Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
In his book, Alexander claims that when he was in a coma caused by E. coli bacterial meningitis, he went to heaven. Of course, Dittrich's piece is not the first time that Alexander's text has come into question. In April, Michael Shermer at Scientific American explained how the author's "evidence is proof of hallucination, not heaven." But Dittrich calls into question not what Alexander experienced so much how he did. While Dittrich looks at legal troubles Alexander had during his time practicing neurosurgery, perhaps the most damning piece of testimony comes from a doctor who was on duty in the ER when Alexander arrived in 2008. Dr. Laura Potter explains that she "had to make the decision to just place him in a chemically induced coma."
The accuracy of Dr. Eben Alexander's New York Times bestseller has been called in question
A doctor who treated him has contradicted several claims he makes in the book about his illness
He claims he cried out 'God help me!' but he wouldn't have been able to since he had a tube down his throat
An expose in August's Esquire also claims he covered up an incident from his career as a neurosurgeon and even exaggerated the weather
Alexander says he stands by every word he has written
Alexander, Dittrich shows, has a long history of rewriting events after the fact to make them suit his ends. His liberties with the truth range from the humorously trivial (changing the weather during the week he was in a coma for dramatic effect) to the deeply unethical (falsifying medical records to cover up the fact that he’d operated at the wrong site on a patient’s spine).
And it’s worth noting that Alexander’s publisher, Simon & Schuster, is the same one that’s publishing a new book by Jonah Lehrer, the former New Yorker writer and neuroscience lecturer whose previous book was withdrawn from stores after having proved to contain falsified and plagiarized material.
Alexander, Dittrich shows, has a long history of rewriting events after the fact to make them suit his ends. His liberties with the truth range from the humorously trivial (changing the weather during the week he was in a coma for dramatic effect) to the deeply unethical (falsifying medical records to cover up the fact that he’d operated at the wrong site on a patient’s spine).
Even "humorously trivial" liberties point to an ability to take even greater liberties elsewhere. I actually don't think changing the weather for dramatic effect is trivial in a book purporting to convey a supposedly factual account.
I always thought the internet is proof of Heaven, because it itself is another Heaven in which things travel at the speed of light, making the world a very small place. The Chakras are like modems uploading and downloading info at light speeds. We exist in the physical universe, in the universe of Heaven , and now in the digital universe in digital form, coming to you at the speed of the internet where we all exist in the same space (or lack of space?). When you travel at these speeds you exist in a singularity, where we all exist in the same place at all times, like the internet. It is another Heaven, with the same kinds of physical laws (or rather, lack of physical laws, as there is nothing physical).
It is really a non-story. Science cannot prove or disprove the existence of God and heaven. You either believe or you don't.
Depends on whether or not the god concept is supposed to interact with this universe. If not, then of course it isn't open to evidence (and it's also irrelevant to us, but that's a different question). If it does do things here in our universe, then it is certainly open to investigation.
Here, we have a case where a believer makes a claim that is open to being tested against the evidence. The results don't look so good for his claims.
All of science studies close the door to anything spiritual , as the spiritual is from a strange dimensions that the physical science does not understand , So if they close to door to spiritual , then they are ignorant to the art of spiritual , and any debunking is irrelevant
All of science studies close the door to anything spiritual , as the spiritual is from a strange dimensions that the physical science does not understand , So if they close to door to spiritual , then they are ignorant to the art of spiritual , and any debunking is irrelevant
spiritual comes from spirit which means air, breath and wind. study etymology, study the comparisons between Christianity and the religions of ancient Rome, Egypt, Babylonia, Persia and India
science is not in the business of proving religion and spirituality(synonyms)
It is really a non-story. Science cannot prove or disprove the existence of God and heaven. You either believe or you don't.
You are, of course, mistaken here, at least from one perspective. Example: if a particular religion claims that, absolutely, their particular mythical God or sub-god i.e.: Jesus as the son of...) can heal, but that cannot (and in addition, has not been) EVER be demonstrated other than by inference and anecdote ("Well, my son got better after e all prayed, so thereyou have it! Heaven and God do exist! Proven!"
It thus depends on one's convenient definitions of words like theory and proven, plus how much "store" and "faith" many of the hopelessly scientifically illiterate people care to place in such chance happenings. Of course they NEVER recount where the child in their congregation died after a diagnosis of lymphoma, and the entire congregation payed intensely for him for over 2 months, but he died just as predicted, in the same time frame as "science" predicted.
In fact, when we look at things or events that are supposedly assisted by prayer and belief, like healing, or the long-term success of a marriage, we do find, by the carefully documented numbers that such biased events fail more often than do the secular versions.
So your idea that aspects of God, Creation and a literal heaven or hell cannot be disproven is lacking. In fact, there are literally no substantiated proven, observed and properly documented cases of ANY biblically literal cases on any record, except by those with an intense desire to believe.
On the other hand, whatever we set up with a valid hypothesis and then investigate by the SM is either disproven, found to be neutral or is positively proven. The only 3 alternatives. Like for example, the ages of old rocks well into the multi-millions of years, the estimated age of the universe being vastly longer than the Creationist's fanciful and imaginative but unfounded 6000+ age, or that... "There's absolutely no evidence for Evolution", which has now in fact been, for all intents and purposes, completely proven buy the latest in DNA genome mapping and lineage tracing.
To deny such inarguable facts is to show one's completely stubborn attitude. In addition, you have to pick one or the other, so by "picking" Evolution has it's been now proven, you have to dismiss the alternate Insta-Poofy Goddunnitt version. As we've proceded on, and by the simple but scientifically robust process of logic and rational elimination, we've systematically disassembled pretty much all of the literal biblical myths, and have indeed shown they cannot and thus do not exist.
Which is I'm afraid, too bad for those who have relied on that promised post-death Salvation, which is pretty much the sole bassis for the Christian religion.
Quote:
Originally Posted by hljc
All of science studies close the door to anything spiritual , as the spiritual is from a strange dimensions that the physical science does not understand , So if they close to door to spiritual , then they are ignorant to the art of spiritual , and any debunking is irrelevant
Nope; far from it, hljc. Your amazing lack of experience in how science really works is just another striking example of how the church teaches you to be stubbornly scientifically illiterate, on purpose and so that they don't ever lose control.
The fact is, we investigate any and all spiritual or not-of-this-world claims, as noted above. If you claim such and such an event is a fact, but cannot demonstrate it EVER, nor can you show it has ever happened except by shrill and often anecdotal evidence (but... where is just ONE photo or video, please? Just one!), then you have only shown an expectation, an hallucinatory experience ,or a really desperate wish for something. All of it may fly into the mounting face of alternate demonstrable evidence that shows that your valued "such and such" blessed biblical event did not actually happen.
In other words, it's no more valid than the flying cup and saucer rumored by scientists everywhere to be circulating in a stable orbit around the sun, between that solar body and Mercury. Prove it's not!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
