298. Neil deGrasse Tyson — Starry Messenger (6)
2 (59m 30s):
The embryo, the embryo. And so the embryo, thank you. So the embryo, it's an embryo up until a certain number of weeks in, in medical jargon, and then it becomes a fetus. And so, so 15% are spontaneously aborted by the body. And another 15%, by some estimates, it's harder to get the number on this, but by some estimates, another 15% are spontaneously aborted and the women does not even know she's pregnant. Right. Okay. And so, so that would occur in like the first six weeks basically. Cuz what, what happens? You, you, you know, you period is a week late and it's a little heavier.
2 (1h 0m 13s):
Okay. That's in the noise of what happens. So you don't even think about it. Right? Meanwhile, there's an embryo in, you know, in the tampon, I mean in the, in the pad. Okay. So, so, so the takeaway here is if you aren't sure that God is in charge, if you're sure God is in charge, then God performs more abortions than medical doctors do. Yeah. Because that number of spontaneous abortions exceeds what medical doctors do. So I don't, I, I, I don't know what their reply to that would be. I can tell you something, tell
1 (1h 0m 52s):
You would be, it would be here's the analogy I thought when I was reading that section of your book that they would say, yes, everybody will naturally die at some point, but if somebody takes your life early with a gun or a car or whatever, then they should be punished for that. They should be held accountable. That was not right. You did not get to live out your natural life artificial version.
2 (1h 1m 10s):
Okay. So then, so then as long as they know this and they, they still arrive at the same conclusion. Fine. However, consider that if the primary drivers for this come from religious sectors, then that's 10 amount to one religion putting its value system into law that would then have to affect everyone else. And that's a little bit dangerous or a lot dangerous because that would mean the religious tenants, the religious philosophies, the religious principles that are so deeply held by one religious group. If they happen to have voting power over another religious group, they will then can override the traditions of that other religious group or the freedoms that expressed by that other religious group.
2 (1h 2m 0s):
And that does not make for a stable democracy. Right?
1 (1h 2m 4s):
Yeah. You have to have a Rian type system where you don't know where you're gonna be. So if you start off with a law saying, we accept Jesus as our savior. Now let's construct society for that. Well, you've just left out, you know, hundreds of million, well, tens of millions of other Americans in this example. Okay. I know you have a hard out coming out here in 15 minutes. So let me hit back to the body and mind and life and death. All right. So we have a sophisticated 23 and me test, we find out Neil that you are going to die and let's just make it 2049 on Tuesday afternoon. Okay. So the grim Reaper comes through the day before. Here's the context that you say that, you know, having death or the, the death of something like flowers makes them more valuable.
1 (1h 2m 47s):
If there's a Terminus that gives some direction to your life and purposes. So, okay. But if I'm the grim reer
2 (1h 2m 52s):
And I
1 (1h 2m 52s):
Focus A focus, right. So if I come to you and say, well, Neil, would you like, there was a, a miscalculation of the paperwork here. You get another month, would you like another month? I think you go, yeah. Assuming you're healthy and you know, of mind and so forth. Oh. And then what if it's a year, would you like another year? Would you like another decade? At what point would you go? Cause you know, if you say forever, well, no, almost no one says, yeah, I wanna live forever. Does that even mean, but would you like another year, 10 years, a hundred years. How, how far out would you go before you go? No, that,
2 (1h 3m 22s):
Well, so that's an interesting, very hypothetical question. I would base my life on the knowledge. I was gonna die on whatever date in the year, 2049 and get my, you know, my personal affairs in order, you know, and, and accomplish what I can. There might be some things that I didn't fully accomplish. I would judge at that time, whether how much more time I might need to accomplish them, am I a month away? And I fell short, you know, there, you know, some famous mathematicians who were in the middle of a proof, they die and then you miss them proof. Okay. So I'm organizing my life to get my most creative things done before that date, whatever date that is.
2 (1h 4m 6s):
And so if that time comes and I say, I got nothing left to add to society. I'd just say, take me. Yes. That's what I would say. The world needs room for others. And I enjoyed the focus that knowing I was gonna die would bring me. Yes. I, I think I would.
1 (1h 4m 23s):
Yeah. I think I would too. By
2 (1h 4m 25s):
The way, when Einstein, they said we can operate on you, Einstein. I had some ailment, I forgot what, and they said, we can operate on you. And he'd already been through some treatment. And he says, you know what? He said, basically not quite on his deathbed, but in his last days, my work is done.
1 (1h 4m 43s):
Right. But wouldn't it be nice to have Einstein for like, to work on other problems for another 20 years, if you could do it, if
2 (1h 4m 52s):
You wanted, he did work on other problems for 20 years after his Nobel prize
1 (1h 4m 55s):
Work. That's right. That's right. Wouldn't
2 (1h 4m 57s):
Much less progress. They said, my work is done. He, he
1 (1h 4m 59s):
Became the old guy on the, on the porch saying no, no quantum physics on the porch. Back on the porch. Okay. All right. In your rationality. No. What is it that you're country based on rationality rationale.
2 (1h 5m 12s):
Oh, rationale. Yeah. Rationale. Rationale. Yes. That's in the law and order section,
1 (1h 5m 15s):
Right? No, absolutely love that. A
2 (1h 5m 18s):
Virtual country. Right.
1 (1h 5m 19s):
So you know,
2 (1h 5m 21s):
A virtual country where if you're gonna make a law, it's based, you have to, it's gotta be evidence based, right. For the outcome that you seek, you can't just make laws, not
1 (1h 5m 30s):
Just evidence based. Well, okay. It has to be grounded in some kind of argumentation, but what happens when each side has, you know, good
2 (1h 5m 38s):
Argument, that's just argument, evidence. Yeah.
1 (1h 5m 40s):
Evidence, right?
2 (1h 5m 41s):
No evidence. You have to, some experimental evidence in support of the outcome you seek has to be presented. Right? And then you discuss whether that's the outcome you want, you, you vote. Do we want the, you want this law? Okay. So I wanna pass a law that prevents women from getting educated. Okay. This is very, a very Taliban, right? And if we pass this law, the outcome will be women won't get educated and the law will be successful. Okay. So that's a data infused law that will be successful in its intent, but in a democracy you vote, whether that's what you want to have happen. Okay. And if you can vote that down, now you have to, a different question is, is there.
2 (1h 6m 26s):
And this has been debated over whether God sits higher than the constitution or, or what it's and fascinating debates that I've followed and read is should there be a power even higher than a democratic vote that anchors the principles by which you even can create a law,
1 (1h 6m 49s):
Right? That's the bill of
2 (1h 6m 50s):
Rights that would be sort of the highest possible moral authority there is. And historically people imagine that is God, but they'd have to shape God in a way that satisfied them in, in their day. Of course, because God was, is quite mean, mean, and, and vindictive
1 (1h 7m 5s):
For. But in another one
2 (1h 7m 5s):
Of old Testament, for
1 (1h 7m 7s):
Example, it's taking rights issues, like say us foreign policy, to what extent should we support other countries? Well, what if they're run by the Taliban and their, and in their world, they're look mind your own business. You know, here we have, God is as the top of art government. And, and we don't think women should get educated because, and they should wear BECAS and on and on. And that's our system go mind your own business. Why, why is it, you know, that our, our business to promote democracy and women's rights and civil rights and so on. If a country says, this is not, not what we are interested.
2 (1h 7m 37s):
Yeah. So what you can say is, and by the way, I, I don't want there to have to be a financial argument to justify what should happen without a financial argument. Okay. In terms of the equality for all people, right. Cuz you said earlier, and we all agree, you, the men are making rules that influence the women, but suppose the women made the rules, what would their rules be? Right. And if you look at it from the other way, does it have the symmetry? Does it pass the symmetry test to maximize happiness in a society that ought to be enough to outlaw that law. But you can also say in every example where women are educated beyond high school and go on, they have fewer babies and the economy booms.
2 (1h 8m 29s):
Okay. And so do you want a booming economy? Do you want greater health, wealth, security, all that comes from when you educate this half of the population and you're not doing that now. So you will forever remain trailing the rest of civilization in progress in every important way that progress gets measured. You don't wanna have to give that as the reason, but sometimes politically that's necessary.
1 (1h 8m 56s):
Right. But again, what if they say we don't, we don't care. This is the system we want and you know, just go, go do your own rationality system and we're gonna do our thing. I guess the problem is there. We're so France. Yeah.
2 (1h 9m 8s):
That's, that's what the aliens would just, yeah. That's what, that's why the aliens would, would tear up and just leave and say there's no sign of intelligent life on earth. Yeah. The fact that humans divide themselves this way, restricting rights for some and not others or freedoms for some and not others. That's just a completely regressive. I, I don't have a good enough word for it. I just know the aliens would phone home and say there's no sign of intelligent life on earth.
1 (1h 9m 37s):
Right. Well, so capital punishment would be an example of this one argument against is that it is more of a kind of pragmatic issue that even though I agree taking the life is somebody is, is really, is the worst thing you could do too many innocent people are convicted and killed by the government. Do we really want the government to have that much power? It, it violates to
2 (1h 9m 59s):
Have that power over
