FAQ






PRECEDENTS
A Brief History of the Word "Atom" and
The Exercise of Updating An Understanding

"[W]hat we call particle physics is different than what we actually think about as professional physicists… Democritus was an ancient Greek philosopher. He is… the father of all that we now call particle physics… Democritus had the idea that you see a bunch of things around you… water… solids… air, and the ancient Greeks… thought these were all fundamentally different things. The 'atomists', like Democritus, had the idea that in fact there were just a small number of fundamental building blocks that go into creating all these different substances. They called these fundamental building blocks 'atoms'. Now sadly, for historical reasons, in the 19th century, the chemists got ahold of the word 'atoms' and so we now use 'atoms' in our modern language to speak of the chemical elements. But these atoms... the chemical elements, aren’t really fundamental. We know the atoms are made of smaller things. What Democritus and his colleagues were… talking about are what we would now call 'the elementary particles, the fundamental building blocks of nature.' And, since the 19th century, physics has been trying very hard… to find, the elementary particles… electrons, protons, neutrons which we thought were elementary, turns out they’re not. Protons and neutrons are made of even smaller particles called quarks, and… gluons… neutrinos... muons, a whole zoo of elementary particles…"
Sean Carroll, Ph.D.

"There are many descriptions [definitions] of [name X] out there that are wrong. Anything that says [definition 1] known as [name X] are out of date [a previous or past definition]. But I've seen this description [definition 1] in many places; in diagrams, and on the Internet, I have even been guilty of saying this, too; but I've recently updated my understanding. So here's what [speakers] actually mean [the current or present definition, definition 2] when they say [name X]."
Dominic Walliman, Ph.D.

Common names requiring a worldwide definitional* understanding update

knowledge, religion, faith, worship, philosophy, superstition





If The Civilization Society rejects all superstition, then by what definition is it a religion?

religion  a particular system of faith and worship
          — see also —
faith  a particular conclusion plus a sincere wish for that conclusion to occur (desire), desire plus expectation (hope), hope plus work to make that hope become Real, Fact, True (faith)
worship  adoration or devotion shown or homage, special honor, or respect shown publicly toward a person or principal
          — see also —
form of worship  creation of and participation in a formal institution organized specifically for this purpose
creed  a system of religious belief
          — see also —
philosophy  a particular system of thought regarding the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence
superstition  a widely held but unjustified belief in supernatural causation




Which *dictionary do you use?

The Civilization Society originated using the names and definitions listed in Webster’s New World Dictionary of the American Language, Second College Edition. 1978. Cleveland, OH: William Collins + World Publishing Co., Inc. In an effort to keep things practical, The Civilization Society now also makes use of Google.com's "define..." search.

The Civilization Society reserves the right to collect specialized names and definitions from other sources, break compound definitions into elemental or "elementary partical" definitions and/or names, regroup and reidentify, recomplie, and make full and free use of the results which would then be open to peer review and dictionary challenge.




What is the difference between fact and probability (or chance)?

chance  a possibility of something happening by accident or without design
possibility  a thing that may happen or be the case
probability  the extent to which something is probable; the likelihood of something happening or being the case; the extent to which an event is likely to occur, measured by the ratio of the favorable cases to the whole number of cases possible
reality  the state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them
knowledge  true, justified belief; certain understanding, as opposed to opinion
fact  a thing that is known or proved to be true, the truth about events as opposed to interpretation
true  in accordance with fact or reality




What is science?

Science is "the search for laws that describe the organization and evolution of the universe." (Robert M. Hazen, Ph.D.) It depends on maintaining meticulous records of observation. (TBD) The procedure is Logic applied to The Scientific Method. (Patrick Grimm, Ph.D.)


What is the purpose of inventing or discovering scientific laws?

"To account for the way in which the total universe shows itself in action." (James Burke)


What is the purpose of The Civilization Society inventing or discovering a single, practical "Utopian" agenda?

To start with an actual behavioral fine-structure constant and account for the way in which Homo sapiens sapiens as a species, in all of its variety, can show itself in truly natural and healthy action throughout the total universe.


Define healthy.

Normal, natural, and desirable.


What perspectives does The Civilization Society regard as unhealthy.

Ableism‎, ageism‎‎, anti-intellectualism‎‎, chauvinism‎‎, clannism‎‎, racism‎, ethnicism‎, sexism‎, genderism‎‎, stigma‎ism‎, supremacism‎, xenophobia.


Whose system of morality do you use?

Homo sapiens sapiens have a "baseline sense" for the moral importance of both self and others that "transcends the relativity of... cultural, social, or... historical position" and is grounded in "a mind that is wired to make things work within a social unit" and "habit." (Clancy Martin, Ph.D.)

The objective of The Civilization Society is construction of a single, practical, morality cannon, QED: The "Utopian" Agenda that will define for Homo sapiens sapiens a universally comprehensive, timeless, and biconditionally cogent Honor Code that will satisfy the healthy philosophic cooperative function or "peaceful society" component of The Theory of Everything.

In this case Cogent is defined as an argument that is not only Persuasive, but also Valid (consistent), and Sound (true, factual), and Cogent (both necessary and sufficient).


Define self-image.

Both an
      identity in which the individual recognizes itself, defines itself, and maintains consistency between its self-definition and its existence; and
      self-esteem in which the
            talent compound is identified as that of both an
                  animal species (Homo sapiens sapiens) which includes general intelligence, invention, forethought, and language; and an
                  individual (Homo sapiens sapiens) which may include language, history, music, art, athletics, science and/or mathematics; and
            conscience which includes both the
                  compulsion to do “right” and
                  either a lower or higher definition of “right and wrong” or Honor Code.


How do you repsond to charges of sexism and racism in science?

“It is a matter of historical record that for centuries women and minorities were effectively excluded from the scientific enterprise. Happily that situation is changing and many more women and minorities are now making key contributions to science.” (Robert M. Hazen, Ph.D.)

The Civilization Society opposes ableism, ageism, anti-intellectualism, chauvinism, clannism, racism, ethnicism, sexism, genderism, stigmaism, supremacism, and xenophobia.




Is mocking beliefs right or wrong?

Mockery, like shunning and beheading, is a weapon. If one is fighting, then one chooses one’s weapon, from the range of available weapons, for a reason. So it depends on the conditions and one’s objective. If one is stronger, then maybe one is a bully and simply enjoys being abusive, them maybe mockery is the answer. If the odds are even, then maybe the question is immaterial. If one is weaker, and one must do what one must do, them maybe mockery is the answer. This might be an interesting point on which to write a philosophy-based logic proof. How are your formal reasoning skills?




What are The Civilization Society's qualifications for membership?


CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS

Adopted July 4, 2020

CHAPTER 2

MEMBERSHIP

SECTION 1: Members of The Civilization Society shall be those persons on the rolls at the time these Bylaws are adopted and those who are admitted thereafter.

SECTION 2: Members of The Civilization Society shall deem it an honor and duty to both participate in the healthy and scientific life of The Civilization Society, and support its work and altruisms through contributions of time, abilities, and financial resources.

SECTION 3: Membership in The Civilization Society shall be initiated via the Lab Director and Principle Investigator (P.I.).

SECTION 4: Membership Classifications

All members of The Civilization Society shall have no personal membership in any religious organization that has a purpose inconsistent with that of The Civilization Society, and shall have asked a Lab Director and Principle Investigator to add their name to The Civilization Society rolls, and shall have passed a formal membership interview with a P.I.

      4.1 Undergraduate Members, in addition to those conditions noted in this section’s introduction, are also attending a lab institute on a regular basis and working toward duel institute Graduation/Certification. Undergraduate Members may assist Lab officers as needed in unofficial capacities.

      4.2 Credentialed, Certified, or Recertified Members, in addition to those conditions noted in this section’s introduction, have successfully challenged the Society’s Origin of Behaviors diagram, Symbolic Logic, and Scientific Method competency tests within the past three hundred and sixty-five (365) days. Credentialed, Certified, or Recertified members must be Recertified every three hundred and sixty-five (365) days and no later than thirty (30) days following their birthday. Credentialed, Certified, or Recertified Members may hold positions or offices within a lab, fully participate in the construction of Q.E.D The “Utopian” Agenda, and be listed as a co-author on an official Lab proof.

      4.3 Graduate Members, in addition to those conditions noted in this section’s introduction, have successfully challenged the Society’s Origin of Behaviors diagram, Symbolic Logic, and Scientific Method competency tests but not within the past three hundred and sixty-five (365) days and their credentials have expired. Graduate Members may hold official positions or offices within a lab; except P.I., 1API, 2API, Secretary, Treasurer, and Manager; and participate generally with Credentialed Members in the construction of arguments for Q.E.D The “Utopian” Agenda, but will not be listed as co-author on an official Lab proof.


Complete CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS .pdf.