Originally posted by Reborn Outcast
Just thought I'd point out something interesting.
The amount of humans on the earth today is greater than the total number in history. (I only have 1 link, but I'll try and find more.) (
http://www3.open.uoguelph.ca/de/ideaExchange/zoo1500/cwork/unit9/connection1.html)
If you look at the table of human growth, you would realize that 6 billion different people were not born in 40 years, that's just a grand total. So out of the 6 billion people on earth today, many of them are probably still living from the 3 billion in 1960, which makes the 6 billion pretty close to the total amount of humans living on earth ever. Just a little interesting thing. :)
But what I'm trying to say is, no one should think of themselves as insignificant. Everyone IS capable of making a difference if they put themselves to it. (Man, that was corny wasn't it? :p) But science partially makes it seems as if we have no effect whatsoever because of how insignificant we care compared to the rest of the universe.
He's not saying we should be in awe of lightning specifically. It's just an example. Of course there are much more powerful things in the universe, but what he is trying to say is, if you don't have any respect for the power in the universe, it could come back to bite you in the butt. (I hope that wasn't to confusing.)
Could you show me the sentence where he specifically says that? I didn't really see any place where he says that the church is the deciding line.
Yes, I believe that is the word I'm looking for. :p Thanks for pointing that out.
And, just so everyone knows, I'm finding it hard to type out my stance on this, because it makes it seem like I'm trying to say science is of no use which is the exact opposite of what I think. I just need to clarify that because when I read over what I type, I kind of seem like a science-abolishing zealot, when I'm really not.
I'll checkout the link, but I find the notion that there are more humans on earth today than in the past dubious. I myself read (in high school) that there were something on the order of 30 people in the past for every one person now living.
However the phrasing of the question may be the clincher. After all, we haven't always had "history." History is that which is "written down." So you could trace that to the beginning of (known) writing.
Our species has been around a long, long time, and while the current population of the earth in human terms has never been higher, there are a LOT of dead people in the past compared to how many are now living. I mean every hour hundreds if not thousands of people are being born and dying.
Anyway, I'll see if I can find any contrary data...