
A second example comes from particle physicist and cosmologist Lawrence Krauss, “The only way they could have got there, to make up all the material on our Earth, is if some of those stars exploded a long time ago, spewing all the elements from their cores into space.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/) Yet again, this is a very simple explanation of what humans were made from.
I am not claiming that these theories are true, but these are both examples of what we believe to be true because of scientific fact and research. How do we know that this is the correct explanation though? WE DON’T. That is why in life it is your duty to figure things out for yourself, find what you want to believe, and believe it.
Questions that I do not believe science will be able to answer are things related to the verification of religion, morals, and ethics. While there may be scientific explanations for these things, you cannot answer question pertaining to these things for people. It is a very touchy area and people will always not let science prove them wrong. They will always believe that what they think is the best way. Plus how can you tell someone that their personal virtues and values are wrong? YOU CAN’T.

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- Permalink # projectmayhem1nas said
  
  your personal virtues and values are wrong
  
  Reply
Permalink # Jonathan Griffin said

So far, it seems as if there is a consensus on the idea that science can, or will be able to, prove almost everything, or anything. Based on my past blog posts, I am one to fall into the category of indecisiveness, meaning that I will be taking the middle ground here as well. The left side of my brain wants me to believe that science will, one day, be able to prove everything while the right side of my brain wants me to believe that science will not be able to do that. It feels as if the left and right sides of my brain are fighting each other. Which one is right… or left? (haha)
For this blog post, I’ll just simply keep tally of how many questions are answered by science and how many questions are not answered by science in “Big Questions from Little People and Simple Answers from Great Minds”. This way, I’ll be able to “pick a side” in this blog.
In the first quote, Botton describes what we – the human race – believed dreams to be in the past and what we believe they are now. He states that dreams are measure used by the brain to “file and sort” all of its knowledge. Now, I’m just spit-balling here, but it seems to me that this is scientifically proven, so 1 point for the left side of the brain. 1-0
Richard Dawkins proves that I am a cousin to everybody I’ve ever met. While this seems unlikely at first, I do believe him because (1) he makes logical sense with his argument and (2) I’ve read many articles about this topic. Again, point for the left side of the brain. 2-0
Eagleman discusses the reasoning behind the scientific fact of how we are not able to tickle ourselves. I have to hand it to Eagleman; he makes sense… plus I tried to tickle myself right after I read his quote and it didn’t work. Another point for the left side of the brain. 3-0
Krauss proves with her argument that we are all made of stardust. I wonder why all of these scientists are making sense… With her logical argument, she earn the left side of the brain another point. 4-0
Winterson had to break the left side’s streak. While her response about why we fall in love was indeed “poetic”, it did not scientifically prove why we fall in love – but I did like her answer. 4-1
Dunbar explains what goes on in the brain when we are in love. With big words like dopamine and oxytocin, it must be scientifically proven. 5-1
That’s all. the final score was 5-1, with the left side of the brain over the right. So, I expect you to believe that I will now side with the left side, but I won’t. This entire game I played was kind of a “left side of the brain” invention, so obviously the left side of the brain would win. It makes the most logical sense for it to win. Science prevailed 5 out of 6 times. That’s an 83% success rate! But I believe that science failed to answer the most important question: Why do we love? Love is the most important element in all life – screw hydrogen, oxygen, and carbon. Love is why the human race was able to thrive and become the dominant race on the earth. This is question that science will probably never be able to answer… and it’s okay. We, as a society, don’t need it answered. We just need to know that we love. Once both sides of the brain realize that, then there will be no more fighting between the two.

Namaste 🙂

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- Permalink # projectmayhem1nas said
  
  ^ perhaps my favorite blog post of any blog post done by any of our classmates in both of our years doing this.
  
  I could be wrong.
  
  Reply
Permalink # Morgan Fender said

I think science can answer almost anything in the physical world. The things that we can see, hear, and touch could obviously be proved easier than emotional or spiritual things. Pretty much everything in the world has been proved one way or another by science, so just think: Where in the world would we be without science?

“What happens when we fall in love is probably one of the most difficult things in the whole universe to explain.” said Robin Dunbar. http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
I think there will always be questions that are yet to be answered, and love is one of them right now. Nobody in the world has a clear explanation of what happens in our brains when we fall in love. But honestly, I kind of think its better when we don’t know absolutely everything. I mean, yeah you want to know about stuff in our world, but I think there should always be some mysteries in the world. If we figure out everything that happens in our brain when we fall in love, then there will no longer be that part of life that we don’t know about. and i think we should leave it that way.

I also don’t think we will ever prove anything spiritually. People will believe what they want to believe, and you can’t just go tell someone what they’ve believed in their families for generations isn’t true.
“One side, science, describes our outer world while the other side, spirituality, describes our inner world.”
http://www.prlog.org/11064536-can-science-prove-spirituality-ways-in-which-the-scientific-world-is-proving-the-once-thought-unprov.html
Spiritual and scientific beliefs are on total opposite sides of the spectrum. I don’t believe science will ever fully prove anything spiritually, and some of these scientists in the world need to stop making up solutions to prove their point. (im not saying the scientists in this article)

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Permalink # littlejohndomanetrio said

I think that science does have an answer for everything. Everything that we know about the world has come from science. There is an explanation for everything and science helps us find the explanation. Science has an huge impact on our world it just helps us find potential answers to the unknown. http://WWW.BRAINPICKINGS.ORG/INDEX.PHP/2012/11/05/BIG-QUESTIONS-FROM-LITTLE-PEOPLE/
I agree that the dreams we have at night are clues about the future. i believe this because when i dream, most of them become reality. So i always that that dreams were visions. Im sure that science can answer the question “Do dreams become reality?”

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Permalink # courtneydanielle2014 said

Right now, science has not answered every single question. They have answered a lot of questions that people have had for years. Like how do we fall in love.

Robin Dunbar says:”First of all, we know that love sets off really big changes in how we feel. We feel all light-headed and emotional. We can be happy and cry with happiness at the same time. Suddenly, some things don’t matter any more and the only thing we are interested in is being close to the person we have fallen in love with.”
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/

Science has proven that. I believe soon they will find out how we pick that one person that we fall in love with. Hopefully in my lifetime. So Science does have a potential answer for everything. (:

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Permalink # Aislinn Nantz said

“In the olden days, people believed that our dreams were full of clues about the future. Nowadays, we tend to think that dreams are a way for the mind to rearrange and tidy itself up after the activities of the day.” (From Alain de Botton explores why we have dreams) I do not know about the olden days but I do agree with what she says about today. When you sleep I believe that is when your brain takes its time to sort through everything that has happen that day in the past and anything that has been troubling you. “You don’t fall in love like you fall in a hole. You fall like falling through space. It’s like you jump off your own private planet to visit someone else’s planet. And when you get there it all looks different.” (From how do we fall in love? Author Jeanette Winterson offers this breathlessly poetic response) I guess I can say I agree with her. I wouldn’t say it’s like jumping off a planet but it is a strong feeling/emotion. Falling in love I would say is just knowing in your heart that you don’t want anyone else but that one person to be your partner throughout life. I think science will never be able to explain religion. I just don’t see it happening because, for one there are so many religions. Two because religion is a belief and science cant change beliefs so what’s the point in studying it?

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Permalink # suarez05j said

Science may not have the answer to everything, but because of science we know a lot of stuff we didn’t know years ago. There are things, nonetheless, that science simply can’t prove. “Why are dreams sometimes scary? During the day, things may happen that frighten us, but we are so busy we don’t have time to think properly about them. At night, while we are sleeping safely, we can give those fears a run around. Or maybe something you did during the day was lovely but you were in a hurry and didn’t give it time. It may pop up in a dream. In dreams, you go back over things you missed, repair what got damaged, make up stories about what you’d love, and explore the fears you normally put to the back of your mind.” http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
I agree with this assumption because sometimes nightmares tend to deal with whatever we saw during the day, like a scary movie, etc. While watching a scary movie, you might not seem as scared but when it’s time to sleep, your scared and have possible nightmares.

“Because your brain is always predicting your own actions, and how your body will feel as a result, you cannot tickle yourself. Other people can tickle you because they can surprise you. You can’t predict what their tickling actions will be.” http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
I’ve never thought about the fact that we can’t tickle our selves. I agree with this answer. Reading something coming from high level scientists, makes it hard to not believe what their assumptions are.

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Permalink # hkwoodie95 said

I think, in time, science will have an answer to everything. It would be easy to disagree, however, the evidence presents itself. “But science does allow us to say a little bit about what happens when we fall in love. First of all, we know that love sets off really big changes in how we feel. We feel all light-headed and emotional. We can be happy and cry with happiness at the same time. Suddenly, some things don’t matter any more and the only thing we are interested in is being close to the person we have fallen in love with.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/)
Such a simple question, before not thought of to be answered with science. Now though, with science a prevalent part of society, simple questions can be answered with science.

Also, the question of what do our dreams mean has been answered with science. “In the olden days, people believed that our dreams were full of clues about the future. Nowadays, we tend to think that dreams are a way for the mind to rearrange and tidy itself up after the activities of the day.
”(http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/)
This is another simple thing that has been answered by science. Based on this article, i can see the potential of everything being answered with science. This is because such simple questions such as How do we fall in love and What do our dreams mean, have been answered with science. However, I do believe that this will take some time.

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Permalink # sayrehopper said

I do believe that science can attempt to answer most of our questions about anything and everything. Whether they are right or wrong is just something that we have to decide for ourselves. Of course some questions are easier to answer and prove than other questions.

When Neuroscientist David Eagleman gives his explanation on why we can’t tickle ourselves, he explains that our brains are always trying to predict how our bodies will react to certain situations and, therefore, preventing us from being able to tickle ourselves. Though this answer is simple, it makes sense and most of us will believe it because science has proven it. The same goes for the explanation of how we fall in love. When evolutionary psychologist and sociologist Robin Dunbar explained how love releases chemicals that allows for us to fall in love, we tend to believe it because science can prove it by showing it on brain scanning machines. http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/

When things can be reasonably and logically proven, we can better believe it. But for the more touchy subjects, like religion and ethics, people are more reluctant to believe anything that tries to prove against what they believe. These are the questions that are harder for science to answer

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Permalink # jaybyrd40 said

First off I do believe that science does have an answer or at least a potential answer for everything although I may disagree with its legitimacy. I am open minded enough to accept other peoples beliefs and I won’t argue against them if they are sincere and fight a good case in their beliefs. Although all of the questions are answered and provide a good argument I don’t necessarily agree with the theories on love and the theories on creation. All of the questions made me think outside the box more than usual and I agreed with the theories of dreams, tickling ourselves, and generations. I feel that all of the questions are reasonable questions that are given actual answers although I feel like they could vary from person to person based on opinion. In conclusion I think science can answer all questions legitimately and strongly but I feel like some questions will never be answered with one specific answer.
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
(Website cites questions and answers I stated my opinion on about dreams, tickling ourselves, generations, love, and creation.)

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Permalink # ♕Princess Maddie✨ (@GingerMaddie722) said

Science answers a lot of questions reasonably, however some questions are answered more vaguely in the form of theories. I believe that scientists will attempt to answer all questions in the future, nothing is beyond their limits. I cannot say whether or not they will answer these questions successfully. I’d say that science can’t answer questions about religion, they can only provide theories, but to some people, the theories are the correct answer. I know what I believe, and I know that things I believe most likely, will not be found in a science text book. However, everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I respect that.

(http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/)

I agree with Richard Dawkins and his answer about cousin marriages. The math behind that explanation was understandable and I can see where the idea came from. Science does answer that question.

Neuroscientist David Eagleman’s response to why we can’t tickle ourselves was logical. I think science was able to answer this question as well. I’ve always wondered that actually, and the explanation satisfied me.

Jeanette Winterson’s explanation on how we fall in love didn’t seem scientific to me. Maybe I missed the point, but in my opinion, this particular explanation seemed more like literature and art.

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Permalink # catherinebynum said

I do not believe that science can answer everything. Yes, it can answer many trivial things like how we have dreams, or why we can’t tickle ourselves, but there are also things that can’t be answered, like why we fall in love with a specific person. “Because your brain is always predicting your own actions, and how your body will feel as a result, you cannot tickle yourself.” -David Eagleman, why we can’t tickle ourselves. “In dreams, you go back over things you missed, repair what got damaged, make up stories about what you’d love, and explore the fears you normally put to the back of your mind.”-Alain de Botton on why we have dreams. These explanations answer our questions as to why we have dreams, and why we can’t tickle ourselves, but then again, it could be something else. Putting all trust into science puts as much faith into the scientists as a religious person puts into their beliefs. So many people rely on science rather than having religious belief, not realizing that believing science is requiring them to take a leap of faith just like a religion would. Science provides answers, and lets us rest easy at night because we “know” why something happens, or how it works, but do we really know that? If science provides every answer, then why are there so many hypotheses about how certain things work? “But all this doesn’t explain why you fall in love with a particular person. And that is a bit of a mystery, since there seems to be no good reason for our choices.” -Robin Dunbar, what goes on inside the brain when we love. Robin Dunbar actually says that why we fall in love with certain people is a mystery. Maybe science will never figure that out. I also agree with Morgan Fender that science will not answer spiritual and emotional questions. It is more likely to answer physical questions.

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Permalink # thatgirldeven said

Obviously, scientists have answered many of our pending questions, but I don not believe that there are somethings that not even science can explain. From the article I read, it was stating many easy-to-understand answers to the most frequently asked questions. These were very intriguing and I loved the way they explained them.
“Nowadays, we tend to think that dreams are a way for the mind to rearrange and tidy itself up after the activities of the day.”
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
Of course there were some questionable statements made such as the topic of evolution.
“By the same kind of argument, we are distant cousins not only of all human beings but of all animals and plants. You are a cousin of my dog and of the lettuce you had for lunch, and of the next bird that you see fly past the window. You and I share ancestors with all of them. But that is another story.”
This explanation doesn’t quite make sense to me, nor does it lead me to believe that it’s true.
But the ultimate point I’m trying to prove is that science may give us answers most of the time, there are millions of questions left unanswered. Can a scientist tell me what the meaning of life is? His meaning could be totally different from mine. Even the article had a few lines where it said that science didn’t have the answer.
“But all this doesn’t explain why you fall in love with a particular person. And that is a bit of a mystery, since there seems to be no good reason for our choices.”
Science only means what you want it to mean, and can only let it affect you as you want it to. If you choose to rely of your beliefs instead of scientific explanation, well, that’s YOUR science.But in the end,we all want answers, and science is doing it’s best to do that for us.

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Permalink # @therealaaronrohlman said

There is always going to be controversy over whether or not science can answer everything. I unlike most of my other classmates think that science cannot answer everything.

I do agree with the first answer on why humans dream. The brain does so much during the day that it does need time to rest and I agree with Botton in saying that dreams are simply the mind sorting through things that happened during the day that we did not consciously register. It makes sense that our brains need rest. After all they do so much during the day that it would make sense that the brain needs rest.

The answer about why we cannot tickle ourselves is actually pretty amazing. Eagleman proves that our brain does try to forsee the future by providing prime examples such as us leaning how to ride a bike and getting used to it. He appeals to the logical side of the brain, and that is one of the ways that we can know things.

I don’t have enough faith to believe that we are all made of stardust though. Just tell me how likely it sounds that: stars explode, they condense, forms the perfect distance from the sun so its not too hot or too cold, then form an atmosphere that is composed of the exactly right concentration of nitrogen, oxygen and other gasses, too much oxygen and we would blow up, not enough and we die, then after all that life comes from nothing, we evolve from an amoeba into the only thing intelligent enough to be writing on this computer. My logic is actually against this argument which is why I do not believe it. My emotions are for it as well which helps me disbelieve it.

Many of our questions can be solved by science. But much of life is still left to question. As of right now, I can’t really think about questions that science cannot answer. But, prior to class Monday I will ponder this and hopefully have some questions you all can enjoy.

Adios, hasta luego

Aaron R. Rohlman

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- Permalink # projectmayhem1nas said
  
  The Bible says that people come from dust; is it not possible that it was stardust?
  
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Permalink # dreamcatcher62 said

I believe science can answer some questions, but other quetions are answered in different ways. Sometimes by theories and other times depends on peoples beliefs.In my opinion science cannot answer all the questions. I do agree with dawkins and that other guys answers with the cousin marriage and the whole tickle thing. It seems logical but that ladies explanation with the whole love thing doesnt quite fit with me. It doesnt prove anything to me. (http://WWW.BRAINPICKINGS.ORG/INDEX.PHP/2012/11/05/BIG-QUESTIONS-FROM-LITTLE-PEOPLE/)

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Permalink # haleighhh15 said

I believe that any question can have an answer. However, it might not be 100% right. Any question about a physical thing can be answered through proven science. But if we ask question like “Is God real?’ It is impossible to prove.

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Permalink # candersonbaseball said

I agree that science has an answer or potential answer for everything.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/I agree with the answer given by the question, why we have dreams. I do believe that dreams are just a rewind of your day to see more things closer or events that you didn’t have time to study them because you was to busy during the day. Its just a closer overlook on things you missed during the day.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/I agree with the answer given by the question, why we cant tickle are self. you cant tickle yourself because you already know when its coming. For example, you cant get scared when you know what and when something is going to pop out. It has to be unexpected. I think science has answered this quiet well.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/I potentially agree with the answer given by the question. why were all made of stardust. its just to big to take in, and really hard to understand how stardust creates life. Like Arron Rohlman said, it has to be prefect conditions for it to even start to process of life. Its to big of a idea to understand. Just go out side, pick up some dirt and say to your self, this will create a healthy living, breathing human, all by its self.

Science (not now) will have a potential answer for everything. Just look at all the things we have discovered and the universe and the human body and this is just the beginning.

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Permalink # candersonbaseball said

This is a add on to my main body. The question that science will never answer I think is, what is your purpose here? Only you have the power to made that decision.

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Permalink # alexandrashines said

No, I don’t think science has an answer for everything. I believe it has an answer for most things but not all things. I have yet to have a boyfriend who can take me seriously, can science answer that? I don’t think so. Girls stay talking about each other, can science answer that? I don’t think so. But if a scientist reads this & can answer these questions, please let me know. Because as far as I’m concerned, sometimes people gotta figure things out on their own. Simple as that.

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Permalink # erinthebabe said

Science can always have an answer for anything, but it does not necessarily mean that it is true. Some things can’t always be proven. For the question “what goes on inside the brain when we love” I agree with it because it talks about the releasing of the chemicals in our brains and I have actually experienced this in my life, including the statement that “the right side of your brain gets very busy. The right side is the bit that seems to be especially important for our emotions. Language, on the other hand, gets done almost completely in the left side of the brain. And this is one reason why we find it so difficult to talk about our feelings and emotions” I have experienced that too. The question “ why we can’t tickle ourselves” I don’t really agree with. Someone can tickle themselves by not purposely meaning too and not giving the brain time to predict, and I’m sure there are some people that can tickle themselves, so this doesn’t really apply to all. I do believe that there are some questions that scientists may not be able to prove completely, but I can’t actually think of any questions that they have already answered one way or another. Some things are not meant to be proven.

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Permalink # annagumpi said

i think there are so many question which no one can anwser now. So many question which are open. For example the dreams, what is a dream really and are there really like toughts about your own life or is it more like wishes, and the only think what you really want.
i dont think so that someone really can answer this question because noone can know what is going on in your own head and you by yourself can not answer this question either because youare a sleep that time and dont feel it. Sometime i think that a dream is real but then a wake up and get that it is only a dream. Thats a question which i wanna have the anwer since a Long time.
another question is the question about the past, about history, are you really know that, that is the way how it´s happend?
There are somany question which are open and no onecan answer it…
and more questions will coming in the future

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Permalink # animallover5544 said

Science does have an answer for a lot of things but there are some things that science will never answer. “Language, on the other hand, gets done almost completely in the left side of the brain. And this is one reason why we find it so difficult to talk about our feelings and emotions: the language areas on the left side can’t send messages to the emotional areas on the right side very well. So we get stuck for words, unable to describe our feelings.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/) I agree with this statement because I have noticed when people first fall in love, they do not know how to express their feelings through words. I believe action speaks louder than words, so to me showing someone you care is more important than trying to come up with words to express your feelings. “Dreams are both more exciting and more frightening than daily life. They’re a sign that our brains are marvelous machines — and that they have powers we don’t often give them credit for, when we’re just using them to do our homework or play a computer game. Dreams show us that we’re not quite the bosses of our own selves.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/) I agree because our brains are the control center of ourselves. The brain controls signals that tell our body to move, and the brain controls our emotions. Dreams are wonderful and scary at the same time, because they show us our inner selves and inner desires. There will always be questions that science will try to answer but never will. Our world still has tricks and secrets that will stay secret. Science can not tell us everything and that just adds to the wonder and mystery that has characterized our world for millenniums.

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Permalink # karinalimon8 said

I think that science has a potential answer to everything but that doesn’t always mean it’s true. Science has many theories about a lot of things and there’s also a lot of things they can’t prove for sure. Neuroscientist David Eagleman said, “Because your brain is always predicting your own actions, and how your body will feel as a result, you cannot tickle yourself. Other people can tickle you because they can surprise you. You can’t predict what their tickling actions will be.” I agree with him because it’s a very logical answer. Even though I think science can answer many questions logically I don’t believe they can answer every single question.

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Permalink # DEAN GAMBLE said

Does science have an answer, or a potential answer, for everything? Read some of the following explanations, written by scientists, to kids’ questions. Cite a few of the answers and express whether you agree or disagree. Why or why not? What questions do you think that science will never answer and if none, why?

Does Science answer everything?

I agree that science will answer everything. For example, why are dreams sometimes scary? During the day, things may happen that frighten us, but we are so busy we don’t have time to think properly about them. At night, while we are sleeping safely, we can give those fears a run around. I agree that this is true when I was younger I see that would scare me and I would have dreams later that night that would scare me. Yes, we are all related. Science proves that all came from one birth mother. You are a (probably distant) cousin of the Queen, and of the president of the United States, and of me. You and I are cousins of each other. Everybody has two parents. That means, since each parent had two parents of their own, that we all have four grandparents. Then, since each grandparent had to have two parents, everyone has eight great-grandparents, and sixteen great- great-grandparents and thirty-two great-great-great-grandparents and so on. To understand why, you need to know more about how your brain works. One of its main tasks is to try to make good guesses about what’s going to happen next. While you’re busy getting on with your life, walking downstairs or eating your breakfast, parts of your brain are always trying to predict the future.
Remember when you first learned how to ride a bicycle? At first, it took a lot of concentration to keep the handlebars steady and push the pedals. But after a while, cycling became easy. Now you’re not aware of the movements you make to keep the bike going. From experience, your brain knows exactly what to expect so your body rides the bike automatically. Your brain is predicting all the movements you need to make.
You only have to think consciously about cycling if something changes — like if there’s a strong wind or you get a flat tyre. When something unexpected happens like this, your brain is forced to change its predictions about what will happen next. If it does its job well, you’ll adjust to the strong wind, leaning your body so you don’t fall.
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
These researchers found that the lineage of all people alive today falls on one of two branches in humanity’s family tree.
http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/evolution/female-ancestor.htm

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Permalink # SEth said

I believe that science does not explain everything. As Cander Conneor said you cannot answer the question for why we are here right now. People have different answers but you can’t prove it. Science is man-made and no man is considered perfect so therefore science can’t answer EVERYTHING. Here is an example i found on the google. Can science explain why whales sing? Yes they can, but do they know what a whale is singing? No, so therefore science cannot explain EVERYTHING.

http://debatewise.org/debates/2124-can-science-explain-everything/

Also another thing that science can’t explain is that no one knows what is going to happen in the future.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/

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Permalink # marykiser said

Does science have an answer, or a potential answer, for everything?
Discussing these types of things in theory of knowledge, makes you really think about the ‘right’ answer to these types of questions. As a kid, you want to know so many questions dealing with things we think are so simple to explain now that we are older, but honestly they are not.
I do not think science necessarily has a CORRECT answer for everything. For example, in the link posted a question of, “What goes on in the brain when we love?” & “How do we fall in love?” You can argue for days on this point, because with the questions of “What goes on in the brain when we fall in love?” It states, “Different parts of the brain light up on the screen, depending on what the brain is doing. When people are in love, the emotional bits of their brains are very active, lighting up. But other bits of the brain that are in charge of more sensible thinking are much less active than normal.” This is something you can partake on the part of science answering the question of love. But, at the same time is this REALLY what happens we fall in love, or is it just fate?
“But all this doesn’t explain why you fall in love with a particular person. And that is a bit of a mystery, since there seems to be no good reason for our choices … But the more perfect we find each other, the longer our love will last.” How can you say falling in love is within a scientific explanation when the main part of falling in love, is whom you fall in love with.
Getting off the topic of love, you can relate to different posts in the article like, “Why can’t we tickle ourselves?” Now, I think this questions is more apart of a scientific explanation rather than love. “Because your brain is always predicting your own actions, and how your body will feel as a result, you cannot tickle yourself. Other people can tickle you because they can surprise you. You can’t predict what their tickling actions will be.”
I don’t think science has an answer for everything, but it does for lots of things. Just like how other topics can have just as a reasonable explanation for things.

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Permalink # zacht27 said

Science by definition is: the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.

Because science is the study of the physical and natural world, it, by nature, is limited to answering questions about the physical and natural world, and thus cannot answer questions about the supernatural world, such as on topics like the existence of a supernatural deity. That is to say, it is not that those questions cannot be answered using ANY form of logic, just not scientific logic.

In the physical realm, however, there are still questions which science has failed to answer and may never answer. For example, science cannot prove exactly what dreams are and why we have them, making dreams a somewhat controversial issue. Some psychologists would say that dreams are a result of randomly firing neurons that compensate for the lack of neurological stimulation during sleep. Others, notably Freudians, would agree with philosopher Alain de Botton’s explanation that dreams are a product of our subconscious.

Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins’ explanation of how we are all related is what I would call scientific, as it employs the use of mathematics. Because proper arithmetic is always right, mathematically proving a physical phenomenon counts as scientifically proving the theory.

I cannot comment on the validity of neuroscientist David Eagleman’s explanation of why we cannot tickle ourselves, as I am not very knowledgeable on the scientific truths regarding this phenomenon, and thus don’t know whether this is a proven fact, a theory widely accepted by the scientific community, or just one theory among multiple. Seems legit.

http://WWW.BRAINPICKINGS.ORG/INDEX.PHP/2012/11/05/BIG-QUESTIONS-FROM-LITTLE-PEOPLE/

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Permalink # mcol987 said

I strongly agree with Sydney. I believe that while science can answer some things it can’t eexplain it all. Sure they can explain why most things happen but there isn’t always a clear reason for religious views your own morals. You can’t answer if abortion is right or wrong with science because that is something that you need to figure out for yourself.

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- Permalink # mcol987 said
  
  “Alain de Button explains why we have dreams…”http://www.brainpickings.org/INDEX.PHP/2012/11/05/BIG-QUESTIONS-FROM-LITTLE-PEOPLE/
  I feel like that is something that almost everyone can believe. It does not challenge most people’s beliefs and ethics and.moral code.
  
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Permalink # jhenninger78 said

I think science has an answer for everything. Many of the things we use in our everyday life have been made by science.
David Eaglemen explains why we can’t tickle ourselves.
“One of its(brain) main tasks is to try to make good guesses about what’s going to happen next.” I do not agree with this because it is possible to tickle your self.
“What happens when we fall in love is probably one of the most difficult things in the whole universe to explain.” said Robin Dunbar.
I think this is so true there is no way to explain exactly why or how you love someone. Another think is how can you tell the difference between the love for family and the love for a significant other? Science can explain many things just not everything.
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/

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Permalink # nixonbrandon said

I believe that scientist have the answer to almost everything. Some of the scientist theories can be true. almost everything we know about the world came from science. Science has a reason to almost everything.
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/
i agree with Alain de Botton that dreams are a way the mind to rearrange and tidy itself up after the activities of the day.

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Permalink # hopehayes said

I say yes science has a answer for the most part of everything! As it says in the article kids ask the and think of the simplest things I think as go into an adult you still want to know the answers for the simplest stuff science can explain! As said “Dreams are both more exciting and more frightening than daily life. They’re a sign that our brains are marvellous machines — and that they have powers we don’t often give them credit for, when we’re just using them to do our homework or play a computer game. Dreams show us that we’re not quite the bosses of our own selves.” Scientist are the ones who have studied and discovered this!
Without science we wouldn’t know a lot of what we do! Like why we fall in love or why we dream or just as simple as why we can talk, breath, and why we live! Science answers almost everything in life as much as the human knowledge will allow it. Why we fall in love “You don’t fall in love like you fall in a hole. You fall like falling through space. It’s like you jump off your own private planet to visit someone else’s planet. And when you get there it all looks different: the flowers, the animals, the colours people wear. It is a big surprise falling in love because you thought you had everything just right on your own planet, and that was true, in a way, but then somebody signalled to you across space and the only way you could visit was to take a giant jump. Away you go, falling into someone else’s orbit and after a while you might decide to pull your two planets together and call it home. And you can bring your dog. Or your cat. Your goldfish, hamster, collection of stones, all your odd socks. (The ones you lost, including the holes, are on the new planet you found.)”

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/

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Permalink # jameswilliamjohnson said

“You don’t fall in love like you fall in a hole. You fall like falling through space. It’s like you jump off your own private planet to visit someone else’s planet. And when you get there it all looks different: the flowers, the animals, the colours people wear. It is a big surprise falling in love because you thought you had everything just right on your own planet, and that was true, in a way, but then somebody signalled to you across space and the only way you could visit was to take a giant jump. “
That has got to be one of my favorite quotes. I believe science can not possibly answer all the questions of the world, well at least correctly. Some things will always be a mystery. This is largely due to beliefs. You can not possibly convince everyone in the world something is true if they have beliefs against it. This is because belief systems limit the way in which we think. The easy answer will also be that some being in the sky made it, or that is just how things are. Of course there will be scientist who such for a clearer meaning, but you can’t disprove anything. People will reject scientific finding if it doesn’t go along with their beliefs. It would take mental readjustment in order to do so. I don’t see anything like that happening anytime soon. Also I believe there is a limit to the human understanding and comprehension. We will hit a wall in which we can not climb for years. When we finally climb it we will hit another. The cycle will go on and on. So not all questions will be answered, but a lot of them will.

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Permalink # hoffmanalexis said

Science does have a answer for everything. Scientists are there to answer the questions of the unknown. Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, like problems connected with reality and the mind. Science is kind of the big daddy of subjects. Without it there wouldn’t be math, different languages, and most important history.

“In the olden days, people believed that our dreams were full of clues about the future. Nowadays, we tend to think that dreams are a way for the mind to rearrange and tidy itself up after the activities of the day.” http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/.

I agree with this 100%. Deja Vu does exist. You can dream of something one night and see it again somewhere in the future. I do believe your dreams show you what your future holds. Tiding your mind is way out of proportion.

I think science will be able to answer every question known to mankind. yes, scientists will stumble over a situation that will need time. but they will find a answer whether it is wrong or right.

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Permalink # kiawanna said

I do believe science has a lot of answers for a lot of stuff in the world but it doesn’t have answers to everything :
“Yes, we are all related. You are a (probably distant) cousin of the Queen, and of the president of the United States, and of me. You and I are cousins of each other. You can prove it to yourself”.
I do believe in this quote we are all related in some way
“You can go back any number of generations and work out the number of ancestors you must have had that same number of generations ago. All you have to do is multiply two by itself that number of times”.
So yes science does have an answer for a lot of things but not all

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Permalink # lamexicana96 said

I think science could potentially give an answer for everything relating to the natural world. There are some questions that require a person to have faith or just believe in the existence of something. I agree that you cannot completely disprove anything, but, at the same time, you cannot accept everything you read as fact. I do think the only questions science may never be able to give an answer for are those regarding a person’s spirit/soul (I’m not getting into proving whether or not a god exists). The answer to such a question lies in a person’s own beliefs.

“Yes, we are all related. You are a (probably distant) cousin of the Queen, and of the president of the United States, and of me. You and I are cousins of each other. You can prove it to yourself.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/) It’s no secret that all humans are decendents of one common ancestor, so I completely agree with this statement. It’s just that simple.

“Because your brain is always predicting your own actions, and how your body will feel as a result, you cannot tickle yourself. Other people can tickle you because they can surprise you. You can’t predict what their tickling actions will be.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/) I’m sure I’m not the only person who has ever tried to tickle themselves, only to find that you can’t. I’ve known for a while that it’s because your brain is already expecting it and there is no real threat. A person’s laugh when they are tickled does not mean they enjoy it, it is a pain and threat response. Your body is simply reacting to the threat.

“Everything in your body, and everything you can see around you, is made up of tiny objects called atoms. Atoms come in different types called elements. Hydrogen, oxygen and carbon are three of the most important elements in your body.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/) I don’t know what else to say other than that I agree with this. I have no counter argument or anything negative to say. Everything is made up of atoms and elements, so it is only natural that humans should be, too.

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Permalink # Kris Brown said

As to whether science can answer all of the world’s questions, I don’t know. I think I have to side with Caleb on that one. I really don’t think it’s right to assume that just because science has carried us this far that it will eventually solve every problem we have. That’s like saying that since your favorite sports team is on a winning streak, that there is no way they can ever lose again. It seems unreasonable. About the specific topics mentioned in the article, I believe the concept of dreaming is very complex. I think about it a lot. The more reasonable explanation of its purpose is the one presented by Alain de Botton. “Nowadays, we tend to think that dreams are a way for the mind to rearrange and tidy itself up after the activities of the day.” (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/)
The other explanation about dreams being an insight to the future seem illogical to me. I’m sure that we have all experience Deja vu before. The idea of being able to see the future sounds cool but it also seems unreasonable. The future is unpredictable. Are you where you thought you would be 5 years ago?

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Permalink # shaketalynch said

With how things have advanced so far due to science. I’d like to say yes, but then again, science has not necessarily discovered everything there is to yet be known, maybe that something not yet discovered cannot be explained through scientific means. However the things that science has been able to explain the working of is a feat very impressive. Like the understanding of how the human mind works, or how plants grow etc. SO i can say that science is well on it way to being able to explain just about everything. Just about.

“To understand why, you need to know more about how your brain works. One of its main tasks is to try to make good guesses about what’s going to happen next. While you’re busy getting on with your life, walking downstairs or eating your breakfast, parts of your brain are always trying to predict the future.
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/

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Permalink # projectmayhem1nas said

Science can not answer everything. Science can tell you why we can’t tickle ourselves, how we’re all related, what makes a person have a certain personality, or various other things that are ultimately meaningless, but it can not answer the questions of life. Sure, it can tell you about biology and how life functions and even give good guesses about where life came from, but the true questions of life, “what’s the point?” and “is there truth?”
it can not and does not answer.
I tend to agree with Leo Tolstoy when he says, “And I understood that those sciences are very interesting and attractive, but that they are exact and clear in inverse proportion to their applicability to the question of life: the less their applicability to the question of life, the more exact and clear they are, while the more they try to reply to the question of life, the more obscure and unattractive they become”
(here’s the entire chapter if you want to read it. It’s not long and I highly recommend it.)
http://www.online-literature.com/tolstoy/a-confession/5/

It seems to me that people who are giving examples of what science has founded i.e. why we can’t tickle ourselves or why we fall in love are completely missing the point. The question is, “does science have an answer or potential answer for everything?”
Since we can not know how much “everything” is, it is silly to give an example of what science claims to know when for all we know it is too small to be a speck of dust in comparison to “everything.” Considering that the questions of life, which by nature are more important than any question that science has answered, can not be answered by science, it is far more likely that there is more that science can not understand and can only pretend to know than what it ever will understand or claim to understand. Saying that science has discovered “a lot” or that their discoveries are “impressive” is nothing, because it is more likely that it has discovered very little and that its discoveries are unimpressive.
Science will continue to learn things about biology, technology, psychology, and plenty of other things that will make our existence easier, but it will never understand why our existence matters at all(or if it does.)

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- Permalink # JOELCLARY said
  
  you’re doing the most right now
  
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  - Permalink # projectmayhem1nas said
    
    explain
  - Permalink # JOELCLARY said
    
    that means you’re putting too much into your post, showing off your skills of illiteracy!!!! >:L
Permalink # madisonlineberger16 said

I feel like science kind of goes back and forth. Most of the time you here about potential answers. Like they could have a cute for cancer. Stories get leaked out and we think they are the solution until someone writes or tells us it isn’t through TV and newspaper. Sometimes the real thing is let out and it is a big deal. Even if it is completely crazy. Such as the world ending.

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Permalink # kiarasp said

I think Science has a potential answer for everything. For example, we did not need science to prove that we are all in some shape, way, or form related http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/11/05/big-questions-from-little-people/ . That’s what the bible is for. I am not the most religious person, but I believe everything happens for a reason. I believe science is something that gives people those reasons. Potentially I think science was made to give those who do not believe that everything happens for a reason, something to believe in. Science to me is like the God, of those without a religion. The bible could say that Adam was the first mad, but some individuals would not believe it because it is the Bible. However, if science says it, then it must be correct.

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