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Moon phases

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Comments

  • cootambear
    cootambear Posts: 1,474 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    rhiwfield wrote: »
    I've got an open mind on this, but very little knowledge :D

    People can be very dismissive of the moon's effects but as scientific knowledge increases we get some very curious discoveries such as dark matter and the six flavours of quarks. Then there is strong force, one of four fundamental forces, others being weak force, electromagnetism and gravity.

    We know that the moon has a substantial gravitic force (most noticeable in tides) and a luminescence effect. It seems improbable that these do not have some effect on people and plants LINK

    From a personal viewpoint I'm not arrogant enough to say its all rubbish.

    I will answer your point about arrogance seperatly because it is very important in its own right.

    The Enlightenment, apart from raising the banner of the rights of man, won the fight for a rational ie empirical view of the universe. To give one example, the explanation that disease was caused by germs and not punishment from god for sin has and still saves countless lives though our knowledge of the importance of clean water.

    Today the enlightenment is under attack from religious obscuratanist nuts that build museums where animated dinosaurs play with animated cavemen, where `faith schools` are forced upon us, where homeopathic hospitals are funded by the resource scarce NHS, where nuts like McKeith and Holforth are allowed to propogate their quack ideas unchallenged on TV.

    I remind you the Enlightement is a genuine gain that needs defending. If you believe magic you are in the same camp as those who burned witches (though I dont suggest you personally would wish to do it).

    Secondly, now you may think that hey we all have clean water so why are you worrying about mystics. I will only point to vitamin pill pusher Matthias Rath whose mumbo jumbo led to the death of 100`s of thousands in Africa. Ratzingers condom sexual ritualistic proscription ads to the woes.

    http://www.badscience.net/2009/04/matthias-rath-steal-this-chapter/

    You may think I`m more than a little zealous in questioning those of you who want to harness moon power, no harm done, right? Well, I would point to AIDS in Africa and say that the more people that believe in this nonsense then the more goes in the pockets of freaks like megabucks Matthias Rath whose voodoo kills people.

    Finally arrogance. Read a book on science. Physics. Astronomy. Anything. You will find it more wondrous then any magical theories out there about cosmic rays, aethereal planes, witches and the like. Science after all, unmasks the laws of nature. With supreme arrogance, the mystics dismiss this.

    Unlike scientists who have to submit their theories to the challenge of their (very jealous) peers, the hogwash merchants are arrogantly above all this; their theories need no review, they dismiss all the hard work put in by those seeking to uncover the real substance of nature, they can make all sorts of claims about their potions without any testing, they arrogantly speak in the media and assume the professional and moral integrity of a trained professional.
    Freedom is the freedom to say that 2+2 = 4 (George Orwell, 1984).

    (I desire) ‘a great production that will supply all, and more than all the people can consume’,

    (Sylvia Pankhurst).
  • rhiwfield
    rhiwfield Posts: 2,482 Forumite
    "Finally arrogance. Read a book on science. Physics. Astronomy. Anything. You will find it more wondrous then any magical theories out there about cosmic rays, aethereal planes, witches and the like. Science after all, unmasks the laws of nature. With supreme arrogance, the mystics dismiss this"

    Cootambear, in my post I referred to quantum mechanics with a wry inner smile at the mysticism of the language. I dont dismiss scientific knowledge but it is very far from complete and may, in the future, include peer reviewed proof of the effect of the moon on plant growth. Or it may not. Neither you nor I are wise enough to predict which it will be.
  • Lotus-eater
    Lotus-eater Posts: 10,789 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    cootambear wrote: »
    I preferred the honesty of the original ;)
    It's not that I was worried about you seeing it. I just thought it wasn't very grown up of me, so I've just stuck you on the ignore list, which suits me better.
    Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.
  • cootambear wrote: »

    -the homicide rate
    -traffic accidents
    -crisis calls to police or fire stations
    -domestic violence
    -births of babies
    -suicide
    -major disasters
    -casino payout rates
    -assassinations
    -kidnappings
    -aggression by professional hockey players
    -violence in prisons
    -psychiatric admissions [one study found admissions were lowest during a full moon]
    -agitated behavior by nursing home residents
    -assaults
    -gunshot wounds
    -stabbings
    -emergency room admissions [but see]
    -behavioral outbursts of psychologically challenged rural adults
    -lycanthropy
    -vampirism
    -alcoholism
    -sleep walking
    -epilepsy

    And non of these say gardening......I don't deny that the effect of the moon on people is minimal - but we aren't talking about people are we?

    Anyhow - must go - I've got some gardening to do.
    If you haven't got it - please don't flaunt it. TIA.
  • cootambear
    cootambear Posts: 1,474 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    edited 29 November 2010 at 11:05AM
    And non of these say gardening......I don't deny that the effect of the moon on people is minimal - but we aren't talking about people are we?

    Anyhow - must go - I've got some gardening to do.

    Some have there are well documented cases of the moon causing behavioural changes in animals (I include humans under animals).,
    in one post, others have given links to articles which do.

    True, but I`m sure the list above contains issues more worthy of study than lunar gardening.

    GL with the gardening :)
    Freedom is the freedom to say that 2+2 = 4 (George Orwell, 1984).

    (I desire) ‘a great production that will supply all, and more than all the people can consume’,

    (Sylvia Pankhurst).
  • cootambear
    cootambear Posts: 1,474 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    rhiwfield wrote: »
    "Finally arrogance. Read a book on science. Physics. Astronomy. Anything. You will find it more wondrous then any magical theories out there about cosmic rays, aethereal planes, witches and the like. Science after all, unmasks the laws of nature. With supreme arrogance, the mystics dismiss this"

    Cootambear, in my post I referred to quantum mechanics with a wry inner smile at the mysticism of the language. I dont dismiss scientific knowledge but it is very far from complete and may, in the future, include peer reviewed proof of the effect of the moon on plant growth. Or it may not. Neither you nor I are wise enough to predict which it will be.

    We can. By deductive reasoning, having reasonably dismissed gravity or light as casual, we are left with an ubsubstantiated claim which has inexplicable causes.

    Or in other words, a silly story.

    I am not sure why you reference quantum mechanics. I do know that most people (including me) have not got there heads around it. I also know that there are plenty of people who dismiss peer review of their crazy theories who, without irony, try to quote quantum theory to defend themselves.

    I take your point that some of the language is strange, but not that it is mystical, metaphorical perhaps, though that would not in and of itself refute the theory.

    When you are told that your computer monitor contains a certain number of `sprites`, they are not talking about fairies.
    Freedom is the freedom to say that 2+2 = 4 (George Orwell, 1984).

    (I desire) ‘a great production that will supply all, and more than all the people can consume’,

    (Sylvia Pankhurst).
  • rhiwfield
    rhiwfield Posts: 2,482 Forumite
    Cootambear, you may have "dismissed gravity or light as casual (sic)" but that doesnt make you right. Nor does calling it a silly story.

    Nor do I accept your absurd inference that I quoted quantum mechanics to defend myself.

    Bye-bye now.
  • zarazara
    zarazara Posts: 2,264 Forumite
    I watched a very interesting telly programme the other day ,an Alan Titchmarsh prog. He visited several gardens .big houses ,like national trust places. One in particular was superb,lots of sweetpeas and veg and the man plants and stuff by the moon. He also never waters. The whole plot was brimming with health and looked just so fresh and lovley. I think I will definately be giving it a go next year. you can watchthe prog on iplayer. BBC -i think.
    "The purpose of Life is to spread and create Happiness" :j
  • cootambear
    cootambear Posts: 1,474 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    edited 29 November 2010 at 5:09PM
    rhiwfield wrote: »
    Cootambear, you may have "dismissed gravity or light as casual (sic)" but that doesnt make you right. Nor does calling it a silly story.

    Nor do I accept your absurd inference that I quoted quantum mechanics to defend myself.

    Bye-bye now.

    If you read more carefully you will find I didnt make that inference about you but about others, and no one here has made that claim. Your point was, unless I have got things wrong?, was that some of the terms used in QM sounded mystical?

    Now if I, without any evidence whatsover, went around claiming that playing mozart to plants helped them tune in to cosmic energy from andromeda then I would expect that it would be dismissed (hopefully) as a silly story.
    Freedom is the freedom to say that 2+2 = 4 (George Orwell, 1984).

    (I desire) ‘a great production that will supply all, and more than all the people can consume’,

    (Sylvia Pankhurst).
  • westiea
    westiea Posts: 432 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Combo Breaker
    Good lord.A simple question has turned into a lecture on physics!

    By all means have, but please do not, reiterate opinions endlessly.

    We all garden in different ways - and thats what makes gardeners/gardens so interesting - we hopefully do not a dogmatic approach to what we do - but are open minded enough to listen and if wanted, take on new ideas to try! Experimentation is always on going in my garden - and I am sure most off us have the same approach (given time of course!)

    What a narrow minded and boring place the earth would be if we all approached gardening in the same fashion -

    genetically developed plants anyone?!
    Greyer by the minute - Older by the hour - Wiser by the day
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