(January 18, 2017 at 6:32 pm)Nymphadora Wrote: So the kiddo has a question and has been quite argumentative with me about it. Actually, she has several questions.
1. If god doesn't exist, where did life come from? Her answer is evolution isn't the answer because we had to come from somewhere.
She says logic and reason doesn't make sense. The big bang doesn't make sense and can't explain it because an explosion can't create things when explosions destroy things. That can't explain why there's life.
Her words. Have at it because I tried to tell her that you don't just throw in the excuse that "god did it", when there's no definitive answer to these things.
Hi Nymph, to be honest I'm surprised at her questions. In the UK, a 14yo would have been taught the facts behind our understanding of the universe years previously (starting ~8 years previously!). Has she had those lessons yet? What's the curriculum? More importantly, if the lessons have been taught, why haven't they stuck?
1. Abiogenesis can be replicated in the lab. Not our specific genesis but the basic building blocks of life can be formed by good old fashioned Chemistry, demonstrating that nature has all it needs to get life going. We don't have a complete picture but we know as fact that abiogenesis occurs naturally and explains the rise of life. We'll find out exactly which combination of chemicals and environment created ours in time, sure enough.
2. She's falling for the straw-man version of the Big Bang. Other explanations already in this thread do a great job of explaining it so I won't repeat them however it's important to highlight that it's not an explosion like a dynamite explosion rather it's an expansion like a bubble or balloon with universal laws acting on matter to make it behave the way that it does.
If she doesn't understand the facts and is instead someone who responds to authority (not yours, obviously
), you might try 'accidentally' leading her to reputable sources with easily understood, mnemonic, witty summaries. Pith is often trumped by the pithier 
If she's instead swayed by emotional arguments, then the old 'I know it's hard to get to grips with life sometimes but life is hard, here have some sympathy' card may generate a better response. At least that way she's more likely to rely on information from a close, personal, emotionally-charged rationalisation than one imposed externally.
Sum ergo sum
