My UCF Papers, etc.

Humanities Bible Worksheet

2009-03-17T10:34:00.001-07:00

Bible Stories Discussion Worksheet

Caitlin Havener

Explain the Dilemma posed to Abraham by God’s command regarding Isaac. The dilemma that occurred regarding Isaac was that he was Abraham’s only son that he loved very much, and God asked him to sacrifice his son. Yet when he was about to perform the act, an angel stopped him and pretty much told him that he passed the test. God just wanted to make sure that he feared him.
Summarize the actions of God in the Exodus story. God appears to Moses in a burning bush as an angel of the Lord. He tells him to take off his shoes because it is holy ground. God is concerned about how the Egyptians are oppressing the Israelites and commands Moses to lead them out. God gives Moses a few “magic tricks” to prove that he has come from God. He can throw his staff and it will turn into a snake, and when he reaches into his pocket his skin becomes Leprous. He can also turn water into blood. The Lord goes with Moses and helps him perform this feat.
What dilemma of belief in the Israelite God does the book of Job illustrate. This one was a difficult passage. Yet I would say that God is trying to display his power and knowledge upon Job. Job complains about his life assuming that he knows all, and God pretty much puts him in his place. In my eyes, it seems that he reminds him of how small he is compared to God. God knows and controls all the mysteries of the world, while Job knows nothing.
Summarize the principle events in Mark’s passion narrative from the entry into Jerusalem until the women in the tomb. In Mark’s narrative after approaching Jerusalem, they untie a colt and throw their cloaks over it. When Jesus entered Jerusalem into the temple and for some reason it was too late, so he went with Bethany and the other twelve. Jesus was hungry and went to a fig tree. It was not the season for figs, yet he told the tree it would never bear fruit again. Jesus found people trying to sell in the temple and overturned their tables. The next morning, the fig tree was withered. Jesus says that if you ask for something in prayer and believe you have received it, then you have. As well you must forgive those who have wronged you in prayer, for God to forgive you for your sins. The authorities of the temple ask Jesus by what authority is he making the actions he is taking. Jesus asks them whether it was god or people that baptized John. When they told him they did not know, he replied with a similar answer to their question. Jesus then spoke to them in parables, and in the end they walked away for fear of the crowds if they turned against Jesus. Some other men ask Jesus if they should pay takes to Caesar or not. On the premises that the coins have Caesars picture on them, he says that the money belongs to Caesar, therefore they should pay it. When asked what commandment was the most important, Jesus replied with “Love the Lord with all your heart” first and second, “love your neighbor.”
Define the unifying idea of the Sermon on the Mount and illustrate with one of Jesus’ ethical instructions or directives. The Sermon on the Mount was intended to point out how to live in order to enter the kingdom of heaven and how to live as to be raised up in the kingdom of heaven. First, Jesus describes who is most blessed in God’s eyes via the Beatitudes. Then he goes into depth about what sort of things would be sins against him and describes them all, such as: murder, adultery, divorce, holding an oath, an eye for an eye, love of enemies, giving to the needy, prayer, fasting, as well as other topics of how to live great.
How do the parables of the Good Shepherd and the Prodigal son illustrate aspects of the covenant between God and Israel? How does this compare to the evidence in the book of Job and the Exodus? The parables shown here are stories used to make a bigger point. All three parables are trying to exhibit that the sinner that wanders but comes back to repent is worthy of much celebration. Yet those who have never wandered should be humble in the good they have done, and not expect special attention. They already inherited the kingdom of heaven. This shows the covenant because it illustrates how one should be worried for the other to not sin against God so that he too can enter heaven. This is exhibited in Exodus, because God does not want to leave his fellow Israelites behind with the Egyptians living a life of oppression. In Job, God is seemingly pointing out how to live.

The underlying principles of rightful action are made very clear especially in the story of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus goes into detail and tells stories about each point he is trying to convey of how to live righteously. He explains the Ten Commandments, which are God’s underlying rules for how to live. The Beatitudes also assist these in direction toward rightful living. I found it very contradictory that Jesus would make the fig tree whither. Why would he want to rid his followers of more to eat? It just seemed pointless to me. This was in Mark’s narrative. I guess if I were a Christian and I were in the situation where I might want to cheat on my husband, I would consider the Ten Commandments, “Do not commit adultery.” Yet I am not, but I still find it wrong because I know that if he were to do the same to me, it would hurt. Therefore I live by having compassion for others. I have compassion because I know that treating others unfairly may very well come back around to me. Not by karma or chance, but because it is a very likely result of cause and effect.
⁹"This, then, is how you should pray:
" 'Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
¹⁰your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹Give us today our daily bread.
¹²Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.^[j]' ¹⁴For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

This quote has become a very important quote from the Bible. The Catholic’s especially use this prayer during every mass. They also pray with it as penance for post confession. It is the most popular prayer, I think. Other prayers, such as the “Hail Mary” are not agreed upon by all Christian denominations.

I guess I would like to know why God found authoritativeness to be the best route as to keep humans “in line?” It is often expressed that God is a loving God, but much of what we hear from him is very authoritative.
I was already quite familiar with many of these passages, yet haven’t read the direct text in quite a while. I would say that the more I read of Christian religion, the less I am convinced of its validity. There are many good points made here as far as how to live, yet I do not like that, for example, God tricked Abraham into thinking he had to sacrifice his only son just to test him. I do not like the Christian God, especially in the Old Testament and wouldn’t care to live by this authoritativeness even if I did believe it.

A Brief Overview of College for the College Bound

2009-03-13T18:31:00.001-07:00

A Brief Overview of College for the College Bound
Caitlin Havener

Core II: Commentary

Prof. Mohrenne

ENC 1101

Rhetorical Context:

Subject: I am writing about how college bound students are unclear about college within the realm of the financial aspect, the freedom aspect, and the extracurricular aspect.

Purpose: I am writing this to give students interested in college, a good overview of what college is like and how it differs from high school.

Audience: My readers are high school students who are interested in going to college, particularly high school seniors.

A Brief Overview of College for the College Bound

When I was a high school student, I was very excited to be going to college in the future. My only obstacle was that I had no one close to me to confide in about my college bound adventure. I am the first to attend college in my family. My parents do not know anything about college besides what they have learned from me. I am a sophomore at UCF (University of Central Florida) and there is so much to learn about college. I would have been more prepared if my high school had helped me. The problem is that there are many high schools that do not make college an easy task for graduating students. Yet I will only cover that in which I find the most important for the college bound student to explore before diving head first into the new world of college. Since no one in high school told you, I will be informing you of the following: the financial aspect of college, such as tuition, fees, books, living, and financial aid; the freedom aspect of college, such as how to deal with all the freedom of choice you will be taking on all at once and choices you will have to make; and lastly, the extracurricular aspect of college, such as activities you can get involved in outside of school work and job prospects.
You have been informed that college tuition is pretty expensive. UCF’s tuition alone is just under two grand a semester and I spend about four to five hundred dollars on books and supplies each semester as well. What you haven't been told is that there are many other expenses you will have while you are in college. Those are the absolute necessities of college, but the personal expenses can add up quite a bit as well. First you must ask yourself where you are going to live. If you can stand your family, staying at home is a good idea because you can save yourself some money. If you really want to experience college though, I would suggest living on campus somewhere. Be wary of off campus housing because the apartments around big college campuses have high crime rates. I bet your high school did not tell you that either. I made the mistake of leasing an apartment for a year with student loans. That is going to be very expensive to pay for after college and I am going to learn it the hard way. It's great if your parents are going to pay for you to live somewhere, but some of us are not that fortunate. Your high school will not give you advice about where to live during your college years, therefore it is important to seek counsel. Other college expenses include food, transportation, and personal needs. It is a good idea to get a job if your parents are not sending a check, but do not work too many hours or your grades will suffer. Grades are top priority. Looking for grants, loans, and scholarships are important as well. I have the Bright Futures Scholarship, which awards me 75% of my tuition. You can find many scholarships on FastWeb and definitely search on your intended school’s website. It is ignorant to not look for scholarships, and it is preposterous that high school staff has not shown you the way. There is a myriad of financial aid available, and they are rewarded for any reason you can imagine.
First and foremost the biggest difference between high school and college is the amount of freedom and responsibility you must take on, as well as the choices you must make. Before you even enter college, you must make the choice of which school to go to, what classes to take, where you will be making an income, where you will be living, how you will make friends, and all the many particulars about the school you choose to go to. Then as you enter college, you begin to realize that you have so much more freedom than you think. A couple among the many freedoms is that you can usually get alcohol and other substances quite easily and you can choose to go to class or not. Freedom feels awesome, but along with it comes a lot of responsibility. Responsibility sucks! No longer can you have your mommy make doctors appointments for you. It is time to face the world. This new world is novel, it is exhilarating, it is wonderful, but at the same time it can be annoying, strenuous, and challenging. Start preparing now to face the freedom that you will soon have on your own, because high school is not helping you. Do as much research as you can about college and start thinking about where you will be living. With all the choices you must prepare to make, high schools should really make a class dedicated to making you ready. Since there isn't such a class, this challege is one you must take on your own and with sought counsel.
There are so many clubs in college that it is rare that you will not be able to find one that interests you. There are activities ranging from Aerobics classes to Zoology club, but if you do not find one that suits you, you can start one! In high school, there are a limited amount of clubs and sports; therefore, you aren't used to participating in school extracurriculars unless you liked playing Lacrosse. Recently I have found that there are fifteen different religious clubs, but no club for the atheist; therefore, I intend to start one next year at UCF. It is difficult to start your own club in high school, especially if it is “Frisbee Club.” Another important extracurricular is having a job. It is recommended that you find a job or internship related to the job field you intend to pursue. Any experience you have after college in your field enhances your chance of getting a job by a tenfold. Unfortunetely, your high school did not give you any classes related to what you wanted your chosen career to be, or a class to help you make that decision. Extracurricular activities are also important because you can start to form a social network. Having a social network makes your college experience much more rewarding. You will also need friends because you are entering a new world, and it is hard to survive all alone. Your lucky if any of your high school buddies are in any of your college classes. College is also a time of finding your authentic identity and having friends will help you along the way, either with negative or positive reinforcement. The best way to form a social network is to participate in extracurricular activities.
As you can see, you have a lot to ponder between now and the first semester of your freshman. There are many financial aspects that you alone will be responsible for; there are many choices, responsibilities, and freedoms you will gain; and finally, there will be extracurricular activities that you are highly suggested to participated in. Since high school does not help you make these choices, start your homework early and you won't fall behind.

UCF: Master of All the Extracurricular

2009-03-13T18:30:00.001-07:00

UCF: Master of All the Extracurricular
Caitlin Havener
ENC 1101
Prof. Mohrenne
5/30/08
Rhetorical Context:
Subject: I am writing about how the University of Central Florida provides its students with the best selection of Extracurricular activities.
Purpose: I am going to convince my readers that if they are considering a college they should consider UCF because they have a great extracurricular program, and as a result, their college experience at UCF would be a rewarding one. I am also going to convince my readers that UCF puts the money it makes back into the student body with extracurricular activities.
Audience: My readers are potential students of UCF, high school students looking to go to college, parents looking for colleges for their sons and daughters, new UCF students, and current students that aren't involved in student activities.

Do you ever think that your college is putting their money to bad use or just keeping all the profit? Are there activities at your school for any type of person, or just a select few? I would say that is not the case for the University of Central Florida (UCF). UCF has many services for its students including but not limited to: doctor and dentist services, counseling services, food services, fitness services, and library services. Yet the one service that I find that UCF is the best at is the service of providing its students with extracurricular activities. Extracurricular activities are important because they provide the student with social interaction which is important for success in a new environment. UCF's extracurricular services are great because they are many in number, there are a variety of activities, and they are high quality.
There are many activities that UCF puts on every month. They have the Late Knights program which is a no-alcohol alternative party for students; they have the Campus Activities Board (CAB) that puts on a large variety of activities such as “salsa night” and Homecoming; and, there is a club for just about anything you can think of. There is also a program just for UCF homecoming that organizes all the homecoming activities; there is Knights of the Round Table (Kort) that helps students connect with social activities and has leadership programs as well; there is also the Student Government Association who oversees all the financial and major decisions at UCF; and, there is a program to help incoming students make friends, the Learning and Interacting with New Knights (LINK).
In addition to there being a lot of activities, they are all very diverse. UCF is dedicated to providing its students with a variety of extracurricular activities. They have done outdoor movies on a big screen and given out prizes and had pizza eating contests. UCF has rented out Islands of Adventure for all of its students to attend. During the week of Homecoming there is an activity for every day. One day there was even a carnival last year! Last fall, there were so many events provided by CAB. They played lots of different movies such as Superbad, Hairspray, Transformers, and Ocean's 13; there's a movie for any genre you desire. They had comedy open mic night and a comedy stand up competition. There are concerts from bands and performers such as Cartel and Santana. They also put on many activities in the culture and fine arts department such as speaker, MK foltz, a former artist, and they have also had a pianist play. They also have random activities such as Knights out on the Town, Sushi Knight, Decade Night, Lego Night, CABenger hunt, Spa Day, Guiness World Record Yo-Yo Event, Mystery Dinner Theater Dinner, Salsa Night, and XBOX 360 GameU Tour. CAB is also responsible for the Mr. And Ms. UCF competition. The UCF LateKnights program has a theme for every party; one night it was Late Knight Luau. There was also a casino night and a karaoke night, just to name a few. As for SGA, they are involved in a lot of activities and have say in just about every one. They are largely responsible for UCF's football games. The LINK program does a variety of seminars such as “How to make a pinata,” “The Dos and Don'ts of Dating,” “Resume Workshop,” and “Meet the Greeks.” As for clubs, some range from Diving Club to Cereal Eaters Club. There are also many culture clubs and religious clubs for just about any kind, and if there is not a club that suits your whim, you can create it. There are many different sports you can participate in at UCF as well. They are baseball, cross country, football, basketball, golf, soccer, tennis, softball, rowing, track and field, and volleyball; all for women as well as men. There are many intramural sports as well, such as table tennis, ultimate frisbee, bowling, Badminton, paper football, wrestling, kickball, dodgeball, and Bocce ball. The possibilities are endless at UCF!
Finally, UCF does not have a cheap budget on their planned events.
UCF provides its students with high quality activities. Students pay a moderately high tuition, and they will receive what they paid for. One night I went to a LateKnights program and they had some sort of blow up wrestling set up (on a moon walk), an oxygen bar, karaoke, a screen playing music videos, a disk jockey, and lots of free food and prizes. As for free food, just about every one of UCF's extracurricular activities provides free food. They also have famous celebrities perform in the arena. Carlos Mencia did some stand up comedy, and I'm sure he wasn't cheap to pay. They also had a lot of popular metal bands play. As far as for clubs, if you start one, you receive money to fund the activity; therefore, you don't need to do silly fundraisers such as car washes. Homecoming is of great quality as well. It must be expensive to rent out all those rides for a carnival and charge no admittance for the student and a friend! Many students get to see the Homecoming game for free as well. UCF spends a lot of money putting on activities geared toward freshman to get them involved in school. There is a two day orientation that you must go to that is very rewarding. They also have numerous ice cream socials and other freshman activities. Freshman receive points, called LINK loot, that they can use toward receiving prizes and scholarships at the end of the semester; free stuff just for going to fun events. UCF also has a lot of scholarships you can receive while participating in extracurricular activities, such as the Ms. UCF scholarship competition. The many seminars and speakers UCF has every week are usually very prestigious and knowledgeable about their subjects. This makes the seminars high quality as well.
I think now it is pretty obvious where I stand on my opinion of UCF's extracurricular services. They are awesome because there are so many of them, they are all so different, and they are of high quality. I would recommend this school to anyone because in addition to a great education, they do have the best extracurricular programs. Who wouldn't value a school with such rewarding benefits and diverse culture?

Argument Analysis of Andre Leu’s “Organic Agriculture Can Feed the World” (Core #2)

2009-03-13T18:29:00.000-07:00

Argument Analysis of Andre Leu’s “Organic Agriculture Can Feed the World” (Core #2)

In June 2003, President George Bush stated at a biotechnology conference, “We should encourage the spread of safe, effective biotechnology to win the fight against global hunger.” It was statements like these that inspired Andre Leu to argue that organic agriculture can indeed feed the world, and it can do it better. Andre Leu is the president of the Organic Producers Association of Queensland and vice chair of the Organic Federation of Australia. As a credible source his argument has some merit, yet one must analyze the counterparts to his argument. Leu makes three claims to support his argument that organic agriculture can feed the world: world hunger is not caused by low yields, organic agriculture can produce high yields, and organic agriculture can produce high yields in the communities that need it most.
The first claim that Leu makes is that justification for the use of chemicals and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in agriculture is not viable because world hunger would not be caused by low yields. He supports this argument by going on to note that there really haven’t been to many famines since 1968 except for those in African countries. He goes on to say that the starvation of these African countries were caused by corrupt governments, political turmoil, civil wars, and periodic droughts. I believe Leu could have expanded on the reasons for these famines. Perhaps going into a bit more detail about the reason of its occurrence, rather than a mere list. Leu also says that there has often been an unfair distribution of food, which has caused starvation. He states that South American rainforests have been cleared for pasture. Once the soil of these lands deplete, they have been abandoned and new forests have been cleared for pasture. Very little of this cleared land is used to feed the poor, and most production is exported to rich economies. He goes on to say that some countries are in the process of converting a large percentage of arable, farmable land from the use of food production to making biofuels such as ethanol. This means that food is not being produced on some of the most farmable land. Leu wants to point out that if there is so much ground to produce crops on, then how could they argue that the world will suffer from starvation? How could we need chemicals and GMOs to prevent world hunger where there is much more opportunity for more agriculture. Leu perhaps should have pointed out which countries are undergoing these industrial developments, and specifically, how much land is being robbed. He does however, accomplish his goal of showing us that there are more opportunity for more agricultural yields.
The next central argument that Leu makes is that organic agriculture can produce high yields. He supports this claim with a lot of evidence. In the journal, “New Scientist” of February, 2001, author states that low technological sustainable agriculture is increasing crop yields on poor farms across the world, often by 70 percent. He states that in the article that this was achieved by replacing synthetic methods of pesticide with natural pest controlling methods. Also, Professor Jules Pretty, Director for the Centre for Environment and Society at the University of Essex found evidence that twenty countries had more than two million families farming sustainably on more than four to five million hectares. Pretty showed that this has all happened on the last five to ten years and many times in remote, poor areas thought incapable of food surplus. The author could have expanded on this evidence. What countries are the food surpluses happening, by how much, and by what methods? There are several other facts that Leu presents as evidence: “223,000 farmers in southern Brazil using green manures and cover crops of legumes and livestock integration have doubled yields of maize and wheat to four to five tons per hectare”; “45,000 farmers in Guatemala and Honduras used regenerative technologies to triple maize yields to two tons per hectare and diversify their upland farms, which has led to local economic growth that has in turn encouraged remigration back from the cities”; “200,000 farmers across Kenya as part of sustainable agriculture programs have more than doubled their maize yields to about 2.5 to 3.3 tons per hectare and substantially improved vegetable production through the dry seasons”; “100,000 small coffee farmers in Mexico have adopted fully organic production methods and increased yields by half”; and, “A million wetland rice farmers in Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam have shifted to sustainable agriculture, where group-based farmer field schools have enabled farmers to learn alternatives to pesticides and increase their yields by about 10 percent.” Leu proved his point well with all the substantial evidence that was provided, yet fell short in citing where this evidence came from.
The last central argument that was made was that not only can organic culture produce high yields, but it can also produce high yields in the communities that need it the most. In January of 2003, "World Vision News” linked farmers from the impoverished Makuyu community in Kenya with the Kenya institute of organic farming (KIOF). The KIOF taught workshops taught principles of organic farming to the Makuyu. Following these workshops, maize yields increased by four to nine times, which was sixty percent higher than those that used chemicals. Now the Makuyu have a surplus of food, where previously there was not enough food to eat. The best part is that the surplus provided a profit that in turn was put back into the community. The Makuyu then purchased dairy goats, rabbits, hives and poultry, and planted 20,000 trees, including 2,000 mangos. This was a wonderful example provided by the author. Leu also cites evidence from “The Real Green Revolution,” by Nicolas Parrott of Cardiff University in the United Kingdom. Parrott shows case studies that confirm the success of organic farming techniques in the developing world: “In Madhya Pradesh, India, average cotton yields on farms participating in the Maikaal Bio-Cotton Project are twenty percent higher than on neighboring conventional farms”; “In Madagascar, SRI (System of Rice Intensification) has increased yields from the usual two to three tons per hectare to yields of six, eight, or ten tons per hectare”; “In Tigray, Ethiopia, a move away from intensive agrochemical usage in favor of composting has produced an increase in yields and in the range of crops it is possible to grow”; and, “In the highlands of Bolivia, the use of bone meal and phosphate rock and intercropping with nitrogen-fixing lupin species have significantly contributed to increases in potato yields.” Once again Leu provides substantial evidence, and citation was acceptable here. I just wonder where to find this journal article. All of these occurances have provided a positive change in wealth for the surrounding communities. The input costs are lower because they did not need to buy chemicals for the agriculture, and this allows greater profit. Also, the substitution of more labor provides employment for the surrounding communities. In turn, these employed can pay for food and other needs. Leu’s goal here was to prove that poor communities can gain wealth and surplus food supply from organic farming, and with substantial evidence this goal was attained.
Leu made many viable claims to support his argument that organic agriculture can feed the world. He wanted to prove that world hunger would not be caused by low yields of agriculture, that organic agriculture can indeed produce high yields, and that high yields of organic agriculture would benefit poor economies. He achieved this goal by providing a myriad of evidence, yet fell short by providing the readers a direction on where to find this evidence in most cases. In analyzing this argument, I find the significance of the overall issue. Using chemicals on agriculture would provide great ease to farming, and less paid labor. Yet, the paid labor would benefit society as a whole. This issue is a matter of society and environment versus the corporate company. By using chemicals, the farmer can produce high yields quite quickly, thus quick profit. Yet, if agriculture is produced organically, this would benefit society and the environment first, and the farmer later. Using chemicals could perhaps be a toxic shortcut for the farmer and there have been a lot of excuses made to make it justifiable. Yet if one were to analyze evidence of the opposing argument, there claims that our race will soon starve and that pesticides and GMOs are the answer may prove to be true.

Leu, Andrew. "Organic Agriculture Can Feed the World." Acres U.S.A. 34.1(2004). Google. 21 Oct. 2008. . Keywords: pesticides and agriculture and organic.

Plato questions

2009-03-13T18:28:00.000-07:00

Plato Questions
Caitlin Havener
A. Socrates teaching method in Athens is to make it known to the men that think they are wise in matters that they are not specialized, that they are not wise at all. He came to the conclusion that this was his mission after a friend asked the Oracle of Delphi if Socrates was the wisest man, and it replied “yes.” Socrates mentions that he is a gadfly, in that there would be no other like him. He says, “[I am] given to the state by the God; and the state is like a great and noble steed who is tardy in his motions owing to his very size, and requires to be stirred into life.” And by this I am puzzled but wonder if he is trying to say that he is advancing the state to make improvement.
B. The conversation between Socrates and the personified “laws of the state” begins with the laws asking Socrates if he intended to overturn the state and its laws as an individual. The rest follows with a cross-examination between Socrates, and “himself” or “the laws.” He then asks the laws if it would be just to escape because the decision was unjust. The law then explains that it would be unjust to escape because of all the state has done for Socrates- bringing him into life, educating him, etc. The laws then goes into an argument concluding that: if you do not like the laws in your own country you could have gone somewhere else. If you stay you have in some way "signed a contract" to follow those laws.
C. A philosopher spends his material life trying to detach himself from bodily needs knowing that the soul is immortal. There are four arguments he makes to support this statement: 1)Socrates argues that everything comes from opposites, life comes from death, therefore the philosopher will be born again. 2) Socrates argues that all learning comes from stuff we already know, and that through cross-examination we will remember what we already knew. He thinks that since we know already, we knew this at birth, and this proves that we lived before birth. 3)Socrates argues a distinction between the intangible and the material. He says since the bod is the material and the soul is intangible, the soul must be immortal and cannot die.
D. The hierarchy of human knowledge from highest to lowest is: 1st) Science; 2nd) Understanding; 3rd) Belief; and, 4th) Conjecture. The first are concerned with being, or the exercise of reasoning, while the last two are opinion.
1. Socrates has many great ideas, such as his idea that being wise is accepting that you are unknowing. There are many mysteries in life that I believe will not be solved, and accepting that we may never know is the more intelligent route than telling what you believe to be a truth. This is one of the many reasons that I am an atheist, actually. We do not know that there is a God, and in accepting that we do not know, we are wiser. Yet, I am going against Socrates idea in that I have proclaimed that there is no God, and how am I to know that better than anyone else?
I am skeptical to Socrates ideas, because not all of them do I completely agree with. Or moreover, his choice of words I do not always agree with. For example I most certainly do not agree that people never intentionally do evil things. Then I must question if his meaning is literal.
The “soul’s congruence and integrity” is tested quite often. We either follow set beliefs from our religion, our culture, our state, or of ourselves, and every day these are put to the test. Because I am an atheist and somewhat a rebel to certain cultural standards, it is a daily struggle composing my own rules for myself to live by. In religious matters I could ramble on forever. Therefore, I will give another example: I believe in promoting the becoming of more equality for women. There are many different details within that that define how a woman should be treated. Is it belittling to a woman to show her naked body, or is it empowering? For a long time I battled with these questions not knowing which path to take, the radical or liberal. Unfortunetely, in taking sides of both view, ideas clash. Such as, I may see no problem in casual sex for a woman, but then may turn to my friend and call another girl a slut for wearing next to nothing.
I would say that I do not have one single mission in life. Socrates said that his mission was to prove to others that wise was accepting that you are unknowing. And although I agree with his concept, I disagree with the fact that he felt he needed to embarrass others to prove his point. People are inspired by the confident way that you live your own life, and not by what ideas you press others to believe in. Therefore as one of the many missions in my life, I worry only in perfecting myself and the way I live my life. I do what only I think is right, aside from society, religion, or laws. If people agree with me they will be inspired. If they don’t, then at least I won’t get “executed” and I can still continue to inspire other around me for longer.
2. The quote that I enjoyed the most is, “What about someone who believes in beautiful things but doesn't believe in the beautiful itself and isn't able to follow anyone who could lead him to the knowledge of it? Don't you think he is living in a dream rather than a wakened state? Isn't this dreaming: whether asleep or awake, to think that a likeness is not a likeness but rather the thing itself that it is like?” This is especially interesting because when you begin to think of it’s meaning philosophically and abstractly it is very confusing. You are then challenged to come up with your own idea of what the word “beautiful” is as if it were an object and not describing something else. Socrates explains that those that run around acting like they know beauty do not really think of it intelligently. Socrates says that they do not know what “the form of the beautiful” is. He refers to the form being something that is and I moreover think that beauty is a cultural opinion, and do not quite understand what he means.
3. Socrates argues that he is not one to practice rhetoric, and that he is truthful in everything he says. Yet twice during “The Apology” he mentions that he would not do or say something, then proceeds to do it. For example, he says that he would not bring up dialogue of his children when he is defending himself because it would be irrelevant to the case. Also, in the end he says that he would be showing impudence if he were to weep and beg for mercy when he was found guilty. In both situations I believe that he is using rhetoric in that as he says he would not do these things because it would cause the jury to feel bad for him; yet, he knowingly or unknowingly is making the jury empathetic. Is this irony or manipulation?
4. I have always believed that there is no way of knowing the truth to many matters and the only way to come to any understanding of it is to question it. This would further back my opinion as described by Socrates. Now I have quotes to describe myself to others.

Science, Religion, and the Cosmos

2009-03-13T18:27:00.000-07:00

Two authors of essays contained in Science and Religion: Are They Compatible? were given a hefty task. They were given the objective of deciding whether the universe shows signs of having been designed. By designed, they are referring to some higher power having designed the universe. In the case of Christianity, that would be God having designed the world in six days.
Steven Weinberg, the author of the first essay, is a professor of physics at the University of Physics and has attained the physics Nobel Prize. He approaches the cosmological subject in his essay noting that human intelligence is somewhat beyond the hope of understanding (31). He then goes into explaining that if there were a designer it would have no personal interest in life. By this he means that the world would not have been designed with us in mind. Weinberg then quotes a man named Richard Feyman, and American physicist who made many contributions to the science of quantum physics. He said that the idea that a deity designed the world so that he or she could watch human’s struggle with good and evil doesn’t seem right (32). Weinberg then mentions that even if we come to any set theory, the question will always remain: “Why?” And knowing this he says that physics is in a better position to give an explanation for the mysteries than religion could. Explaining the creation of the universe is more consistent with using quantum mechanics for explanation, while a religious explanation is “infinitely flexible.” By this he is saying that a religious explanation could not give us any sort of concrete proof or rationale (33).
Weinberg then asserts that the universe was not designed for life but that it was made to bring life about (33). He states that some physicists believe that nature was “fine-tuned for life,” while others including the author believe that this would not make sense. The very first matter was not that that would support life. Yet, “hundreds of millions” of years later these elements were spurred from the first stars. He does state that there is one thing about Earth that is oddly in our favor, and that is the cosmological constant, or “the density of empty space” (34). He states that there are only theories out there to how the universe was formed, such as the “big-bang” theory. He states that it would make more sense that there are many “big-bangs” that happen all the time throughout the vast universe. Therefore, if there are so many solar systems being created, of course there was a good chance that Earth as well as perhaps other planets would happen to have the “values for the fundamental constants” that would support life (36). Weinberg states that it is a bias to examine the issue from only our point of view while there may be other parts of the universe that support life (37). He points out that there is “no sign of benevolence” that proves a deity or higher power designed the universe. Rather, many religions would say that God is granting us free will to live and learn by our actions. But how then does this excuse God for the suffering of those who go through cancer? Weinberg states the influence of religious morality has not been good. He then goes on to give several examples of where “religious enthusiasm” has harmed humanity: the Muslim “zealot” that killed Sadat, the Jewish “zealot” that killed Rabin, and the Hindu “zealot” that killed Gandhi. He goes on to say that he would not regard Hitler as a Christian “zealot” but that Nazism was founded on “centuries of Christian anti-Semitism.” One could argue that the end of slavery was heavily brought about by Christians. But then, one would see how the Christians lived with slavery for a long time without any problems and that it was formerly endorsed in the New Testament. It was justified as a punishment of the children of Ham as God’s will. He says that the campaign to end slavery was inspired more by the “spirit of the times” and not the “spirit of religion” (40).
The second essay was composed by Victor J. Stenger, a professor of physics at the University of Hawaii and author of many books. Stenger was given the same objective: was the universe created by a designer with a purpose in mind? At first it seems that he supports the notion that the universe was designed. But moreover gives an explanation why one would think so, then delves into opposition near the end. Stenger says that one would support the notion because of “anthropic coincidences.” By this he means the coincidental fact that Earth contains Carbon and other elements for survival of life, as well as the very sensitive balance of other atmospheric details (42). Stenger states that using the fact that Earth’s physical constants are so unique is not a good argument for the existence of a designer. And this is because of the bias the previous author, Weinberg, had stated, relating the notion that there could quite possibly be other life besides our own out there. Our life is Carbon based, but that does not mean that all life was made and exists from the same elements. There are also those called creationists, who see the universe as so unfit for life that there was no way that it evolved naturally. Stenger believes that one must find the scientific or natural explanations for the “anthropic coincidences” (43). He supports this by saying that a theory, such as the “big-bang” theory, is powerful because it follows the laws of physics. He then goes into an explanation of how this is so. He also mentions that life could have happened no matter what form we took, just as the crystals on a snowflake are arranged by chance (44). Stenger then reverts back to the previous topic about how it is bias to only examine the issue from our point of view. He states that you cannot assume that ours is the only universe. It is quite possible that there lies the existence of many universes. Yet it is important to make the least amount of assumptions as possible. Stenger states that, we are pretty sure that our visible universe is “but a grain of sand on the Sahara” (45).
Victor J. Stenger and Steven Weinberg could easily agree that the cosmos is far beyond human understanding, yet we should still try to examine it. Though, I think they also would agree that it should be examined with rational and scientific theory, rather than by the fluidity of religion. I completely agree with the assertions made by the men in these essays. I do not scorn those who believe in a creator, yet hope that they would try to compare the scientific explanations with that of their beliefs so that their assertions are valid.

Works Cited
Kurtz, Paul, ed. Science and Religion: Are They Compatible? Amherst: Prometheus Books, 2003.
Stenger, Victor J. “Anthropic Design: Does the Cosmos Show Evidence of Purpose?” Kurtz 42-45.
Weinberg, Steven. “A Designer Universe?” Kurtz 31-40.

Science, Religion, and the Cosmos

by
Caitlin Havener

Critical Essay #1
Analyze and Evaluate
HUM 2250 Mod1
Philip E. Bishop
Spring 2009

Word count: 1158

Gander but don't copy!

2009-03-13T18:26:00.000-07:00

I'm going to post all my papers that I have written for now on. You can use them to gather ideas, but don't plagiarize (obviously) and don't use me as a source because I am not credible.