I saw a promotion for a TV show where they were going to be searching for, and hinted at finding, Atlantis. One of the clips showed an individual who was supposedly a scientist or someone of some distinguishment saying, " There is now more evidence that Atlantis existed than there is evidence that it did not exist." I just wanted to throw the nearest brick at the TV. Luckily, I do not keep bricks in my living room for just that reason.
It is impossible to have physical evidence that something like Atlantis did not exist. I do not count writings from thousands of years ago to be evidence one way or another. The man was implying that atlantis MUST be out there because the evidence for it outweighs evidence against it.
This particular program was going to be on the Sci Fi channel I believe, which right there tells you it shouldn't be taken seriously, but still, it bothers me. While I do not have any examples, I'd bet you could find similiar stupid comments on TLC or discovery channel as well.
Posted by TheGrimace (Member # 9178) on :
the only way I don't claw my eyes out while watching the majority of ads on tv is that I've managed to mostly turn off the logical side of my brain while watching TV...
It's still there, and often still screams loud enough from the cheap seats that I'll take issue with things like this but for the most part my life is a lot happier just ignoring it in this case.
Every once in a while when I actually pay attention to this kind of stuff it's depressing because it makes me think that the majority of the population must have an IQ of about 3. And trust me, this example is very weak compared to most of the idiocy out there.
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
If talking to an atheist historian, I'm sure they would say Atlantis is no different then the stories in the bible. No absolutely direct evidence exists to support or deny its existence.
Posted by TrapperKeeper (Member # 7680) on :
I thought about giving that example Stephen, but didn't want to go there. Without hijacking the gripe though, I'd say its true for many things in the bible, especially old testament.
Posted by starLisa (Member # 8384) on :
But Atlantis must exist. They said so on the TV.
Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
But, Atlantis does exist. I have proof. I watch it every Friday Night on the Sci Fi channel.
Posted by Tresopax (Member # 1063) on :
quote:It is impossible to have physical evidence that something like Atlantis did not exist. I do not count writings from thousands of years ago to be evidence one way or another.
If you were really critically thinking, you'd count ALL the evidence, and assign it appropriate weight.
And it is definitely possible to have evidence that something doesn't exist. Otherwise how would you ever know when to conclude something doesn't exist? For instance, the fact that my parents told me I only have two siblings is pretty good evidence that I don't have a third one.
Posted by TrapperKeeper (Member # 7680) on :
Tres, are you being serious or joking?
Posted by FlyingCow (Member # 2150) on :
I don't think Tres' example is a great one. However, to play devil's advocate, a mother dying in childbirth is pretty good evidence against the existence of younger siblings from that mother running around.
Posted by Phanto (Member # 5897) on :
Right, but it far from being a conclusive assumption, FlyingCow-san.
Posted by FlyingCow (Member # 2150) on :
Are you saying that if my mother died giving birth to me that I could have younger siblings running around - short of having a twin removed postmortem? (I'll even grant frozen embryos... but what if I was 80?)
Posted by starLisa (Member # 8384) on :
Time travel.
Posted by TrapperKeeper (Member # 7680) on :
yeah, thats a pretty good example flyingcow. however, I still cannot seem to conceive of any physical evidence for the non-existance of Atlantis.
Written or verbal accounts are not considered physical evidence.
Posted by TrapperKeeper (Member # 7680) on :
and keep it within the realm of possibility. No sending satellites back in time to take pictures to show that nothing was there or anywhere
Posted by JennaDean (Member # 8816) on :
They did just that in Pastwatch, didn't they?
Posted by TrapperKeeper (Member # 7680) on :
Yup. More or less anyway
Posted by FlyingCow (Member # 2150) on :
I can think of specific examples of evidence for non-existence of Atlantis, but not general ones. For instance, it's possible to say "I have evidence that Atlantis could not have existed here," I would think. I just can't see any way of saying you have evidence that it didn't exist at all.
Posted by starLisa (Member # 8384) on :
quote:Originally posted by TrapperKeeper: Yup. More or less anyway
Are you suggesting that Pastwatch was fiction?
Posted by starLisa (Member # 8384) on :
FlyingCow, of course no one can prove that Atlantis didn't exist. But consider what it implies. An advanced civilization existed in prehistoric times, but left not the slightest perceptible mark on the world. It's not that it's not possible; just that it's not very plausable.
Posted by Javert (Member # 3076) on :
quote:Originally posted by starLisa: FlyingCow, of course no one can prove that Atlantis didn't exist. But consider what it implies. An advanced civilization existed in prehistoric times, but left not the slightest perceptible mark on the world. It's not that it's not possible; just that it's not very plausable.
Well, if your entire civilization was on an island, and the island sank/exploded, I don't imagine much would be left.
Posted by FlyingCow (Member # 2150) on :
Oh, I'm not saying I believe it existed, or don't believe it existed. I was just talking about the ability of someone to prove a negative.
Proving extraterrestrial aliens that look like dragons don't exist in the general sense is different than proving an extraterrestrial alien that looks like a dragon doesn't exist in my sock drawer.
I can probably gather evidence that Atlantis was not in my backyard, but I can't see any easy way of showing that it didn't exist period.
Posted by starLisa (Member # 8384) on :
So maybe Atlantis was in the Mediterranean basin before the Atlantic broke through Gibraltar. Has there been a survey of the surface of the bottom of the Med?
Posted by FlyingCow (Member # 2150) on :
There's been some speculation that the story of Atlantis actually came from the island of Thera, now called Santorini.
This may be what they're going to discuss on the television program.
Posted by Puppy (Member # 6721) on :
I still like the Tantalis theory.
Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
On a similar note, I saw a documentry on "The Science of Superman" which other than being quite interesting in a non-scientfic way (I now want to see the new Superman movie, so I guess the marketing scheme worked).
Anyway, they clearly asked the scientists to put as much positive spin on their statements as possible.
quote:This violates all the laws of physics that we are aware of, but who knows? There may be things we don't know yet.
This kind of thing makes me laugh.
Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
I signed up for their newletter and have yet to be disappointed.
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
Atlantis was actually Antarctica prior to a crustal shift caused by the growth of unbalanced polar ice caps.
The resistance to the Kyoto protocols is actually the work of an ancient secret society dedicated to preventing it from happening again. Al Gore is funded by another ancient secret society dedicated to getting the crust to shift back so Atlantis will rise again.
![[Wink]](wink.gif)