Skeptics and True Believers :: Free Essay Writer

Skeptics and True BelieversIn the first chapter, Raymo, opens with talk of his childhood. He brings to thesurface the incident that children will recollect just about anything they are told. In this chapter Raymo explains how people grow frm children into grown sdluts, peolpe somehow retain some of a childs ability to believe in the unbelievable. It is the True Believer that retains an absolute in some forms of empirically unverifiable make-belive... (13), wheras the Skeptic always keeps a wary philia even on firmly established facts.(14) For an example, Raymo uses the Shroud of Turin, which simplly a linen cloth that has the likeness of a man on it ( some belive this man to be Christ). He tells of a time when the Roman Catholic authorities allowed scientists to radiocarbon date the Shroud. Small samples of the Shroud where sent with three samples controls of known age, to three independant labs. totally three properly dated the controls and dated the Shroud to medieval time. R aymo conclueded that a Skeptic would have taken the evidence and belived it, while the True Beliver would find no truth in what was found. In fact, he said that the True Beliver would come up with explainations as to why the Shroud seems younger than it really is. In the next chapter, Raymo explains the main difference between Skeptics andTrue Believers is the opposite of what most people would think. He explains howscientific concepts can be extraordinarily bizarre... (27), wheras the True Believerbelieve what may seem much more sensible and somewhat down to earth. The exampleRaymo uses for this is DNA and its ability to reproduce itself. This tiny double-helixsomehow manages to spilt and make a copy of its self from chemical components fromwhatever is surrounding it. It may seem easier for one to believe in a Shroud with a mans face in it, or the picture of God in the Sistine Chapel, but it is the Skeptics who believe in the hard to concieve DNA. It is this DNA that contains the blueprints of what we are to look, talk, and act like.In chapter four, Raymo over again brings up his childhood. He tells how he was forcedinto religion. The Church would not allow doubts to be spoken. For if it where to bequestioned the whole religious system may fall apart. The save sources of informationwere the nuns, priest, and all other authorities that were chosen by God.