Yawn, time to suggest one of my fanatical ideas...
Well, as you all know, we currently have, uhm... 12 different forums. All of them have a very good topic that allows many things to go inside (Except the Sonny 2 forum, which is special). But time to time I have wondered:
We don't have a Science Forum.
Why? I don't know. I don't think I've ever seen anyone suggest this before, for some reason. I know many people would down this suggestion with 'there are going to be no more forums' and 'there aren't enough people interested in that' (Which I frankly both disagree with), but think about it:
Many items of valuable interest (Astronomy, biology, geology, seismology etc...) are not discussed much. Why? Let me tell you why. They end up either in:
A. The Tavern
Or
B. World Events, Politics, Religion, Etc.
No offense to the many Tavern users, but it's kind of the place that doesn't belong goes to (That's sort of what it's for). Many topics are random and clearly have nothing in common with one another. Science on the other hand, is not random, and a very large, debatable forum theme.
World Events (A few Science things can land here) is to me the closest thing the Forum has to offer to a Science Forum. Many Science related threads are in there (Earthquake in Haiti is a good example) that could have an even lengthier and more depth discussion in a Science Forum (Why did the earthquake happen? How are these recorded? Can anything be done?). World Events talks about when things happen or what might happen, and many times it is a smooth discussion. A Science Forum would be a great place to debate things, take sides on conflicting theories and so forth.
Oh well, forget my suggestion/reply to Ernie. Gantic commented on something similar on the Merits thread. The "olicing of the forum by a few of us" idea won't work because the temptation to cheat is greater and easier to get away with than the ability for the mods to catch it all, not his words.
Why not start the science forum first under the World Events section, that's been suggested already?
Because it wouldn't fit in there. And I can't see how science will fit in one thread.
he only way to prevent this from happening would be to enforce citing sources, but that would just get annoying for the mods after a while to check out every single bit of information to see whether or not it's true.
I'm not saying people should us the site as an information source (That would be dumb) but rather as a place to discuss. People who foolishly do that have only themselves to blame, as AG is not a Science website (All I want is a Science Forum, not a site). Plus, all the info here is from other sources, this isn't a site where 'new discoveries' will be here first.
As for Philosophy, I think there's enough people to debate it too.
If a Philosophy Forum is made before a Science Forum, I will cry.
I doubt most users here have scientific background.
Astronomy, biology, geology, seismology etc...? These are more or less "opular" topics. What are users going to talk about? black holes and alternate universes? Alien life? Earthquake prediction? (<-- Psuedoscience) Big bang theory? Evolution? Coriolis effect? Global warming? Genetically modified foods? Nuclear power/weapons? Trebuchets? Cancer? Alzheimers? how much you love/hate your physics/chemistry/math class and your favorite/least favorite theorem/equation/theory? How much of our brain we really use? Homosexuality? Hurricanes? Animal/human testing? End of the world? Water on the Moon/Europa/Titan? Colonization of the Moon/Mars? Artificial intelligence? Stem cell research? Pluto? Irukandji jellyfish?
I doubt most users here have scientific background.
They don't all need Science background (And you should have a simple one from school, lol). They an just talk about it: It doesn't have to be an enclosed forum where only the smart people participate (That is what the users make it, if it pleases them).
Astronomy, biology, geology, seismology etc...? These are more or less "opular" topics. What are users going to talk about? black holes and alternate universes? Alien life? Earthquake prediction? (<-- Psuedoscience) Big bang theory? Evolution? Coriolis effect? Global warming? Genetically modified foods? Nuclear power/weapons? Trebuchets? Cancer? Alzheimers? how much you love/hate your physics/chemistry/math class and your favorite/least favorite theorem/equation/theory? How much of our brain we really use? Homosexuality? Hurricanes? Animal/human testing? End of the world? Water on the Moon/Europa/Titan? Colonization of the Moon/Mars? Artificial intelligence? Stem cell research? Pluto? Irukandji jellyfish?
I bet you could find quite a few people who would be interested in at least one topic in that list. And if the list were endless, then we would have far more users...
This is an awesome thread.
Sometimes I have to agree with that topic... People ignore Science, and wonder what to do when it's a requirement in their job description ('Basic Physics Knowledge' and stuff like that).
Why not start the science forum first under the World Events section, that's been suggested already?
This could be an option, however... the threads would probably be flooded with other topics, making it more likely to get double threads, off-topic posting, etc...
Do you honestly want your teenager to learn science from a flash game forum?
You can not deny the presence of the internet and all its information on it, and it's growing still! Even education uses the internet nowadays, so that's something not to be ignored... The miss-education is something not too big of a problem if the parents keep a constant eye on what their children do on the net, as long as the parents are consistent in this!
Not only that, but it would attract idiots who give false information and claiming it's true.
Those idiots exist and do this in real life too! As long as there's people arguing and proving these persons wrong, I don't see a problem with this...
I doubt most users here have scientific background.
Since most of the users are kids, I think the science background is valid! They learn a lot at school and (in my opinion) are very eager to discuss all these topics, so why not here on AG in a science forum?
I bet you could find quite a few people who would be interested in at least one topic in that list. And if the list were endless, then we would have far more users...
You would probably be amazed on how many people find a topic they want to talk about that was named in the ideas given by Gantic! And the list is endless, since there are a lot of science topics to talk about! And more users would always be welcome for Armor Games...
So wouldn't be funny, and I mean sad, if this was made instead of a Sports forum? I guess some people would think its a great idea.
Guess it all depends on how many support this suggestion will get... You don't think it's a great idea then Google? :/
So wouldn't be funny, and I mean sad, if this was made instead of a Sports forum? I guess some people would think its a great idea.
Ok, I generally don't like other forum ideas (Mainly because they're useless) but you're right, a Sports Forum probably has just as much right to be on AG as a Science Forum.
Since most of the users are kids, I think the science background is valid! They learn a lot at school and (in my opinion) are very eager to discuss all these topics, so why not here on AG in a science forum?
Unless people ignore the stuff they are taught, they should know at least few things to talk about. Or at least philosophy...
Those idiots exist and do this in real life too! As long as there's people arguing and proving these persons wrong, I don't see a problem with this...
That may happen on AG, but it also happens in the real world: These real world hoaxes are generally quickly dismissed, but some linger around for quite a long time (I'm thinking of the skeleton of a 'real giant' here. Took 60 years before bone sampling proved it was made out of 10 different animals, including whale). And Wikipedia: Not everything is true on there, yet many people take what's written on there as fact (It generally is, but my school alone has like 10 Wikipedia abusers.)
How about just a educational forum. It would work better... and i think you could get alot of stuff out of the tavern and WEPR. So why not. There is technically enough people that like to discuss their point of views in education, and it would get lots of topics an actual area and when people feel like arguing, or even learning they could go there. I'd support this.... and do you have to say EVERY teenager doesn't want to learn on a flash site. I'm only 14, and i'm supporting this idea.
You guys entirely missed the entire point of that list.
Well... now you got me wondering Gantic! What was the point then... because I thought I had it right?! :S I'm curious to find out what you meant with it...
Without email notifications, there's no way I'm gonna have any forum discussion of that magnitude.
Since that won't be installed (the discussion was on another thread and dismissed) it would come down to people's devotion to the topics to keep coming back and participate in them... Or you could make links in your about or in your favorites on your browser to get back to them quickly?
Don't you think Sports one would have more? Or are you from the crowd who stink at them and thats the reson you joined the site?
I like your persivearance on the Sports Forum Google! =) I think that too should be made, you convinced me in the other thread a while ago...
And yes... I am not a world athlete in sports, so I'll stick to talking about it! =P
You guys entirely missed the entire point of that list.
That's great to hear! We failed...
Without email notifications, there's no way I'm gonna have any forum discussion of that magnitude.
Are you suggesting that the Science Forum would be successful? At least someone who believes.
Don't you think Sports one would have more? Or are you from the crowd who stink at them and thats the reson you joined the site?
I find that there probably many users who are good at Sports and go to AG.
How about just a educational forum.
Let me state this in bold:
The Science Forum would not be an information source. It would be a place to discuss science and philosophy. AG is not Wikipedia, and shouldn't be used like it.
