Post by redraven on Feb 9, 2010 19:34:40 GMT -1
I was intrigued by the premise of this book after casting my eyes over The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins recently again. Although Dawkins has some interesting perspectives, when reading said book, I can't help but build up a mental portrait of an individual who who sets out with more of a personal agenda against certain sections of the religious community, than an actual serious investigation as to the probability of any divine interactions.
Thus, I came across this book, fully entitled.. The Devil's Delusion : Atheism and its Scientific Pretensions. The Author, David Berlinski, is a secular Jew who holds a Ph.D from Princeton university and has taught both mathematics and philosophy in both the US and France as well as writing about both and the sciences.
The great strength of this book is that Berlinski concentrates upon the inconsistencies present in current scientific models without promoting any religious doctrines or ideologies. He doesn't even specifically acknowledge the existence of any deity, preferring to point us towards the expediencies made in the name of science that create the conditions for the atheistic hypothesis to work.
I was particularly interested in why the Big Bang theory is inconsistent with the natural laws as we know them, and the evidence that science places the conditions for the Big Bang outside nature, at this time, but refutes the notion that, at this time, it represents a supernatural event.
He tackles the idea's and conclusions of a lot of the current crop of atheist authors active at this time, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens, Daniel Dennet et AL, with some gusto and a certain amount of incisive wit.
This is a book that for me, re-established a certain amount of common sense after being caught up in the constant flux that is the scientific method.
Concentrating on the specifics can sometimes lead us to forget to view the whole picture. This book goes some way to re-addressing that balance.
Recommended.
RR
Thus, I came across this book, fully entitled.. The Devil's Delusion : Atheism and its Scientific Pretensions. The Author, David Berlinski, is a secular Jew who holds a Ph.D from Princeton university and has taught both mathematics and philosophy in both the US and France as well as writing about both and the sciences.
The great strength of this book is that Berlinski concentrates upon the inconsistencies present in current scientific models without promoting any religious doctrines or ideologies. He doesn't even specifically acknowledge the existence of any deity, preferring to point us towards the expediencies made in the name of science that create the conditions for the atheistic hypothesis to work.
I was particularly interested in why the Big Bang theory is inconsistent with the natural laws as we know them, and the evidence that science places the conditions for the Big Bang outside nature, at this time, but refutes the notion that, at this time, it represents a supernatural event.
He tackles the idea's and conclusions of a lot of the current crop of atheist authors active at this time, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens, Daniel Dennet et AL, with some gusto and a certain amount of incisive wit.
This is a book that for me, re-established a certain amount of common sense after being caught up in the constant flux that is the scientific method.
Concentrating on the specifics can sometimes lead us to forget to view the whole picture. This book goes some way to re-addressing that balance.
Recommended.
RR