Some Thoughts On Science*
Science does a terrific job of describing what is present in the world. And it seems to keep getting better at it. Science allows the naming and describing of nature and its properties. And in so doing, nature can be manipulated.
As definitions of the world get more refined… more granular… by math and science, we can benefit from our ingenuity as a species to imagine and create ways to make our lives less concerned with death. From refrigeration to an MRI machine… it’s been an awesome march towards small and large life saving and time saving innovations.
Over time these breakthroughs would lead, you might assume, to our lives being more concerned with… life.
The current trajectory of math and science began around 500 years ago. Understanding the natural world is a key to overcoming the hardships of any species. Humans learned to relate to each other in abstract, agreed upon symbols several thousand years ago. One generation’s knowledge could be spread to the next. A cultural context could be more deeply rooted across time.
The printing press allowed individual ideas to spread. Naming and describing things became a pursuit and passion. In an extremely short time, our species became accustomed to a very different pattern of behavior. Our behavioral patterns are unaccustomed to our current surroundings.
Science has already created a monster and it is us. But we’re not the monsters we currently appear to be, we’re just adjusting to new conditions.
We will discard more of our Neolithic brain… slowly but surely. We can already see it happening. It’s simple, really: Any place that love is replacing fear. Any place that healing is happening. Anywhere you feel a truth deeper than your own story.
Too often I think we consider math and science to be in the pursuit of truth. In fact it is a heroic effort to describe the truth. Science is a valuable tool in an evolutionary toolbox. Felt experience is truth.
If science and math perfect the art of manipulation, I’m going to suggest, “manipulating with consent”… the idea that if the manipulation adheres to a simple test of “do no harm” it can be considered.
There will be unintended consequences as there always are. But something unintended from a place of love is much different that something intended from a place of fear.
We are an extraordinary species. We must begin to learn to live in the extra ordinary. We are not special. We are unique.
We will never figure it all out. Or make the virtual real enough. Or feed the world through science. Or feed the world’s soul through material goods.
Let’s stop trying to impress ourselves with what we can do with our knowledge. It’s time to be a good neighbor on the planet. Light up your inner Mr. Rogers.
*not necessarily original. Just mine at this moment.
