This is very simple. I'm currently involved in an argument with a friend. And the question is this: Do opposites exist?
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This is very simple. I'm currently involved in an argument with a friend. And the question is this: Do opposites exist?
Of course opposites exist.
How can that scientific law of:
"Opposites attract"
Be true if there wasn't such a thing as opposites
to be attracting.
Remote_Access_
Not to be offensive but surely that is the point of the discussion, to test such a theory and not just accept.Quote:
Originally posted by Remote_Access_
Of course opposites exist.
How can that scientific law of:
"Opposites attract"
Be true if there wasn't such a thing as opposites
to be attracting.
Remote_Access_
How are you defining 'opposites'? The opposite of High might be Low, but it could be sober depending on the context.
What is the context of the conversation?
The context of this is simply, do tangible opposites exist. For example, I tried to suggest that light was the opposite of dark, but I couldn't prove that because I couldn't prove that darkness is exists.
Any interpretation on the subject is fine.
OR, is darkness the absence of light?
Yeah, that too. But I couldn't prove that it was the opposite of light, even with that.
Well, I'm not sure what your friend will require for proof, but, if you take him/her into a room, remove the light (turn off the light), would that not leave him or her in the dark?
:p
Yes, i guess it would. But does that necessarily make it the opposite of having light.
If you can't prove that darkness is the opposite of light, then try turning the lights off.Quote:
Originally posted by Alcatraz
Yeah, that too. But I couldn't prove that it was the opposite of light, even with that.
;P
Seriously though, tangible opposites do exist. Complete opposites do not exist (IMO), but that goes onto the whole yin-yang theory of how a wrong can contain some right, and a right can contain some wrong...
If I were you though, I would prove it with electricity or magnets. It is scientific fact that opposite magnetic fields attract, which is along the lines of what Remote_Access_ was talking about earlier.
In truth, it's a philosophical argument that's rather silly. Tangible opposites exist, but not all circumstances or objects have tangible opposites.
Of course, most philosophical arguments are silly, if you come down to it. Why dont we just forget 'em all and get on with out lives?Quote:
In truth, it's a philosophical argument that's rather silly.
I'm with you, this is starting to make my head hurt. :DQuote:
Originally posted by Alcatraz
Of course, most philosophical arguments are silly, if you come down to it. Why dont we just forget 'em all and get on with out lives?
quit the pseudo philosophy. the adjective dark does exist. It is when light is not reflected into the eye. the adjective light occurs when light is reflected into the eye. Obvious there is an opposite here. Light reflecting into the eye and light not reflecting into the eye.
Thank you oblio, that's just the short and sensible thing I was looking for.
I disagree, philosophical arguments are not all silly, IMO. Some of them are very intriguing. This particular one is rather obviously (as oblio pointed out) not one of the intriguing ones (to me anyways).Quote:
Originally posted by Alcatraz
Of course, most philosophical arguments are silly, if you come down to it. Why dont we just forget 'em all and get on with out lives?
Anyhow, the kind of discussion on whether or not all philosophical arguments are silly is probably best left to another thread.
But most philosophical arguments are unnecessary, just a bit entertaining. And this may or may not be of interest to you, I'm just trying to make an argumental point.
Lights on
:idea:
Lights off
:sleep:
Lights on
:idea:
Lights off
:sleep:
Lights on
:idea:
Lights off
:sleep:
Lights on
:idea:
Lights off
:sleep:
Hey, cool, I get it now. Darkness cometh when the switch goes down............
:jack:
Well, it depends on how you mean by 'opposite', because any opposite has similarities to the original item. For instance, white might not the opposite of black, because they have many similarities. They are both colors...
It really depends on the CONTEXT, in other words, in what WAY are they opposite? Nothing is "totally" opposite to something else.
Computer logic is based on opposites.
It's called Boolean algebra.
Maybe the opposites are arbitrarily defined,
but they have a practical, physical origin.
Every binary digit (bit) is literally represented
by a switch that is either on (conducting current)
or off.
But many things in daily life, that we think of
as opposite, are only gradations of the same
thing ie heat/cold are just relative quantities
of heat.
:cool:
Of course there is opposites stick your hand in a freezer for a couple of hours take it out then what does it start doing well warm up so that would be the opposite. Cold/Hot. Or take a shower then dry yourself off well now your dry Wet/Dry. :)
Because there similar does not mean they are not opposites. Plus black and white are not colors there shades. Not to correct you or anything it's my opinion :)Quote:
Well, it depends on how you mean by 'opposite', because any opposite has similarities to the original item. For instance, white might not the opposite of black, because they have many similarities. They are both colors...
ANTI-HACKERS
Well how about discussing at molecular level? *on thin ice* Either it´s positively charged or not. Opposites.. but it´s still molecules.. erhm.. never mind.. I´m getting a headache :D
This is why I mentioned that there are tangible opposites, but not complete opposites. Even if you had two things that had NOTHING in common and were COMPLETE OPPOSITES, they're still not complete opposites because they do have the fact that they are the opposite of something in common. ;)Quote:
Originally posted by Terr
Well, it depends on how you mean by 'opposite', because any opposite has similarities to the original item. For instance, white might not the opposite of black, because they have many similarities. They are both colors...
It really depends on the CONTEXT, in other words, in what WAY are they opposite? Nothing is "totally" opposite to something else.
In the morning, I like to eat fresh, hot chocolate chip cookies.
Meaningless sentence ey?? hehe :) But, what would be it's opposite? Would it be:
a) In the morning, John doesn't like to eat fresh, hot chocolate chip cookies.
b) At night, John likes to eat old, cold cookies?
c) At night, John likes to regurgitate fresh, hot chocolate chip cookies?? eeewwww!!
d) ...
any other ideas? Interesting topic you brought up Alcatraz
Greg
'Every action has an equal an opposite reaction' so Einstein said,
though I hear some of his theories have been proved wrong,
so maybe he got this wrong too...
:confused:
this is the kind of discussion I was waiting for, and I almosts missed it, jeeze.
Opposites do exist, here's why in a history of (western) philosophy sort of way:
Pre-socratic philosopher Parmenides (c.a. 515 BCE - c.a. 440 BCE) claimed that movement was impossible because there is only ONE THING that makes up reality. Because one cannot say that nothing exists, for something has to exist inorder for you to say anything about it. So motion is impossible because moving is going form where one is to where one isn't, but if the is only one thing, it can't go where it isn't because it is already there. . . This was backed up by Zeno of Erea with sever interesting paradoxes. . . but those are another really interesting set of problems.
Then Empedocles came along and said, there isn't One thing, there are 4 (fire, air, water, earth). But that is not really what counts, it is his theory that in order for there to be movement to opposite forces have to react against each other. These two forces were Love and Strife. Opposites.
So if your friend believes in movement, then he bellieves in opposites. If he doesn't believe in movement, the maybe you should investigate his meaning of movement.
And so on, until they make you drink hemlock. . .
Dhej
(that was fun)
The problem with your sentence is that it are in fact many sentences (propositions in one sentence)Quote:
Originally posted by hot_ice
In the morning, I like to eat fresh, hot chocolate chip cookies.
Meaningless sentence ey?? hehe :) But, what would be it's opposite? Would it be:
a) In the morning, John doesn't like to eat fresh, hot chocolate chip cookies.
b) At night, John likes to eat old, cold cookies?
c) At night, John likes to regurgitate fresh, hot chocolate chip cookies?? eeewwww!!
d) ...
any other ideas? Interesting topic you brought up Alcatraz
Greg
Pa = In the morning...Quote:
In the morning, I like to eat fresh, hot chocolate chip cookies.
Pb = I like to eat fresh...
Pc = hot chocolate chip cookies
Pa ^ Pb ^ Pc
The opposite of your sentence could be
- Pa ^ - Pb ^ - Pc
or
- (Pa ^ Pb ^ Pc)
this is if you take the negation of all parts of your original sentence, otherwise all kind of combinations are possible.
It's the same problem as occuring in the following sentence:
"the present king of France is a bald headed man".
is this sentence true or false?
if you say false cause there is no present king of France (it's a republic)
than you are also saying that he has hair?
so you have a contradiction then? a man that doesn't exist but has hair?
or perhaps you did not knew France is a republic and thought the king has hair?
This problem is solved when you see the parts in the sentence, the sentence becomes sentences.
i will stick in the principle that opposite do attract!?
<MeBeingDumb>
this is a wierd one. is infinite the opposite of nothing? if something is never there, then it is infinatly not being there. but if something is infinite, then it has always been and will be there so really it isn't there because it will never go away.
what i'm trying to say is infinte and nothing are the same thing!
</MeBeingDumb>