Subject: Re: 'god' as surrogate self
Our best bet is to optimize knowledge via careful – i.e., scientific – observation.

I agree with that.

I'm not sure about the rest of it. You seem to be implying that without sentience, there is no existence. Sort of like "if a tree falls in the woods" thing. Yes, it makes a sound, even if no one is there to hear it. Physics tells us that. Same with a universe. If there were no life in this universe (which seems wildly unlikely, excluding us, because the natural chemical processes seem to make life inevitable, there would still be a universe. No sentient "recognition" or "perception" required.