Archive September 2007
This is an archive of articles that Lincoln Cannon published in September 2007. An annual archive for 2007 is available. And a full archive of all articles that Lincoln has published since 2005 is also available. You may also search for articles and other content that Lincoln has published on any of his websites.
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Neuroscience and a Mormon Understanding of the Soul
James Hughes posted to the TransSpirit board a message on “Non-materialist neuroscience as a crypto-theist conspiracy.” In the message, James explains that neuroscience is quickly approaching materialistic explanations of human thought that are both necessary and sufficient. He goes on to mention that once we attain such explanations, we should ... -
Dogmatism, not Religion, is the Enemy of Science
Gary Shapiro is an apologist for the decreasing segment of Mormonism that is hostile to evolution theory. He recently posed on his blog a question to Mormons like me: “Where and when has the Church published an apostolic statement endorsing the idea that organic evolution explains the origin of man?” ... -
Is "Mormon Transhumanist" Redundant?
Is Mormonism a form of Transhumanism? Michael Anissimov recently posted seven definitions of “Transhumanism” on his blog. Let’s see how Mormonism fares according to each definition. 1) “Transhumanism is a philosophy that humanity can, and should, strive to higher levels, both physically, mentally and socially. It encourages research into such ... -
The Wisest Designer Would Be Neo-Darwinian
An LDS Science Review post on “Disbelief and Silliness” directed my attention to an article in The Nation, entitled “Root and Branch,” by philosopher Ian Hacking. The article criticizes anti-Darwinism as dead or degenerate in contrast to the living science manifest in Darwinism. Interestingly, Hacking expounds on an allegorical interpretation ... -
Intelligent Design of Religion
Philosopher Dan Dennett argues that religions are like cows. We’ve been redesigning them for thousands of years, perhaps without doing so consciously until recently. He asserts that religions are brilliantly designed and powerful social institutions, resulting from a mixture of natural selection and intelligent design. The key to our domination ... -
Mormons Are Thinking About Enhancement Technologies
Sam MB at By Common Consent has taken up the subject of enhancement technologies. He asks whether Mormonism offers any peculiar insights on these topics. He notes that he has never discussed this issue with Mormons before, and is curious to know what other Mormons think. I’m glad to see ...