a question atheists...?

Question

if we are just a collection of molecules, with no spirit, where does our sense of conciousness come from. even if you believe in the theory of evolution, you have to believe that even the simplest form of life has a sense of existence, otherwise, what's the point for it's survival? does a water molecule feel a need to create other water molecules? just a random thought that popped into my head.

a question for atheist... my bad...

acid zebra, so are you saying that the earliest forms of life didn't have a sense of self-awareness?

i think you all have my intentions mistaken in asking this question. i merely asking what is it that makes a collection of molecules a living being. is it something that can be reproduced in a lab? have we been able to even produce a single-celled organism that is self aware and is capable of reproduction?

elmjumburke, i'll answer your question with another questions. where is the will to live? where is it programmed? how much does it weigh? what are it's characteristics?

Answer 1

One doesn't have to believe that simple forms of life have a sense of existence.......they simply reproduced before whatever mutation they were carrying caused them to die.

Answer 2

I think our sense of conciousness is a result of brain functions, but honestly this answer doesn't really satisfy even myself. Neuroscience can explain a lot, and it might explain why we think and act as we do (although in reality neuroscience is still far from that), but conciousness is not really something covered by the existing scientific theories. Neuroscience is a really interesting field and I have read a lot about it but there are still many open questions.

So I have to admit that there is something I don't understand and can't explain and I have to say that it is just amazing. Still it does not make me believe in God because this would not solve the question either but rather pose an additional question. I don't even understand our own conciousness. Why should I assume another even greater conciousness? And neuroscience has already shown enough to make me believe that thinking and feeling is dependent on a brain (which God would not have).

And no, I don't believe that simple life forms (those without a brain) have a sense of existance. They don't need that for survival. There doesn't even need to be a point for survival. Those life forms who have the necessary characteristics to survive and to reproduce do survive, it's not necessary that they want it. Animals with a brain have a survival instinct that influences their behavior, plants, protozoa and bacteria don't have that.

And water molecules don't create other water molecules. They were formed by chemical reactions.

Theoretically it might be able to create a simple organism in the lab, but in reality we are still far from it as we don't understand (yet?) how life came into existance at the beginning. A living being becomes a living being by its complex molecular structure, but to create such a structure is something very difficult and as I wrote we don't know how to do that. We can examine the existing living beings, we can find out how they work, we can even modify them by genetic engineering, but we don't know how to make one out of non-living matter. Maybe one day this will be possible, this would be a really great sensation. I believe that theoretically it is possible, but I don't know if it will ever be realized, because at the moment nobody knows how that could be done.

Answer 3

Now a question for you. If you believe we have a spitit or soul, where is it located in the body ? How big is it ? What color is it ? How much does it weigh ? Where in the body is it kept ? Now, after answering the questions, how do you know ? Where's the evidence ?
The point of survival is the will to live, programed into all living things. Without the will to live, and the fear of death life would come to an end. All living things, plant and animal must strive to exist or it will cease to exist. This has nothing to do with Atheists or believers - - - all living things.

Answer 4

Our consciousness comes from our highly evolved upper brain functioning. There's nothing special or whimsical or magical about it. We are simply advanced biological computers that have been programmed by natural selection over billions of years.

There are many forms of life NOW that don't have self-awareness. It probably took a good billion years (only a guess, but it would be an immense amount of time) before the first self-aware being started to exist.

Answer 5

There's nothing supernatural about any of that. It's programmed into our brain cells. Our sense of existence and our will to live is a part of the reason we've survived. And obviously it can't be weighed or measured any more than what makes you be able to do math problems, or speak, or know to breathe.
If you want to try to understand how atheists think, you just need to understand that no atheist is going to attach a supernatural significance to something simply because they don't understand it, or can't comprehend it. That is the opposite of religion.

Answer 6

As far as we can tell, humans are the only creature on this planet with self awareness. In other words, we're the only ones who think about this kind of stuff. Every other creature on this planet doesn't care why it exists, but only to stay alive. The purpose of staying alive is to mate and pass on their genes so the species can continue to survive.

Also, water molecules don't make more water molecules, they are formed when hydrogen bonds to oxygen in an inorganic chemical reaction.

Answer 7

Water molecules don't have a consciousness. Humans do. That's why we feel our purpose as it were. We evolved that way. The reason for survival in evolutionary terms? To reproduce of course and pass on positive survival genes to the next generation!!

Answer 8

Our sense of consciousness comes from the human brain.

As far as simpler lifeforms and the "point for its survival".. does there have to *be* a point? I don't think our existence is any more important than my dog's. I might kid myself that it is, because I am self-aware and can contemplate my own existence and my own death. But to me that is simply *why* we ask questions such as these. It is not evidence that there *must* be something more to it, a "point" to it all.

There's an interesting article linked below, about the brain and self-awareness.

Answer 9

This question is nonsense. Self awareness relies on a highly developed pre frontal cortex and very few species have that. There's nothing supernatural about consciousness.

Answer 10

You're basically asking what the meaning of life is. I can't really answer that myself. The same could be argued for theists. What's the purpose of following their beliefs? For a good afterlife? Once you get into the afterlife, then what's the point?