What is the point of life

[Hossaim]

'What is 6 multiplied by 9?' was the random question Dent formed from letters pulled from the Scrabble bag.
'I always new there was something fundamentally wrong with the universe.' he concluded.

That sounds familiar...

ah, yes, that was it.

[Gen Italia]

From Wikipedia:

At the end of the first radio series (and television series, as well as the novel The Restaurant at the End of the Universe) Arthur Dent, having escaped the Earth's destruction, potentially has some of the computational matrix in his brain. He attempts to discover The Ultimate Question by extracting it from his brainwave patterns, as abusively suggested by Marvin the Paranoid Android, when a Scrabble-playing caveman spells out forty two. Arthur pulls random letters from a bag, but only gets the sentence "What do you get if you multiply six by nine"?

“ "Six by nine. Forty two."
"That's it. That's all there is."

"I always thought something was fundamentally wrong with the universe" "

Six times nine is, of course, fifty-four. The program on the "Earth computer" should have run correctly, but the unexpected arrival of the Golgafrinchans on prehistoric Earth caused input errors into the system—computing (because of the garbage in, garbage out rule) the wrong question—the question in Arthur's subconscious being invalid all along

I paraphrased, but Don't Panic.

[Pandemic Survivors]

Best answer so far...

The truth is that most of the questions that plague us so much are, in some sense, logically incoherent and meaningless. We're so frustrated because we have brains that inherently ask certain kinds of questions all the time, and some of these questions make absolutely no sense outside of a very narrow context. Purpose is one of them. There's no answer to the "meaning of life" because it's not even a legitimate concept to begin with. There aren't answers to questions that make no sense.

There is no point to life. Live with it!

The first question must be: What is life anyway? NASA recently claimed to have extended the concept by finding bacteria not based on carbon (if I got the news right ). But even this is too narrow thinking. No lifeform can exist by itself. This universal interdependence however leaves a paradox. It seems to be an intrinsic property in every lifeform to expand itself into absolute dominans and thus undermine its own existence. This is about to happen to the human species.

But don't worry - life will prevail.

Happy new year

[Christmahanikwanzikah]

On the subject of hitchhiking and guides , I always mutter "Share And Enjoy!" whenever I get a drink from vending machines with stupid complicated mechanisms like motorized arms.

Only I never buy tea. >.>

[Pandemic Survivors]

Well I’ve been thinking. This is an important issue.

First some definitions:
The Universe ::= All in existence including all tangible and non-tangible things (for example ideas and currency exchange rates), all comprehensive and non-comprehensive matters (for example other dimensions, God, heaven, hell and virtual worlds like NS). By the way this kills the idea of “multiverses”.
Life form ::= Sustain a particular entity within the universe by metabolism, that is by transformation of energy.

Now, where does this energy come from?
From other life forms of cause. This is why all life forms are interdependent. All life forms compete to get their fair share of the available energy, and don’t give a damn to what this does to other life forms (if it can think in the sense we use this word). In this endeavor it tries to expand itself until its need for energy exceeds the available resources, and then it goes extinct.

This goes for species, planets, solar systems, galaxies etc. Only in the Universe as a whole, the amount of energy is constant. So maybe the Universe is life, and life is the Universe. Thus there is no point to life, it’s just an essential attribute to the Universe.

Okay. This was an attempt to a strict philosophical analysis. Now I’ll elaborate on some interesting consequences from my definition of the Universe. Pure speculations though but you might find them quite entertaining.

First – as you can see – God is not necessarily part of the equation but on the other hand not entirely ruled out. If there is a god then God is a part of the Universe too. That is to say that “God created the Universe” makes no more sense than to say “My car creates the roads it’s driving at”. But to me it makes sense to imagine some kind of super consciousness controlling the universal processes in the same way my brain controls my body. A lot of things happen within my body which are not controlled by my brain, but after all it’s the brain that gives me direction and makes my body parts work together trying to keep me alive.

Second – If this first conclusion happens to be true. You have to redefine the concepts like God being omnipotent and benevolent. To such a universal super consciousness God focus is on maintaining the Universe – not to preserve a specific species on a random planet within it. There goes the anthropic cosmology invented by the people behind the intelligent design theory.

Third – while there is no point to life it makes good sense to ask how I as a human contribute to sustain the human life form. This opens for discussion of ethical, economical, political and environmental issues just as we are doing here on NS.

[United Districts of 1]

There is no answer to this question because there is no question. The meaning of life is irrelevent, the closest thing to the meaning of life may be to do what you'd like and help a few people out on the way. Other than that it doesn't really exist.

[Paroom]

To live how you want to live. Nobody on this Earth (or other planets) can deny you your right to live or right to be a free person.

[Bafuria]

To exist.

[Ayreonia]

There isn't a point per se, but the closest thing to that is doing what one feels right. I mean, we all have these electric impulses in our brain that we call "feelings" and "thoughts". If I had to give a single piece of advice, I'd say, follow these impulses. They're there for a reason, whether you think someone gave them to you or that they formed via biological means. And even if they aren't there for a reason, it feels bad to ignore them.

So basically, avoid cognitive dissonance.

[Soviet Haaregrad]

It is inherently without a point. Don't waste your time trying to add a deeper meaning to that statement, stop wasting your life and live.

I don't think it's a waste to try and give life a point.

You're allowed to be mistaken.

[Gagatron]

The point of life is to enjoy its benefits. Enjoy wisdom, love, friendship, joy, happiness, forgiveness, knowledge, and many other great things. Your life is what you make it, and different people's lives have different points. You can best fulfill your life purpose if you try to leave the world a better place than you found it.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

The point of life is what you make of it. The point of life is to live it. I don't think there's anything else that can be said, without delving into philosophy or religion.

Life is to live it.

[Mad hatters in jeans]

to complete the experiment of how many people can you fool that this is the real world.
already i say too much.
*buzzing noise in background*

[Innsmothe]

To introduce your DNA into the genepool.
Thanks to sperm-banks, your life's purpose is easier to fulfil than making an omelette.

[Dakini]

The first question must be: What is life anyway? NASA recently claimed to have extended the concept by finding bacteria not based on carbon (if I got the news right ).

NASA has not found life that wasn't based on carbon. NASA has found life that uses arsenic instead of phosphorous. There's a huge difference there.
Also "made of carbon" isn't a definition of life in the first place. Carbon is just a very good element for making chemical bonds so it happens to be used by life as we know it.

[Kushtor]

Whatever it wants its point to be.

[Mad hatters in jeans]

To introduce your DNA into the genepool.
Thanks to sperm-banks, your life's purpose is easier to fulfil than making an omelette.

strange analogy.

besides i can't recall the last time i made an omelette.
wait what if lifes purpose is to make omelettes? oh no i've failed.

[Angleter]

For us, which is the remit OP has decided to limit us to lest we get laughed at, life is for living to the full- so that when your time is near you can sing this song truthfully.

[FREEaquaticdancelesson]

Well, I believe that the "point" of life is the same as the "point" of a road trip.
Basically to enjoy the journey to your final destination.
It's all about the people you meet, the places you go and the means of getting there.

[Meridiani Planum]

Some of you may have simple answers but i urge you to please look farther then the surface, What will this accomplish, and is this really the way you want to spend your one single life on earth, i mean after life ends the after life goes on forever, however in the after life there is nothing.

I seek to live a creative, self-actualizing life, and to share that life with dear friends and loved ones.

What will this accomplish? The most sacred thing in existence for human beings -- eudaimonia.

[Lloydopolis]

For me, life doesn't have a point, per se. Saying "what is the meaning of life?", for me, is like saying "what is the meaning of purple?". It doesn't have a meaning, it just is. "Meaning", in this sense, is a human idea related to human expression, interaction, perception, and symbolism, like art. Trying to find meaning in an amoral, disctinctly inhuman universe that follow laws of cause and effect and not a political or religious ideology is missing the point entirely and taking the idea hopelessly out of context. There's no meaning in, say, a blade of grass, except what you make of it. As far as the universe is concerned, it's just a blade of grass. Any meaning it has, anything it represents or symbolises, is entirely within your own mind. Of course, that's not to say it isn't important, since your ideas and beliefs matter to you, and you matter a whole lot to you.

To me, then, my life is what I make of it (finish my uni course, learn what I want to learn, make friends, get a nice job, etc etc). It might not have any objective purpose, but I'm fine with that, even though some others I've met seem to take issue with it, who seem to need an objective purpose in their lives, but that's them and this is me, so, y'know, whatever floats your boat.

[Meridiani Planum]

For me, life doesn't have a point, per se. Saying "what is the meaning of life?", for me, is like saying "what is the meaning of purple?". It doesn't have a meaning, it just is. "Meaning", in this sense, is a human idea related to human expression, interaction, perception, and symbolism, like art.

That's not what is meant by "meaning in life". Meaning means "purpose" in that context.

[Pandemic Survivors]

The first question must be: What is life anyway? NASA recently claimed to have extended the concept by finding bacteria not based on carbon (if I got the news right ).

NASA has not found life that wasn't based on carbon. NASA has found life that uses arsenic instead of phosphorous. There's a huge difference there.
Also "made of carbon" isn't a definition of life in the first place. Carbon is just a very good element for making chemical bonds so it happens to be used by life as we know it.

Sorry You're right. I shall check my sources more firmly in the future.
Still I'm pretty sure that all organic chemistry on Earth is based on carbon. And yes, this fact only constitutes the everyday use of the word "life". It has nothing to do with a formal definition

[GirlPowa]

To end the male-dominated aristocracy, chauvinism and capitalism.

[Qazox]

Wake-up, Work, Eat, Drink, Procreate, Sleep. Repeat for 60-100 years.