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| Personal background |
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Hi there!
My name is Thomas, I am a neuropsychologist residing in Copenhagen, Denmark, born in 1973 (born and raised in Oslo, Norway). My main interest is in the scientific study of consciousness, how it 'comes about', and how this all relates to the structure and functioning of the brain. Besides that, I work with clinical neuropsychology, both testing and helping people suffering from brain injury.
You can read more about my work and interests at http://www.ramsoy.dk
If your would like to know more about the scientific study of consciousness, please visit the online journal/forum Science & Consciousness Review, where I am the managing editor. You can find us at http://www.sci-con.org |
| Thoughts about SETI and SETI@home |
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Does ET exist?
Following my atheism and my firm belief in evolutionary principles, plus my denial of extranatural phenomena, I am in no doubt that life exists beyond the earth. History keeps telling us what we are NOT the centre of the universe, and this is probably one of the last issues where human kind needs to dethrone ourselves.
I like to think of the question as related to religion, as cited in the famous movie "Contact". The priest asks whether so many people, millions and billions [believing in a supreme being] can be wrong. My relatively simple reply would be 'Yes'. I think people have many reasons for believeing in a supreme being, or extranatural phenomena, but I also firmly believe that this faith is founded on other factors than what they think are the reasons for believing. Then again, I am a psychologist, seeing the most immediate reasons people have for believing, but I think these explanations are much better at explaining faith than the extranatural pehanomena they are ascribed to. So I would deny people's personal and felt conviction, PLUS that I would deny any logical inference or deduction about extranatural and supreme beings.
Phew! Think I should write a manifesto?
I think humans will eventually find life outside earth, possibly within my lifetime. However, I think that this will be in the form of simple organisms and cells, probably in such a form that people will still question whether this is life. You already know about the Marsian rock story. Well, I think we will make more of the same, similar and questionable findings, gradually building our ...belief... that life exists on other planets.
Can SETI find ET?
Not very likely on a short term, but should we exclude such possibilities? The innovativeness of the SETI project probably demonstrates the best of human kind; our willingness to explore, our curiosity, our ability to ask essential and vital questions, AND our ability and willingness to explore these questions. |
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