Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson makes a pointed observation here, but I wonder how true it is.
I grant that some of us need to be scientifically literate. Without that, our civilization could not keep up with things like vaccines against pandemics, while creating all other medical breakthroughs. we wouldn’t have effective anti-ballistic missiles, climate change mitigation solutions, a deeper understanding of the cosmos around us, and the entire ensemble of IT and communications technologies that make our lives ever more productive.
Keep in mind, however that anything of importance that’s happening in science in the 21st Century is happening at the outermost fringes of incredible levels of specificity. What I learned about physics in college 50 years ago no more qualifies me to understand theoretical physics today than it enables me to fly to the moon in my Prius.
Another thing I would grant is that the 99.999% of us who are not “scientifically literate” in any meaningful way should respect the value of science, and reject QAnon-style beliefs, e.g., the flat Earth, the notion that COVID is a government plot, that global warming is a hoax, that Bill Gates is trying to enslave the population, etc.
Renewable Energy
Metaphysics
Here’s a very short video on the subject of metaphysics, the philosophy of being and reality.
It’s a great example of what I mean when I say that it has been a terrible last few centuries for philosophers.
In ancient times, if you wanted to know what the fundamental building blocks of the universe, you asked a philosopher, perhaps the ancient Athenian Democritus, who propounded the theory of the atom, which was, by definition, indivisible. Now we refer this question to the realm of particle physics.
Far more recently, those who struggled to know the ultimate nature of reality asked a metaphysician. Now, once again, we’ve put our trust in science.
I hope you’ll check out the video linked above.
Renewable Energy
Invest in Small Wind … At Your Peril
As a PhD colleague once told me, “If you don’t care how much of pay for electricity, I’ll get you all the renewable energy you could ever ask for.”
They want you to invest. Have you ever asked why people with their own money at stake have abandoned these ideas 20 years ago?
Renewable Energy
The U.S. Civil War Didn’t Need to Happen
At left we see why Lincoln would have done well to let the Confederacy cede from the Union. He could have simply written a letter to Robert E. Lee stating:
Keep your slaves and your land…for now. Wait until you experience the effects of near-zero industrial and military technology development and the civilized world’s refusal to trade with you barbarians. By the end of the 19th Century, a stiff breeze will blow you away. Maybe some future U.S. president will invade you with a troop of Boy Scouts with slingshots, or maybe a handful of banditos will ride up from Mexico.
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Climate Change11 months ago
Guest post: Why China is still building new coal – and when it might stop
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Greenhouse Gases11 months ago
Guest post: Why China is still building new coal – and when it might stop
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Renewable Energy8 months agoSending Progressive Philanthropist George Soros to Prison?
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Climate Change2 years ago
Bill Discounting Climate Change in Florida’s Energy Policy Awaits DeSantis’ Approval
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Carbon Footprint2 years agoUS SEC’s Climate Disclosure Rules Spur Renewed Interest in Carbon Credits
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Greenhouse Gases12 months ago
嘉宾来稿:探究火山喷发如何影响气候预测
