How can we be sure rabbits don't secretly fly when no one is looking?

Question

questions like this keep me awake at night, you know.

Answer 1

Have you seen Toy Story? I had secret glances at Toys for years after that movie.

Answer 2

Life (well, a happy life anyway) isn't about being 'sure' of things. That will just stress you out since we can't be sure of most (all?) things. I think it makes for much more pleasure to revel in the myriad of possibilities. If you really crave being sure of things, it is possible for some people to convince themselves (or to be convinced by others) that they ARE sure of things, but this is of course a confusion between belief and knowledge.

You'll know yourself best - whether you're better thinking you know something that you actually just believe in order to feel more secure, or whether you can tolerate (and even enjoy) accepting that we can't be 100% sure of (almost?) anything.

It comes back to Descartes "I think, therefore I am." This is all he felt he could be sure of. Science is about making informed conclusions about what we can be REASONABLY sure of (rather than actually sure), due to consistency of results in controlled experiments.

There are limits to even scientific methods on testable theories in that we can only deal with 'testable' hypotheses, and each hypothesis that we become 'reasonably sure of' due to that testing is still open for challenge by a new hypothesis and different types of tests.

If you lie awake thinking about super interesting questions like yours, why not start reading some science for the layman - you could start with 'Conversations about the End of Time'. It's a 'can't put it down' book with short essays by four great thinkers about how we make sense of time. It's written in a conversational 'interview' style, with questions & short answers, so it's perfect for the brief or long read - the loo shelf or the bedside table. From there, you may discover all sorts of great questions - and answers - to consider at night.

If you prefer a shorter answer to your question, perhaps when no one is looking rabbits fly the moment you think of them flying...ah, but your wording suggests that they don't secretly fly when no one is looking and is really merely asking how we can be sure of this... if it is done 'secretly' I don't suppose we can test it & therefore we can't be sure?...now I'll be awake too - want to share some midnight tea?

Answer 3

I know they don't, because I asked the crickets, who know everything about the past and the future. They know that rabbits have never flown at any point, and never will. Crickets are annoying actually, as they speak a language almost unattainable by human beings (I'm one of those who has managed to learn it, as my legs can make the necessary noises), but they speak it all the time and talk constantly about what's in store for anyone who's present.

What keeps me awake at night is the possibility that crickets are lying little gits.

Answer 4

I had a rabbit... their bodies are waaaaay too heavy for those lightweight ears to lift them up off the ground LOL (if you did indeed mean the wings are disguised as ears)

Answer 5

Haven't you ever heard of flying rabbits? They're from new guiena. They're like flying fish and flying monkeys...They are actually called flying rabbits....

Answer 6

My rabbit is way too fat to fly.

She has the characteristics of an obese person, she wants to eat what's in your hand before she finishes what's in her mouth. I love her to bits tho!

Answer 7

How can rabbits be sure that no one is looking?

Answer 8

It would explain the Rabbit droppings on my roof !

Answer 9

Their fur never looks windblown and there are no rabbit airports. I'm pretty sure they go swimming, though.

Answer 10

Love your crazy question have a star for the smile you brought to my face