A test for a man's soul?
Science cannot prove God either way. But can science prove the existence of a soul? This is where the subject of a life force (soul) comes in. If all that were to life was dead matter that is now living. Fixing what is wrong with that matter to sustain life would be much easier. But yet everyday in the medical field the unexplained happens.
People die, who should have lived. And people live, who should have died. The only explanation medical science has for this is one person's will to live was greater then the others. To come to this conclusion, you would also have to say that anyone who wants to live forever could do just that. But that is not what we see is it?
So we could conclude that when this life force leaves the living matter body, it turns back into dead matter and cannot be revived. Because matter can be repaired. Making the soul return to the body so that life can be sustained, is not obtainable. Therefore medical science will always have a problem explaining how some people died, and some people lived. But, is there evidence that a soul actually exists?
There were some tests conducted on terminal patients to see if the soul actually has weight that could be recorded at the exact time of death (if there was a soul that left, and had measurable weight). Doing this test, they found some interesting stuff. Regardless of how big or small the person was that died, the weight loss was always the same: 3/4 of an once. And it was always recorded right at the instant the person ceased to show any life signs.
24 comments
I would like to see these studies you have.
Also, there are material explanations for these phenomena.
I'm no biology guy, but I'd guess that once the brain stops working, it's pretty much impossible to come back to life because the brain dies without a constant blood / oxygen supply. No soul needed to explain it.
The 'will to live' is just a different way of saying 'they got lucky'. There are many factors that cannot be measured in medical science, you should not assume the soul is the one that decides every little thing.
Science cannot prove God either way. But can science prove the existence of a soul? This is where the subject of a life force (soul) comes in. If all that were to life was dead matter that is now living. Fixing what is wrong with that matter to sustain life would be much easier. But yet everyday in the medical field the unexplained happens.
I'm not entirely sure what to think about the soul. Clearly, there is something that makes a Human more than the sum of his/her parts. We don't know what it is, and we probably never will. Still, it's an interesting intellectual exercise to try and pin it down. Personally, assuming that whatever it is is an energetic process of some sort, I would guess that the "soul" falls into the category of the Conservation of Energy principle.
Notice, however, that I DO NOT force my personal opinion about the "soul" onto other people...unlike the average Christian.
Not very fundie, but disjointed gibberish all the same. That aside, I believe in souls but the existence of a soul doesn't prove that god exists in the capacity that christians, or most other mainstream religions, believe.
People die, who should have lived. And people live, who should have died. The only explanation medical science has for this is one person's will to live was greater then the others.
Absolute nonsense! Maybe 'an' explanation (though not scientific) - certainly not the 'only' explanation.
There were some tests conducted on terminal patients to see if the soul actually has weight that could be recorded at the exact time of death (if there was a soul that left, and had measurable weight). Doing this test, they found some interesting stuff. Regardless of how big or small the person was that died, the weight loss was always the same: 3/4 of an once. And it was always recorded right at the instant the person ceased to show any life signs.
More nonsense! Citation required - otherwise that is just 3/4 of an ounce (not an once) of urine or fecal material which was released as the sphincter muscles relaxed. (This might indicate the death of a long term sufferer - otherwise I would have thought 3/4 of an ounce to be a tad light for urine/fecal discharge.)
I've been delcared clinically dead twice in my 74 years.
You lying morons only have brains in order to keep you ears apart with your "facts".
On the point of death, some bodily fluids are partially excreted - FACT - from my Doctors.
This is due to muscle relaxation prior to rigor mortis, which includes the bladder.
The "21 grams" experiments were unscientifically conducted and are highly dubious at best. Besides, like some others have noted, the immediately deceased probably pissed and/or shit their pants in doing so.
Given the fact that MCDougall's test was conducted in 1907, only used six patients, two of whom couldn't be weighed because of equipment malfunction, and the other four showed some pretty serious weight variations(not everyone 3/4 of an ounce by any means) and the doctor himself said they were inexact about determining the time of death, I'm going to call bullshit on you EvoHate. Major fail and a 9th commandment violation to boot.
Yeah, I've heard of this study.
However, you won't prove anyone that soul exists with that. Specially, considering there is a movie based on that concept; "21 Grams"
If God existed then Science could prove it.
It's great at providing evidence for unseeable, untouchable, unsmellable things if they really do exist. Turn on your radio some time and listen to the untouchable radio waves. Use invisible microwaves to heat your drink.Or magnetism to drive your electrical appliences.
Invisible light, unhearable sound- all exist and science can prove it. It's only things like Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and God that Science can't prove one way or another- because every test always comes out exactly what you would expect if they didn't exist.
Dualism at its best. It's always interesting to see people who believe that the mind can survive without the matter. I personally adhere to the philosophy of monism/holism when it comes to the soul. Basically, the mind is intrinsically tied to the matter. When your brain dies, there is no surviving awareness.
The concept of dualism is popular in science-fiction. Machines that allow individuals to transfer their memories or personality into vessels or other people are fairly common occurences. Unless the entire brain is transferred, an astounding feat on its own, I really don't see how memories and personality traits can survive without the synapses and neural pathways propietary of the original brain.
What shocks me even more is to encounter atheists that believe in the existence of a soul.
There is a very big difference in a universe that has a supernatural creator that runs the whole show and a universe without one. That clearly makes the question of god a scientific one.
I got bad news for the god side. The evidence isn't adding up for ya.
People die, who should have lived. And people live, who should have died. The only explanation medical science has for this is one person's will to live was greater then the others.
Nope, there is a much more straightforward explanation: Random chance.
@D.Steve.Brule: Well, the personality and so forth is all information, isn't it? With advances in computing, I don't think transferring the information contained in a person's brain to a machine is completely impossible.
How do they measure such a thing, anyway?
"Time to get on the scale, Mr. Freebish, you're about to kick the bucket. Oops! Lookit that brown thing on the bed next to him - is it the soul of a fundy?"
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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