OMG, a scientific GENIUS has E-mailed me!

SLAM: debunk creationism, pseudoscience, and superstitions. Discuss logic and morality.

Moderator: Alyrium Denryle

User avatar
Utsanomiko
The Legend Rado Tharadus
Posts: 5079
Joined: 2002-09-20 10:03pm
Location: My personal sanctuary from the outside world

Post by Utsanomiko »

Ah fuck, late night fuckup (Quoted instead of edited). On the 4:20.
By His Word...
User avatar
Chris OFarrell
Durandal's Bitch
Posts: 5724
Joined: 2002-08-02 07:57pm
Contact:

Re: OMG, a scientific GENIUS has E-mailed me!

Post by Chris OFarrell »

TheBlackCat wrote: *snip*

You know, I would think if the degree is designed just to give a wide base in science and enginering subjects, that it would emphisise the scientific method to the point of pounding it into peoples skulls.

The fact that this guy is completly opposed to the idea makes me think he IS BS'ing completly about it.

I bet he wanted to claim he had a degree in Quantum mechanics, then saw how Mike laughed at people who ALWAYS claim that degree, so he went a little less over the top...
Image
User avatar
kheegster
Jedi Council Member
Posts: 2397
Joined: 2002-09-14 02:29am
Location: An oasis in the wastelands of NJ

Post by kheegster »

I know people with 1st class honours undergraduate degrees in sciences who are fucking retards, and get a good degree by pure virtue of being excellent exam machines.

And from the fact that said retards have managed to get into fairly good PhD programmes, appeal to personal authority is absolute fucking bollocks as an argument.
Articles, opinions and rants from an astrophysicist: Cosmic Journeys
User avatar
AK_Jedi
Padawan Learner
Posts: 441
Joined: 2005-12-14 11:26pm
Location: the middle of nowhere

Post by AK_Jedi »

I would guess that this guy is actually fairly smart in that he finished his degree, and he probably knows what the scientific method is. However, people like this are just too thick headed when it comes to evolution, that they don't realize that the scientific method applies to all scientific theories. They can't be troubled to look anywhere beyond their fundy propaganda to find information about evolution.
Why does he keep looking at you in the same way a starving man looks at a packet of peanuts?
It's because he can't wait to get the wrapper off and taste the salty goodness! --Kryten, Red Dwarf

Understanding is a very loaded word. --Dr. Paul
User avatar
Darth Wong
Sith Lord
Sith Lord
Posts: 70028
Joined: 2002-07-03 12:25am
Location: Toronto, Canada
Contact:

Post by Darth Wong »

I don't know why any of you are taking his educational claims seriously; he could be a first-year sociology student for all you know. As I said in my reply to him, I would expect someone who had actually passed through a program like that to produce something more substantive than that mealy-mouthed "both sides have flaws even though I can't bother listing even a single one" bullshit he sent me. Even if he was the 50th student in a graduating class of 50, I would still expect him to know that you have to make a stronger argument than that in order to be taken seriously.

And he hasn't bothered responding yet.
Image
"It's not evil for God to do it. Or for someone to do it at God's command."- Jonathan Boyd on baby-killing

"you guys are fascinated with the use of those "rules of logic" to the extent that you don't really want to discussus anything."- GC

"I do not believe Russian Roulette is a stupid act" - Embracer of Darkness

"Viagra commercials appear to save lives" - tharkûn on US health care.

http://www.stardestroyer.net/Mike/RantMode/Blurbs.html
User avatar
TheBlackCat
Padawan Learner
Posts: 412
Joined: 2006-02-11 01:01pm
Contact:

Post by TheBlackCat »

Darth Wong wrote:I don't know why any of you are taking his educational claims seriously; he could be a first-year sociology student for all you know. As I said in my reply to him, I would expect someone who had actually passed through a program like that to produce something more substantive than that mealy-mouthed "both sides have flaws even though I can't bother listing even a single one" bullshit he sent me. Even if he was the 50th student in a graduating class of 50, I would still expect him to know that you have to make a stronger argument than that in order to be taken seriously.
Not really. I personally wasn't specifically taught that stuff until graduate school. In BME/BE degrees you learn a lot of facts, you learn a lot of math, you learn how to solve problems, but I was never specifically taught how to present arguments in this context. I learned it on my own because I knew it was important, but outside of an honors science/english course none of my courses required me to formulate argumentsor or defend a position. It was more "here is the problem, here are the factors, solve it" or "give a presentation on all the facts you can find on this issue". Defending a position is not something they really emphasized. So I can fully see him not have a clue how to do this even after such a degree.
When two opposite points of view are expressed with equal intensity, the truth does not necessarily lie exactly halfway between them. It is possible for one side to be simply wrong.
-Richard Dawkins
User avatar
Patrick Degan
Emperor's Hand
Posts: 14847
Joined: 2002-07-15 08:06am
Location: Orleanian in exile

Post by Patrick Degan »

And, just a quick breakdown:
Dennis O'Neill, SOOOPER-Genius wrote:I have an undergraduate degree in bioengineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago. I completed courses in probability & statistics, linear regression analysis, human physiology, comparative anatomy, organic chemistry, differential equations and various other rigorous subjects.
Initial half-assed display of dick-waving.
Dennis O'Neill, SOOOPER-Genius wrote:I very much appreciate the scientific method but it seems to me that there is a great deal of dogma on both sides of the evolution versus creation issue and little openess to truth.
Golden Mean Fallacy (BTW, I trust the outright lie in that statement is easily recognisable).
Dennis O'Neill, SOOOPER-Genius wrote:Both sides require tremendous leaps of faith due to lack of evidence.
Appeal to Ignorance Fallacy.
Dennis O'Neill, SOOOPER-Genius wrote:My father is a well-published researcher in various fields with a PhD in electrical engineering and his extensive research into DNA from an information theory perspective as well as his research into sound probabilistic arguments for the random or non-random occurence of DNA leads him at this point to believe it was created.
Appeal to Authority Fallacy (and a pathetic one to boot: "My father believes X and he's a genius too")
Dennis O'Neill, SOOOPER-Genius wrote:But neither he nor I are dogmatic on the subject as there is not enough evidence at this point to resolve the argument one way or the other.
Appeal to Ignorance Fallacy again.
When ballots have fairly and constitutionally decided, there can be no successful appeal back to bullets.
—Abraham Lincoln

People pray so that God won't crush them like bugs.
—Dr. Gregory House

Oil an emergency?! It's about time, Brigadier, that the leaders of this planet of yours realised that to remain dependent upon a mineral slime simply doesn't make sense.
—The Doctor "Terror Of The Zygons" (1975)
User avatar
Oni Koneko Damien
Sith Marauder
Posts: 3852
Joined: 2004-03-10 07:23pm
Location: Yar Yar Hump Hump!
Contact:

Post by Oni Koneko Damien »

Big Brother wrote:Yeah, whatever. Put it on your hate-mail page or something.
Wow...what a contribution.

...wait, after checking the posting history of this twerp, I get the impression that I should check Parting Shots for a thread with him in it.

On topic...

I have hope for this aspiring fundy. Not in the sense that he'll actually learn not to lie or anything like that, but I have hope that he'll write back eventually. I've debated a few like these, and the majority have not been content to do hit and run, usually they stick around until their clown suits have been thoroughly torn off.
Gaian Paradigm: Because not all fantasy has to be childish crap.
Ephemeral Pie: Because not all role-playing has to be shallow.
My art: Because not all DA users are talentless emo twits.
"Phant, quit abusing the He-Wench before he turns you into a caged bitch at a Ren Fair and lets the tourists toss half munched turkey legs at your backside." -Mr. Coffee
User avatar
Darth Wong
Sith Lord
Sith Lord
Posts: 70028
Joined: 2002-07-03 12:25am
Location: Toronto, Canada
Contact:

Post by Darth Wong »

Big Brother was an April Fool's Day joke.

Anyway, I wouldn't get your hopes up about this dipshit replying. So far, dead silence.
Image
"It's not evil for God to do it. Or for someone to do it at God's command."- Jonathan Boyd on baby-killing

"you guys are fascinated with the use of those "rules of logic" to the extent that you don't really want to discussus anything."- GC

"I do not believe Russian Roulette is a stupid act" - Embracer of Darkness

"Viagra commercials appear to save lives" - tharkûn on US health care.

http://www.stardestroyer.net/Mike/RantMode/Blurbs.html
User avatar
Ace Pace
Hardware Lover
Posts: 8456
Joined: 2002-07-07 03:04am
Location: Wasting time instead of money
Contact:

Post by Ace Pace »

Darth Wong wrote:Big Brother was an April Fool's Day joke.

Anyway, I wouldn't get your hopes up about this dipshit replying. So far, dead silence.
Wong, who was big brother? The entire mod group?
Brotherhood of the Bear | HAB | Mess | SDnet archivist |
User avatar
Faram
Bastard Operator from Hell
Posts: 5271
Joined: 2002-07-04 07:39am
Location: Fighting Polarbears

Post by Faram »

Ace Pace wrote:
Darth Wong wrote:Big Brother was an April Fool's Day joke.

Anyway, I wouldn't get your hopes up about this dipshit replying. So far, dead silence.
Wong, who was big brother? The entire mod group?
A random lucky user.
[img=right]http://hem.bredband.net/b217293/warsaban.gif[/img]

"Either God wants to abolish evil, and cannot; or he can, but does not want to. ... If he wants to, but cannot, he is impotent. If he can, but does not want to, he is wicked. ... If, as they say, God can abolish evil, and God really wants to do it, why is there evil in the world?" -Epicurus


Fear is the mother of all gods.

Nature does all things spontaneously, by herself, without the meddling of the gods. -Lucretius
User avatar
Ace Pace
Hardware Lover
Posts: 8456
Joined: 2002-07-07 03:04am
Location: Wasting time instead of money
Contact:

Post by Ace Pace »

Faram wrote:
Ace Pace wrote:
Darth Wong wrote:Big Brother was an April Fool's Day joke.

Anyway, I wouldn't get your hopes up about this dipshit replying. So far, dead silence.
Wong, who was big brother? The entire mod group?
A random lucky user.
Ha! Thats gotta be a fun time.
Brotherhood of the Bear | HAB | Mess | SDnet archivist |
User avatar
Oni Koneko Damien
Sith Marauder
Posts: 3852
Joined: 2004-03-10 07:23pm
Location: Yar Yar Hump Hump!
Contact:

Post by Oni Koneko Damien »

Darth Wong wrote:Big Brother was an April Fool's Day joke.
Crap. Okay, I got utterly hoodwinked by that one. I was wondering why more people hadn't jumped on his Mal Reynold's level of deliberate trollage.
Gaian Paradigm: Because not all fantasy has to be childish crap.
Ephemeral Pie: Because not all role-playing has to be shallow.
My art: Because not all DA users are talentless emo twits.
"Phant, quit abusing the He-Wench before he turns you into a caged bitch at a Ren Fair and lets the tourists toss half munched turkey legs at your backside." -Mr. Coffee
User avatar
Lord Zentei
Space Elf Psyker
Posts: 8742
Joined: 2004-11-22 02:49am
Location: Ulthwé Craftworld, plotting the downfall of the Imperium.

Post by Lord Zentei »

Oni Koneko Damien wrote:
Darth Wong wrote:Big Brother was an April Fool's Day joke.
Crap. Okay, I got utterly hoodwinked by that one. I was wondering why more people hadn't jumped on his Mal Reynold's level of deliberate trollage.
It would be rather incredible for a complete nonentity being elevated to moderatorship just like that. ;)


I wonder who it was, though.
CotK <mew> | HAB | JL | MM | TTC | Cybertron

TAX THE CHURCHES! - Lord Zentei TTC Supreme Grand Prophet

And the LORD said, Let there be Bosons! Yea and let there be Bosoms too!
I'd rather be the great great grandson of a demon ninja than some jackass who grew potatos. -- Covenant
Dead cows don't fart. -- CJvR
...and I like strudel! :mrgreen: -- Asuka
Post Reply