Peter D Fisher

Humanist, writer and podcaster. Trying to step out of being a human being to look back in. Lover of animals, Truth, Oh, and my lovely family.

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

BIG announcement about the BIG Questions!
"Not 42: The REAL meaning of Life the Universe and Everything" Podcast Series is available now!

What is Truth?
Where does meaning come from?
Is there a God?
What does it mean to be human?
Can our species survive?
https://t.co/HjvjO6EoMk

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@RichardDawkins It's probably worth interrupting my X holiday to answer this. I wrote a novel discussing this question, which needs rewriting in light of new science. Here are some thoughts:

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@algernon_sidney @OriginsUnveiled @SuperGrok The vlogger Erica, who goes by the name of The Gutsick Gibbon has made a helpful video about the genetic relationship between humans and non-human apes, which might help: https://t.co/6ydtLwPAIT

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

From my article in "Free Inquiry" magazine.

[Center for Inquiry @center4inquiry]

“We live in a world that increasingly wants people to ask not, ‘What is true?’ but ‘What should I believe?’”

@peterdfisher in @FreeInquiry on why creationism endures and what it reveals about the psychology of belief: https://t.co/LqU94PpokW

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@ThinkingAtheist People go to war, not usually for nationalism, but for patriotism. They are both expressions of the deeper in-group/out-group instinct. Both should be challenged and confronted. In a world bristling with thermonuclear weapons, our survival as a species might depend on it.

[Center for Inquiry @center4inquiry]

“We live in a world that increasingly wants people to ask not, ‘What is true?’ but ‘What should I believe?’”

@peterdfisher in @FreeInquiry on why creationism endures and what it reveals about the psychology of belief: https://t.co/LqU94PpokW

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@EvolOdonata @RichardDawkins @Evolutionistrue @sapinker Evolution says we are a species of animal. EP asks what it is to be this kind of animal: a perfectly reasonable approach! It's a relatively new science, and mistakes made, perhaps, but it's irrational to focus on human uniqueness when evolution builds on what's already there.

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@FlusterCucked @peterboghossian Oh really? You don't live here, I do! Now, would I swap King Charles for King Trump? Now let me think...!

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@peterboghossian BREAKING! The BBC have just reported about the protests on the Newsnight programme in the last few minutes.

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@peterboghossian And the counter demonstrations? Were there any? If there were, the BBC would cover both. The UK is a large country, and I'm sure there were all kinds of demonstrations going on. If they were violent or very big, they would be reported. IDK, but is this one-sided RW propaganda?

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@EdohAyao @michaelshermer Ep 1: What is True?

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@EdohAyao @michaelshermer I am not a scientist, and this needs proper scientific investigation. Even if I did, do you really think they'd let me look inside those "masks" if it was a scam?

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@EdohAyao @michaelshermer We ARE animals. Our species just has a different Deep Nature to other species. Listen to Episode 6.

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@EdohAyao @michaelshermer 5/5 Part of what we are as a species is that we seem to need deeper spiritual meaning, and this often distorts our reasoning. To put it another way: you are making the mistake – understandably perhaps – of thinking like a human being which isn’t always the best way to find Truth.

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@EdohAyao @michaelshermer 4/n You are obviously a spiritual person, but what does that mean? What I do know – and this IS scientifically established – is that evolution happened, which means we are animals of a particular kind.

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@EdohAyao @michaelshermer Anaesthetic chemically inhibits SOME brain functions, not all. If I understand this correctly, if a patient receives an overdose of anaesthetic it stops all brain functions, including the ones controlling breathing and heart rate and they die. The exact mechanisms are not known.

[Peter D Fisher @peterdfisher]

@EdohAyao @michaelshermer No, I think consciousness is entirely a biological phenomenon.
Wallace did become interested in spiritualism and pseudoscientific ideas like phrenology. Darwin disagreed. If there is such a thing as spiritual manifestation, then there should be scientific evidence for it.