'Abbasid empire, aka Islamic Golden Age. They not only saved all of the texts from the Byzantine Empire (which were later brought back and spawned the Renaissance), but they improved on mathematics...|||So I recently read a part of a book by Carl Sagan which describes idea behind why animals sleep, why they dream and why they dream about the things that they do. I thought it's be worth sketching out...|||Don't much care for coffee, pass the tea please!|||Anywhere you go, everyone knows the pentatonic scale:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXN9FRoBPqg&amp;feature=related|||I recently graduated mechanical engineering BS with a minor in physics and I'm about to begin PhD studies in Laboratory Astrophysics (plasma physics). Basically I'll be shooting lasers at things to...|||http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKQQAv5svkk&amp;feature=related   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eob7V_WtAVg  note the shocks and jets formed by moving plasma!...|||Doing things quickly and accurately will mostly consist of practicing the same type of skill/problem. Improving your abstract reasoning is an entirely different beast which requires the acquisition...|||Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!    Bring out... the comfy chair...   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnS49c9KZw8|||DeductiveReasoner  Oh you sly little devil you... of course you've set up a trap! It lies here before our very eyes. And how clever of you to tell us directly the very thing which you are seeking;...|||You don't know the half of it ;)|||Will be obtaining one in plasma physics|||fourtines addendum: How physics may help humanity understand it's place in the universe and how insignificant our petty battles are  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pfwY2TNehw|||You just described sex ed and farming... not bio and earth science. In reality, if we are going for sheer practicality, you don't need to know how to farm, and you don't need to know how animals...|||I'm totally doing physics in the UK for grad school, so you have my approval :P (by doing I mean going to do)|||I think the fundamental differences in the responses are due to varying interpretations of necessity. Some have taken it to mean basic necessities for survival, others to demonstrate intellectual...|||Then I believe that we are mostly in agreement, and it was simply the words that we chose to use that differed. Though I would like to bring this full circle and get back to your original statement:...|||Okay so perhaps a little bit of clarification is in order. Do you mean  to say that our senses themselves are flawed, like a systematic error,  such that we cannot perceive reality?(by this I mean...|||In reply to #1: We do not require that our sensory perceptions be accurate, in fact we know that our perceptions are flawed (optical illusions for example) and limited (by temporal and spatial...|||Science has equipped us with a manner of thinking in which we may both ask meaningful questions and probe for meaningful answers experimentally and theoretically. Science has no respect for...|||I think the assumptions are quite simple: 1.) there is an objective reality 2.) our senses communicate information between reality and our mind. You could also add something about the confluence of...|||I agree with the later part of what you said, but not this part. The whole point of discourse is to challenge people's opinions and to develop/enrich them with input. Without the premise that our...|||If you are replying to me, I said legislatively, and I made the specific point that it has not been sorted out culturally. (As a caveat: I suppose I am referring to sex equality as opposed to gender...|||Of course it's not equality, there are slightly more women graduates and yet they receive exclusive financial aid as if they are being oppressed. Men and Women are essentially equal in education...|||He's definitely an Idealist, no doubt about that. I do question some of his fiscal policy though. I think he'd be a great idea man, someone for the cabinet, maybe a vice-president, but not the...|||Math and science are forms of art ;)|||The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being -Socrates|||Exporting our problems to the office of the president isn't going to help anything. Rather what we need is a cultural shift, such that individuals start to see the power and responsibility which they...|||This world is the ideal. We can experience everything in such a way that there is a sense of proportion, so that we may appreciate our experiences. We have sadness so that we may better understand...|||Philip Zimbardo: The demise of guys? | Video on TED.com|||But in all seriousness this feminist movement business has gone too far (in the developed world that is, there is still work to be done towards equality in other parts of the world). And it's not the...|||http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FgMLROTqJ0   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2a5-RrwWZ8|||and Willie  I love Romo Lampkin! (especially his speech to Adama in 'Sine Qua Non') What type do you figure he is?|||http://jmwisdom.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/thering.jpghttp://jmwisdom.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/thering.jpg|||Probably this more than anything. I think I'm fairly good at asking girls out in a romantic way (though its hard to find ones that really appreciate it). I've never had the flight response, I'm...|||George Whitman: A bibliophile in Paris | The Economist  The article is about a guy who saw the world and settled down in Paris to start a bookstore. He runs it very casually, making wisecracks,...|||Well it could be both. It really depends on how you define intelligence. (various types of intelligence, etc) I just think the IQ test is a measure of whether you see patterns in the same way as the...|||High on life? And tickles! *attacks*|||BBC News - More time at school 'boosts IQ'  I think this makes it official... IQ tests aren't an actual measure of intelligence, but rather a measure of schooling :laughing:|||Nope. INFJ getting into engineering/physics|||-Why are you interested in this field? What got you interested in it? (they love well written, enthusiastic stories) -what experiences have you had with subject matter in this field? (jobs,...|||He's not the messiah he's been a very naughty boy!|||http://images.tribe.net/tribe/upload/photo/2b3/2e1/2b32e115-8b23-41c5-b3ab-b4b4d13c7f71  Oh, what sad times are these when passing ruffians can say Ni at will to  old ladies. There is a pestilence...|||A witch! A witch! Burn her!|||I totally do this! It's like my mind needs to spew all the random shit that's in there and just be crazy for a little bit without worrying. I do this quite often when doing homework with my friends.|||http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wr6itOBLVQA|||I have just over a year's worth of research experience which I'm going to continue. (I recently got an undergraduate research scholarship for a project proposal of mine). Yea, my school has a PhD...|||Sadly enough it's not just the Republicans (that'd be easy), it's the Democrats as well. The whole system is fueled by money. Any increase in national income goes straight to the upper class through...|||So I'm applying to grad school, going straight to PhD from undergraduate. I was wondering if anyone had advice on applying to schools and fellowships. Perhaps more specifically, I'm looking for...|||The good ol' US is ready for that; there's legislation that says that you cannot default on student loans. So all the burden will be placed on the students, a lost generation.|||yesssss! I had it for super nintendo, as well as mortal combat :)'