Wednesday, December 28, 2011
End of Year Musings
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
The scientific method is the universal way to learn more about the world’s truths. But what if it is flawed? After all, science shows us—through nearly every discovery—that the more we discover, the vaster our ignorance seems. In other words, the more we question, the more questions we want to ask. Furthermore, we find that universal truths can, in fact, have exceptions and each person has a unique brain that contemplates things divergently from anyone else. The amorphous, diverse nature of both the pool of knowledge and the minds cogitating this knowledge, suggests that perhaps universality in the scientific method should be discouraged.
Questioning the scientific method means questioning the nature of science itself, turning the argument in an epistemological direction. Epistemology, the study of how we acquire knowledge is fundamentally based on this idea: knowledge is formed by the overlap of what we believe and what is actually true.
This theory demonstrates the incomplete nature of our base of knowledge. Due to subjectivity and the nature of the human mind, each human being’s epistemological Venn diagram is filled with divergent beliefs while the truths side of the diagram is filled with many unknown truths. My method of knowledge acquirement, like that of each and every individual, is steeped in a deep, perceptive subjectivity. Upon further analysis, it would seem that science is substantially less concrete than previously considered. In fact, science is equally based in what we observe as it is in how we observe. So, then, if science, one of the most concrete fields of study is muddled down by subjectivity, how do we find the objective truths amid the mystery? Through all our endeavors towards truth, we discover two things: 1. The nature of truth itself 2. The way our minds perceive the truth. Perhaps sorting out what is true from what we believe to be true, (in other words, discovering the overlap)is the true purpose of scientific thought.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Thursday, June 23, 2011
POTTERMORE!
this is super exciting! now she needs to write more books! can't wait to find out about the extra information.
http://www.pottermore.com/
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Catholicism in Brideshead Revisted and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Just finished Evelyn Waugh's novel Brideshead Revisited. The novel tells the narrative of Charles Ryder, an Oxford student and later soldier, and his relations with the aristocratic Marchmain family. Through this narrative, the novel analyzes the nature of love and religion in society. Set in England in the 1920s through 1940s, the novel centers around Charles, his strong friendships and romances, and namely conflicts between differing doctrines of faith.
The Marchmain family consists of varying degrees of Catholics---in other words, some members of the family (i.e. Cordelia & Brideshead) are highly devout members of the Church while others seem to connect with the religion of their upbringing & yet are referred to as "half-heathen" (i.e. Sebastian & Julia). Charles---the narrator and protagonist of the novel---interestingly enough, is an agnostic. The novel presents an interesting study of the role of faith (or lack thereof) in individual lives & in relationships with others. Initially, it would seem Charles, as an agnostic, would be the most perceptive character because he is free from the bias of a specified religious worldview. Yet, at the close of the novel, the Catholic faith, which many of the characters resisted earlier in the novel, seems to be the saving grace & psychological focus of most of the characters. For instance, Lord Marchmain crosses himself on his deathbed after refusing to conform to the faith for many years, even fleeing to Venice to escape it and his wife. On his deathbed, even Charles kneels and prays for him ask for forgiveness. Julia, the eldest Marchmain daughter, realizes near the end of the novel, that she is a sinner (she has an extramarital affair with the narrator) & reestablishes the role of faith in her life. Sebastian, who struggles with alcoholism, remains under the care of monks at the close of the novel. The Catholic faith is more than a tradition for the Marchmain family, it is a highly perceptive worldview & the spiritual center of the novel and it's characters. It guides their actions, making them people of high moral gravity.
Earlier in the summer I read James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as A Young Man, which also largely focused on Catholicism, yet in a divergent manner. In the novel, Stephen Dedalus, the protagonist, grows up in the Church & later in his early teenage years, strays away from it, seeking not the truth, but desire. Stephen realizes the sinful nature of his actions & asks for repentance, becoming so devout, he almost enters the priesthood. His experience, in his realization of his sin & return to faith, can closely paralleled with Julia's in Brideshead Revisted. Yet, Stephen doesn't enter the priesthood & instead seeks his true destiny and calling: as an artist. The novel chronicles his return & then re-abandonment of his faith.
Portrait differs from Brideshead in the nations in which each story are set: highly-Catholic Ireland & highly-Protestant England. Catholicism is, in Ireland, part of the national society & deeply engrained in many aspects of the culture. Thus, it shapes not only Stephen's (and also Joyce's) spiritual identity, but also his national identity. The focus of the novel then becomes less concerned with the conflict between Stephen as an artist & his faith but between Stephen the individual & Stephen's national identity. In England, however, the Marchmain family is part of the Catholic minority. Catholicism is different from the norm in England and thus, sets them apart. Charles himself is perplexed and in awe of the life the family leads, a large focus being its religious beliefs and practices. But, because the Marchmain family is in the minority, this strengthens the argument FOR their faith, demonstrating its importance in their lives. In short, Joyce more or less argues against the faith while Waugh (a convert to Catholicism himself) argues for it. Yet, both novels demonstrate the role of the Catholic faith in the lives of the characters, offering two different, yet equally illuminated perspectives on faith & human nature.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Saturn in a new light...
http://lightbox.time.com/2011/06/16/mission-to-saturn-beauty-from-the-final-frontier/
Friday, June 17, 2011
Academic Absurdity
Follow the link to create your very own academic sentences, courtesy of the University of Chicago. This generator proves that the world of academia & academic constructions is composed of a seamless blend of absurdity (in that one can choose a few words from some word banks, throw it in to a sentence and it turns out seemingly philosophical) and beauty in prose, form, & phrasing. And yet, what does this actually show about the world of academia? What portion of our academic writings are comprised of unnecessary fluff and pretension and what portion are comprised of the true substance? And, what also, what is the true substance? In the written world it is increasingly difficult to find the true substance, it seems.
Who thinks I am a hypocrite with this post? I can't even write simply.
Leave comments in the comments box on your opinion.
Fractals
A fractal is a pattern of shapes, either human-created or occurring naturally in the universe. In a fractal pattern each consecutive, reduced shape is a fraction of the whole, a concept called self-similarity. Fractals occur in nature often, in crystalline structures, seashells (the chambered Nautilus, in fact, forms a perfect Fibonacci spiral), plants, and many other places. In fact, according to the Fractal Foundation, fractal folding is key in the structure of DNA in the nucleus of every living cell. For more examples and images of fractals in the natural world, follow this link: http://webecoist.com/2008/09/07/17-amazing-examples-of-fractals-in-nature/Not only are fractals vital to life forms and found in the natural world, they can also be applied to many practical tasks in the mathematical, scientific, and even artistic fields. They are also a lot of fun, as demonstrated in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DK5Z709J2eo
The xkcd drawing at the top of this post is a Sierpinski triangle, a form of iterated pattern and also a fractal.