So far neurology has killed god in some patients who have visions and experiences of god as a symptom of their temporal lobe epilepsy and lesions.

In one case the question was asked of a neurosurgeon who was dealing catholic nun whose extreme devotion to her god, with visions and voices was found to be a symptom of a lesion in her temporal lobe.

Should the neurosurgeon perform the operation which would remove this nun's godly experiences and notions or leave the lesion alone so…

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There's a fundamental disconnect between atheists and the word "atheist". Part of this is because there isn't complete agreement on what the word means.

• Lack of belief in God
• Lack of belief in God's existence

Lack of belief in God could simply mean a choice not to believe in God because he is cruel or undesirable for some reason -- but does not… Continue

In these discussions about self-determinism, some hard determinists dismissively parade opinion as fact. Their conviction trumps their rational integrity. We all need to be mindful that just about everything to do with free will and determinism is, thus far, a matter of opinion.



Almost 400 years ago, René Descartes claimed that, unlike the human body, the mind has no physical properties or spatial dimension: thus it can not be examined in the same way as the physical body. Today, we…

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Introduction:

I've grown disappointed with philosophers on the subject of free will. The great philosophers of the past knew nothing about the brain. Modern philosophers contradict each other. What I've been trying to do is to stick with the knowledge we have and avoid philosophical entanglements and conjecture as much as possible. However, certain philosophical conundrums must be addressed, such as: (1) the false dichotomy of free will versus causality; (2)…

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The natural realm is the universe and everything in it. The supernatural realm is, by definition, outside the natural realm, so nobody knows, or can know, anything whatsoever about the supernatural. The natural realm is physical; evidence for it is literally everywhere. The supernatural realm is pure conjecture and absolutely unsupported by physical evidence of any kind. The supernatural is, therefor, not scientifically testable.



However, supernatural claims… Continue

Humans have flawed systems of perception and attention. It is little wonder that many of the leaders in the skeptical / freethought movement are current or former magicians (e.g., James Randi, Penn Jillette & Teller, Richard Wiseman, D.J. Grothe, etc.), because magicians capitalize on the vulnerabilities of human perception and attention.



There are several examples of ways our senses can be fooled, but optical illusions are perhaps the easiest to display on the… Continue