The fringed-upon trailblazers
“Magic is just science we do not understand”, I love this phrase from one of my favorite TV shows because it is true. If you were to ask how to describe humans, many would praise our intelligence and how we’ve become the dominant species in our world. Although this is certainly true, I believe there is something more meaningful that describes humankind, and that is curiosity. Humans have come as far as they have not just because of our intelligence, but because of how we’ve overcome every obstacle in our way by being avid problem solvers. You see, real problems can rarely be solved from a point of conformity and without overcoming fears. Throughout history, we’ve had countless heroes who have left conformity behind and have faced fear head-on. True bravery is not being fearless, is about moving forward despite being afraid. To this point, none of what I have said may seem new to you, but that’s where the current problem resides.
Despite knowing all of the above, society fringes upon anyone who dares to be different. Curious and smart as we may be, we are also still very afraid. As a race so plagued by fear, we desperately need those individuals who manage to be brave, those who don’t let their fears hold them back. They are our trailblazers, they open paths for humanity’s growth and progress. But why do we hate these people so much? Look around you, people are full of hatred for that which is different. You can see it every day in racism and other heinous human behaviors. It baffles me how such “advanced” creatures are governed by instinct. Fear is a means of survival, yes, but it’s a very basic one, and humankind is far past that… or are we?
To put it all in perspective, our first hominid ancestors appeared about two and a half million years ago. Homo sapiens specifically emerged about 40 thousand years ago. For all those years, fear was a valuable tool for survival. As far as we know our first advanced civilization can be attributed to our ancestors from around eleven and half thousand years ago (evidenced by Göbekli Tepe). Compare the time we have been “primitive” and relying on our instincts, like fear, for survival (around two and a half million years) to the time we have been “advanced” and relied on logic (eleven and half thousand years), and it becomes clear why we haven’t been able to shake off our “primitive” ways. Evolution and progress require time, and we have done it all way too fast. We just can’t catch up, not unless we do something about it.
The only way for progress to be made under these circumstances is for humankind to step up and overcome this weakness. By becoming aware of how our fear and hatred are in the way, we can support our civilization. We don’t need every human to be a trailblazer, but we must support those who are. Even if we are not the ones creating change, we must support the ones who do. Still, this is all easier said than done. I too tend to look down upon those who venture on the untrodden path. I am a scientist and I really don’t like “pseudo-science”, a term that englobes all false or deceptive science that lacks empirical support. But that's the thing… Sometimes pseudoscience is just science waiting for empirical support. People thought the earth was flat until empirical evidence showed it wasn’t. I often find myself thinking “What if this pseudo-science, as absurd as it sounds, could have some sort of basis in reality?”, “what if it’s only this absurd because we don’t understand it, therefore we don’t know how to interpret it and apply it?”… It takes courage to be able to think like this, you are exposing your core beliefs to be changed by others. And yet, that is exactly what we need, as humans we need to be painfully aware of our weaknesses, like how little we know and how fragile “normality” is. Only by fighting our instinct to listen to our fears can we move forward. I encourage all readers to make a conscious decision to bypass this instinct and support our fringed-upon trailblazers, for that is the only way we can become more than what we are now.
