Recent Updates From Across EpicureanFriends.com

In partial answer to Rolf and DaveT, my exhibit A on this issue, and I am sure there are many more when I go looking, is Lawrence Krauss and his "A Universe From Nothing," which I have referenced before as the subject of a video debate between Krauss and…

Allow me a respectful comment on this thread. I think it is not helpful to compare and contrast the physical world hypotheses of the various ancient thinkers with our complex modern science of physics. Sometimes, an ancient thinker, by a fortunate…

Would somebody be able to post a concise explanation of the two sides of this debate? I see what you’re getting at but I’m not 100%.

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Great example. I am certain Don is correct, but I just asked GPT and it said the 7th!

Although the robot is not accurate, I think Cassius is leaning into the correct angle:

There are physicists who take fundamentally different basic assumptions.

From…

Really fascinating discussion.

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We shouldn't, because...

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We know that it doesn't know, and we already have to evaluate it for falsehood.

Grok possesses a vast knowledge base, yet a shallow one; it's evaluations are confident, yet hasty; it represents itself with authority, yet has…

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I suspect you are correct but can neither confirm nor deny. However I think the way you phrased that is very helpful for leading to the question: Does hard determinism presuppose physicalism? I suspect that at least some hard determinists would…

I think mpst of our listeners will particularly enjoy the just-released episode 289, in which we focus on what Cicero's explanation of the Stoic position reveals to us about the details of Epicurus' rebuttal to those views. Can't promise an awful lot of…

Grok misclassified Sabine Hossenfelder. Her insistence on hard determinism makes her the most extreme physicalist among those listed.

Episode 289 of the Lucretius Today Podcast is now available. Today our episode is entitled: "Epicureans Are Not Spocks!"

[media]https://www.spreaker.com/episode/66929068/media

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Absolutely -- what we call “atoms” today can be seen with instruments, but of course those are vastly larger than a true atom and they are made up of countless real atoms. I was referring to a true atom in the original sense: an indivisible, solid bit…

I may come back and delete this post later if i find better information, but I think we have an obligation to those who "lurk" but don't participate not to let a debate go too far in a certain direction without refocusing it on making sure it is…

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Bryan : Are you referring to dark matter?

As far as "seeing" atoms, it depends on your definition of "see":

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/see-th…-ever-captured/

And

https://klickverbot.at/blog/2018/02/p…-a-single-atom/

But

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Response to Bryan's comment #19:

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No!

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I did not encounter such students while I studied physics in Cologne. So, the many good is "exaggerated" if not outright wrong. Being able to apply established models to solve simple problems usually assures…

Happy Birthday, Eikadistes


I love how you have helped organize and explain much of the Epicurean texts. I appreciate having a printed copy of Hedonicon. I’m working on making it as full of highlighted text and dog-eared pages as my previously studied…

Rolf I am obviously not an expert on this either, nor have I found time to read the books I am about to recommend, but consistently over the years i have had people tell me that a very good resource is Victor Stenger:



Victor Stenger

Does anyone have any good sources on learning about modern atomic theory and physics for an absolute beginner? I was just thinking about Epicurus' theories and it hit me just how amazing it is that he was able to get so much right without any kind of…

Martin, Bryan: I don't know enough about psychics to agree or disagree with either of your positions, but I really appreciate both of you posting your perspectives on this.

Great point, Cassius!

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I would say Diogenes of Oinoanda is accurately transmitting Hellenistic philosophy from our school's perspective. Plato studied Heraclitus "in the garden at Colonus" before joining Socrates (Lives 3.5), and eventually "created a synthesis of the…

This is an interesting division that Diogénēs makes. (Come to think of it) I wonder how reliable of a transmitter he is of Hellenistic philosophy? The Peripatetics ... as far as I know, the "flux" is categorically Heraklitean; the Aristotelians were…

We do have:

10.44a. ^[Bailey] "For on the one hand the nature of the void which separates each atom by itself brings this about, as it is not able to afford resistance, and on the other hand the hardness (stereótēs) which belongs to the atoms makes them…

To add to what Bryan says about atoms being too small for machines to detect, that highlights that we need to remember that Epicurus was clear that the atoms are not discernable at all by the senses. Anything we know about them is going to come from…

Don "How to eat like a stoic" ...a "stoic-friendly" lentil soup...he says that they don't get to use garum (fish sauce).

But the full Roman recipe has quite a few ingredients (starts approx. at 2:25 into the video).

It seems to me that the current state of modern theoretical physics is in a precarious position for following Einstein. A lot of data has been automatically bent to fit incorrect assumptions.

Every year there are many good students, potential physicists,…

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Cassius,

Thank you so much for the personal response. I look forward to the Tusculan Disputations!

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Thank you for this great information!

Being a 39 year old as well that has put away some beers in his time, I can't blame a guy living through a couple of World Wars for having some drink I suppose. I've certainly stressed over far less in my life.

I always considered that Laertius quote to…

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What does this mean exactly?

Epicurus' seems to have conceived the "atoms" (i.e. the elementary particles in today's language) as hard bodies, which has been refuted by modern physics. Therefore, Epicurus' inferences from that hardness are not sound. This concerns in particular the…

youtu.be/jx3_IbW5Cig?si=-gbMFk-pYn74hkEK

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LOL!!! The poets then and now must have had their problems!