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China's Moon mission sees first seeds sprout
Seeds taken up to the Moon by China's Chang'e-4 mission have sprouted, says China National Space Administration. It marks the first time any biological matter has grown on the Moon, and is being seen as a significant step towards long-term space exploration. [...] Plants have been grown on the International Space Station before but never on the Moon.
[...] The Chinese Moon lander was carrying among its cargo soil containing cotton and potato seeds, yeast and fruit fly eggs. The plants are in a sealed container on board the lander. The crops will try to form a mini biosphere - an artificial, self-sustaining environment.
[...] On Tuesday, Chinese state media said the cotton seeds had now grown buds. The ruling Communist Party's official mouthpiece the People's Daily tweeted an image of the sprouted seed, saying it marked "the completion of humankind's first biological experiment on the Moon".
Fred Watson, Australian Astronomical Observatory's astronomer-at-large, told the BBC the development was "good news". "It suggests that there might not be insurmountable problems for astronauts in future trying to grow their own crops on the moon in a controlled environment."
According to SCMP, a similar biosphere experiment will be conducted on Earth for comparison.
A Chang'e-5 lunar exploration vehicle could be launched by the end of 2019, and would include a 2 kg sample return. At least 3 more Chang'e missions are planned.
Previously: China's Chang'e 4 Spacecraft Lands on the Far Side of the Moon
Chang'e Lander Sends Back Far Side Panorama
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday January 16 2019, @03:14PM (1 child)
The delusion is enabled by God - again you say that God lies.
But even then, that is merely a difficulty. It is not wickedness.
Then why enable delusion on those who need truth the most? Particularly, when the resulting delusion leads to condemnation which is eternal? It'd be one thing if such delusion were part of some greater process, much like the Buddhists' ideas on reincarnation who might be considered to have similar views on the nature of reality. At least there, the delusions and suffering caused will eventually lead to learning to help escape the cycle of reincarnation that they perceive.
But it's not. There's only one chance, right? Else eternal damnation. And God is misleading just about everyone with this reality thing. It doesn't matter if Satan takes lead on the matter. It doesn't matter if people themselves contribute significantly to the delusion by choice. The problem here is that God too is enabling this powerful delusion.
God created it. Do you not appreciate his works? And while I grant there is a modest amount of Gaia worship and similar things, the studies that compose science aren't worship of anything.
My view on this is that there is a huge paradox here. God allegedly expects worship and knowledge of the truth, but at the same time has allegedly created powerful delusions to hide both himself and that truth from us. I think there's a simple explanation here. Namely, that God, if he is of the form you say, doesn't intend us to be aware of him, doesn't expect worship, and doesn't expect us to know that which has been deliberately hidden from us. The universe is our sandbox for now, our natures shaped by that same crucible, and it turns out a lot bigger and weirder than we expected - it is our purpose to explore this and to do interesting things great and small. Our choices are what creates all the good and evil we experience and I think it matters a great deal what we do here even though all will eventually end here. If Satan exists as a separate entity from God, he is as subtle as God in concealing himself. One wonders why. According to typical theologies, he should have no reason to go along with the plans of God.
What comes after, I have no idea. But a world without sin has certain implications, such as absence of free will and knowledge - the allegory of the Tree of Knowledge in reverse.
Ultimately, I'm sorry, but I just don't buy that there's a perfect being out there who lies to the vast majority of us (even in this moderately indirect way), and then condemns us after death because we didn't find the truth that was hidden from us. I think there's a far simpler explanation - that you're understanding of God, the universe, etc is in error. How much I don't know, but beliefs should be consistent with themselves. Even God can't fix logical paradox.
Given that these beliefs have you peering intently for signs that our knowledge is wrong in really simple and obvious ways (which incidentally we would have seen already, if they existed) indicates to me that these contradictions are harmful to you as well. I don't believe that the nature of God is such that he would punish you for what you believe even if it is blasphemous (which I think is the case here), but he probably wouldn't shield you from self-inflicted suffering either.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 16 2019, @03:34PM
I see that you understand much of the implications, and that is good. God has deceived one other time in the Bible, I do not recall the passage. He sends a lying spirit to deceive. Again, I don't see it as God lying. The deceptions are always the result of prior states.
Free will can't be free if the correct truth is revealed upon you; the test is whether you accept God, or whether you don't. The world you experience is set up to enable both. If acceptance of God is preconditioned upon seeing proof of his existence in the world, there will be difficulty.
Satan also does not seek to reveal himself, because proof of his existence implies proof of God's. He seeks to draw Man away from God, precisely as the serpent did to Eve. And knowledge is the great tool.
As you do seem to understand much, I will quote this from Steve Wozniak's iWoz for amusement: