I dont see why its depressing, I think the whole subject is quite amazing actually.
I just can't cope with it, the thought of me being either ash or burried 6 feet under the ground scares me to death.
And that brings us to the origin of belief in an afterlife imo... people don't like to accept that once it's over, it's over.
Yep I have always felt that the people who follow that stuff just can't face up to realility. I don't know, I do have some evidence to support some kind of force or afterlive but it is not enough to proove it exists. Science is going in the direction which prooves there is no after life. However science good just be an illusion.
You can't prove a lack of afterlife. There are thought to be 11 dimensions in the universe, 4 of which we know pretty well. Maybe a part of us passes into another of these dimensions after the body ceases to function. Wait & see.
Once I'm dead they can do what they like with my remains. A more problematic question is what sort of service/ceremony. My own preference would be for anyone who remembers me to go down the pub for a few drinks, and to not have any formal service at all.
Yeah thats not a bad idea actually I certainly don't want a church service with some vicker who has never met me going on about what a wonderful person I was. I am very lucky that I have never been to a funeral although I should have really gone to my neighbours funeral last year as he fixed my bike for me all the time when I was a kid. I have a rule with funerals though, I only go unless I really have to, i.e a mate or close family. Just another really rather strange though what do you think will happen to your hard disk when you're gone. I mean they are largely personal things, I wouldn't really want my relatives finding my internet history and reading what I saw on forums etc.
Fortunately the only one of my relatives with the computer savvy to find my internet history a) lives several hundred miles away and b) is a very broad-minded bloke. I suppose you could include in your will a request that your heirs perform a solemn format:c ritual before burying your hard drive six feet under.
nice pun at the end. You cant really loose. If there is something then great, if there isnt you wont know anything about it.
Just put your life into perspective. Most, if not all of us is thousands of years old, we merely borrow our bodies for an amazingly short time. In the grand scheme of things us humans have existed for about 0.5% of the Earths history at present, if a clock face represented the earths history we wouldnt even fill a second. I wouldnt really worry about your funeral, thats for family and friends, you've had your fraction of time and now your carried off to be used by something or someone else! I think its great. Regarding the afterlife, many scientists do believe in something else, Albert was a huge believer in God. There are so many unanswered questions, we havnt even figured out how the world started, theories gallore but absolutely no evidence at all.
Absolutely right I can't. However, Blessed are the pessimists for they shall never be disappointed. Anything more than I think and that's a bonus.
It's actually far less than that, isn't it? There is a lot of evidence in support of the big bang theory.
I think its difficult to be sure coz its based on the age of the earth, the first signs of life appear to be precambrian fossils found by john mason (well actually by an australian guy 10 years earlier but everyone thought he was mad). These are estimated to be 500 million years old, but I think this is an educated guess as much as anything. I think the big bang theory seems to be the most accepted method of creation but in my very limited opinion most theories have for and against arguments. If it flipped Einstein out it must be hard going!
To me, one of the most intriguing thoughts is that atoms (apart from those subject to nuclear fission) ae indestructible, so every atom that originally was is still here. So, you are made of the stuff of stars. And who knows? You may have atoms that once belonged to someone famous. Boadicea? Elizabeth I? Genghis Khan? George Washington? Half the cast of The Black and White Minstrel Show? (Naturally no popes, as they end up in solitary confinement, as it were). Anyway, good job we can't identify them, otherwise there could be a black market in collectors' atoms.
This also happens here AFAIC. I've never been to a funeral either (almost 30 now), so have got off fairly lightly. However, as I'm a morbid sod, I'll say this; I didn't think the first funeral I'd attend would be my dad's, but since he's terminal, it seems likely The REALLY morbid thing is - the poor guy's actually planned all the stuff out and everything's in place. I think most of us are lucky in knowing that we DON'T know how much time we have left; dad knows he's got between 0 and 18 months (was 6 months-2 years back in November). Terminal bone cancer - not nice BTW - I heard that if you have rare abnormalities, you can sell your body to medical science (rather than donate it) and they'll pay you up-front, so long as you sign a contract. Is this true, as I have a 1 in 100000 syndrome with very strange bone/teeth abnormalities - I might be worth some cash (and I'm skint at the mo!). If not - I'll go with Albertos Y Los Trios Paranoias (see below signoff!). Personally I reckon we get recycled - reincarnated or summat. Pitch black just doesn't seem plausable...
Why not? To me it's more plausible than any other possibility. A creature of a certain genetic makeup is born, acts on instinct, learns from experiences, dies. Same whether it's a human or a mouse or a flea. Consciousness is simply a by-product of excess brain capacity, and is terminated at death. All the science fiction stories of people copying their minds into computers or new clones of themselves are all very well, but even in that case the stream of consciousness is broken. The original dies, and a new one with the same experiences (artificially inserted) lives a life... as far as the original is concerned they are still dead. The problem with the pitch-black theory is that it's a scary one. People don't like the idea of it, not least because of the inevitability of it. No matter how long you live, it will end the same way.
