TED Community » Monty Hall

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An idea worth spreading

Perhaps if every excessively wealthy person in this world lived a middle class lifestyle and spread their remaining wealth amongst those who are impoverished so that they, too, could live a middle class lifestyle, then we could eliminate poverty, hunger, and homelessness.

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  A comment on Conversation: Religion and why we believe in it.

  Nov 21 2011: I agree with your professor to an extent. Yes, religion arose as a way to explain the world around us. However, I do not believe that that is the only purpose religion serves. I myself am atheist, but as an observer, here are the two things that I believe to be the main functions of religion beyond explanation of the world outside of ourselves:
  
  1) Self-actualization. Religion is often a way for people to reach their full potential as contributing human beings. Many religious factions have a very positive influence on their surrounding communities because they make an effort to do so by reaching out to those communities. This is an example of self-actualization as a group, and it also translates into self-actualization in individual members of that group.
  
  2) Support. In times of crisis, many religious people turn to their church (or mosque, synagogue, etc.) for help. By relying on their religious community, they can find meaning and comfort in whatever plight they face at that time.
  
  I'm sure there are many more functions, but those are the main two that I have seen. These are much more personal than simply an explanation for our world. Therefore, I believe that science will not replace religion. However, I do think it will change what it means to be religious, and that the religious community will evolve as a result of scientific advancement. Religion has been evolving for millennia due to scientific progress, and I think that it will continue to do so.
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  A comment on Conversation: Should we really care about the extinction of endangered species?

  Nov 21 2011: I believe that we should be conscientious about the choices we make, their effect on the environment, and how those effects in turn impact extinction rates. If we are aware of how we influence the world around us, we are better able to promote a positive impact on our environment rather than a harmful one.
  
  That being said, I do not think that we should intervene in natural selection. By doing so, we inhibit evolution and change. I think a good question to pose here is: Why are we so intent on "saving" so many species? Why do we so adamantly fight against the changes we are bringing about on our earth? My personal answer to this question is that we are selfish beings; we have survived very well on this planet as it has been, and suddenly we are having a massive impact on the environment that is changing it in a relatively drastic manner. I believe environmentalism is somewhat pointless because no matter what we do--short of total nuclear destruction--the earth will still be here. It will adapt and evolve to recover from whatever impact we have. Therefore, the only real reason we are so insistent upon "saving" the environment is to save ourselves.
  
  To tie these two ideas together: we should have an awareness of what we do and how that impacts the environment, but at the same time, we should also be aware of the fact that "saving" the environment and endangered species are mostly selfish and useless causes. The earth is going to change no matter how much we try to prevent it from changing. Instead of trying to prevent that change, it might be a better use of our time to learn to adapt--as other species have been adapting for millions of years--so that we can survive those changes.
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  A comment on Conversation: Being ready for making mistakes. Improving from failure.

  Nov 8 2011: As an actor and improviser, the worst thing I could possibly do on stage would be to give in to my fear of failure. One of the first things I learned in my acting training was to let go of any fear or doubt that I held about myself because if I retained that fear, it would repress my imagination and inhibit my ability to totally connect with any character I portrayed. This concept has translated into my every day life. I no longer hold back or shy away from opportunity because I have learned to let go of my fear of failure, and as a result, my life has become infinitely more interesting and exciting. As you postulate, though, there comes a risk of acting foolishly when you learn to abolish this trepidation. I believe the key to letting go of fear while not becoming reckless is to know yourself and your limitations, and to not infringe too drastically upon them. At the same time, the whole point of letting go of fear is to push and test your own limitations, so you can't let yourself fall into the pattern of "Oh, I know I can't do this, therefore I won't try." As with many things in this world, you need to find a balance--in this case between risk-taking and responsibility.
  
  I recommend that anyone who truly wants to learn to let go of their fear of failure in a responsible manner take some sort of acting course or seminar. Acting has affected my life in a very positive manner, and I think anyone can learn and utilize the skills I have learned through training, even if they don't plan on going into theatre.