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- What Is Science?
By Marilynn Stark
Preface
The beauty of nature rests in the primordial memory of any creature,
human or sub-human by species. The picture presents of a
stately deer standing by a large pool of water in some silent wood,
calmly gazing at the surround, in harmony with the place and the
moment. The birds sing agreeably to all the day and all that
might happen by their chosen thicket, extending the tidings of
complacency and happiness to those who might hear, as if it is their
singular task to announce the scenery, the
pleasant provision, the sunny sky and their home in all that just
is. A busy squirrel scatters up a tree after busily preparing
for the future and hoarding some chestnuts. Just being there
in the forest draws the observer into the living world that is
nature and consoles so greatly the inner eye of the observer, where
peace is refurbished and cherished. It seems this peace so
found as a gem in nature's hold will render an insight once again to
the beholder, and that that insight should always have been known
and lived by; somehow the message of Mother Nature just is and
should always be honored as that which would rightfully prevail.
Where else does life and do living beings and the results of
their lives shine forth and occupy the surround with such a
perceptible dynamic force and loving, harmonious way? The
creatures may have a fear of a human being, but behind the line of
fear they hold for one of us they have a curiosity and a sense of
unity which transcends the rule of fear towards us. The
gift of the creatures to the observer is also the window which is
theirs to offer, and that window allows the observer to see and feel
the home of the creature in the forest. That home of the
creatures is blessed with harmony and unity, so that a universal
love is seen and communicated to an inquiring observer. Yes,
there is predation and there is natural death in this, the world of
perfection, charm and innate splendor, the world of God's so-called
lesser species, the green woods and the rolling mountains, replete
with vegetation which cannot trace its family history, except for a
trained scientist, perhaps. But in the midst of the fact of
inevitable death for this growing, breathing and full world of life,
the domain seems rather to be the here-and-now, the moment for
sharing in the bounteous provision of the temperate clime, living
only as life pours forth its ways, wants and trials effortlessly.
Let there be cruel winters, for the creatures will best them.
Let there be harsh storms with high winds and pelts of hail, yet the
creatures know how to contend. When the beautiful weather
prevails, it seems there never had been a storm, for everything
moves in cycles, even death, as it makes way for new life.
Sitting on a rock, the
observer can marvel at how the liveliness of the woods is somehow
subtle and yet buoyant, supportive of all, and life for that
sensation of its simple force is to be treasured and contemplated
even further, as a gift--for it is a gift. What wondrous
marvels make this ecosystem a valid, interconnected miracle to its
inhabitants. If only this miracle of life and its supporting
processes can be understood more fully, what wonder would be
conquered; indeed, the
subjective revelling of the observer in a wooded dominion lends an
inner peace and assurance which can only be a profound starting
point for a biological query, an inquiry posed now in the objective
realm of scientific truth.
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Etymological
Derivation of the Word Science
The word science is
derived from the Latin verb scio, meaning to know.
As the motto of this Web site indicates, "Cogito
et scio invicem," "I think and I know
interchangeably," there is a distinction between knowing and
thinking : one thinks and knows invicem or alternately, in
turns. One can be told what is known on a topic and therefore,
how to think accordingly. In the current day of highly
developed science it is often acceptable to many, who rely just
naturally upon the diffuse results of our advanced knowledge in the
many branches of science, to accept certain scientific conclusions
as rendered them. This advancement of scientific knowledge has
also culminated in a technologically-implemented existence and as
such is recognized and relied upon by most ; therefore, acceptance
of scientific work and its purported results is more facile for the
mind to accomplish. After all, we owe this life replete with
leisure time and entertainment, as well as with an increased
longevity due to improved medical care and medical knowledge in the
treatment of ailments and diseases, to the power and moment of
science. The place of an individual thinker who is not a
trained scientist to discriminate as strictly as a scientist does
discriminate in the process of uncovering new facts in the
experimental arena may be poorly defined. Yet people widely
respect science as the giver of the gifts of a better quality life
with a greater assurance of improved health knowledge and care and
an ever-growing dependency upon the techno-structure to help greatly
in the accomplishment of the duties, the chores, of daily living.
Matters such as food, shelter, clothing, transportation and
communication are not generally born of the direct labor of a man
and his family any longer, as most products relevant to these
rudiments of living are provided second-order or more. For
instance, the occupant of a house may not have built it, probably
did not design it and did not breed the giver of his
transportation, like in the olden days when horses could be bred by
animal husbandry. Nor does he send out a messenger to deliver
a letter across a day or two to a family member or business
associate some distance away, as he is more likely to send an email
and can close a matter in less than an hour, say, if the recipient
of the email answers immediately. What took days and weeks in
former times before the technological advancement we now know may
take even minutes today, as information can be communicated and
exchanged through the utility of cybernetics and satellites.
Science replaced
theologically-born precepts which had explained the nature of the
world widely among the people, such that some actual ignorance had
prevailed with those precepts. At one time the Earth, for example, was cited as the
center of the universe. Galileo disproved this geocentric theory
and counter-posed with his heliocentric theory. In the history
of mankind there are other great, pioneering, scientific thinkers
who revolutionized the way we typically think of the world about us.
Even though such revolutionary thinkers as Galileo may not have been
accepted immediately, across time the truths which arose from their
scientific acumen challenged the prevailing ignorance of their times and ultimately guided us into the current level of
enlightened thinking we now take almost for granted on a daily
basis. Imagine how unique the ability of such great thinkers to see
for themselves the truth of the natural phenomena around them and
to have the mental capacity to refute any false doctrine on faith.
Such was their faith that the evidence they had culled through the
aegis of a sound reasoning process, coupled with empirical genius,
held more truth and deserved to be known for that truth, as well.
These extreme cases of the great scientists in history point up the
nature of the scientific method, which relies upon how the thinking
mind works. In English we use such words as 'think,' 'know,'
'empiricize,' 'see,' 'observe,' 'recognize,' 'perceive,'
'understand,' 'cognize,' 'conclude,' and 'reason,' as we speak
of the nature of scientific endeavors. Especially the acting
scientist will speak and work as according to this verbiage.
One of the goals of Science for the Knowing, as its name
implies, is to bring about a greater discriminating factor in
existing scientists as they work and to uplift the awareness of
those who are interested in science more as a curiosity or hobby, or
from a purely philosophical basis. Therefore, it is essential
to unfold how the use of words can sharpen the mental discipline and
the ability of the mind to try to grasp truth in understanding
science more completely, whether as a whole, or on a platform
discrete unto a single topic or group of them. Since thinking
and knowing comprise
the active process leading to the formation of valid knowledge,
looking into
the Latin words involving thinking and knowing should give vital guidance to one whose desire remains to enhance
the discriminating ability necessary to learn, evaluate and
integrate science.
A classical language
such as Latin is designed with a greater resolve unto the truth, such
that words will reflect the nature of what they describe in an
inherent or implicit way first and then further in grammatical
usage and inflection. For instance, in Latin there is a verb ago,
-ere which means to drive, to go, to do, to perform or incite
to action. Indeed, the English words act and action come from actum,
the fourth principle part of ago. A
combination of the word cum, meaning with, and ago
gives the verb cogo, -ere which means to draw to
one point. Now there is another word which is derived from cogo,
the word cogito, -are, meaning to turn over in the mind, to
think, reflect or consider. (Ref. Cassell's New Latin Dictionary.)
The word cogito is cited in the reference just given as being
a combination of cum/agito, where agito,-are means to
drive, or to put in constant motion. Thus, the implication in
the Latin word cogito, is an activity whose nature is that of
a process, a driving, or being driven and placed in motion.
The mind works in such a fashion as it thinks. Indeed, the
word cogito in its definition mirrors even more accurately
the meaning of cogo, to bring, drive or draw to a point,
wherein the thought process gives fruit when it indeed
culminates in the ability to settle on a point, or upon point after
point in a progressive manner. The one-pointed mind has the
innate characteristic of being able to concentrate well upon a point
or points whose relevance can be discerned uniquely for their
ultimate place in any consideration at hand.
In contrast, the Latin
verb cognosco, -ere, means to become acquainted with, to get
to know, or to learn, and can mean to know, also, in the perfect
tenses. This word cognosco is derived from cum/nosco,
formerly gnosco, where nosco means to inquire.
Here is another verb which relies upon the process of becoming
acquainted with something, as opposed to knowing per se;
indeed, cognosco describes the phase of thought
formulation wherein data for thinking on a more ultimate level is
being culled through active inquiry. Therefore, the meaning of
cognosco as it changes to the verb to know in the past tense
sense reflects precisely that process of empiricism which precedes
definitive conviction of mind during an inquiry, and which leads up
to the state of mind of knowing based upon what has been observed
empirically; thus, the adjective formed of the past participle
of cognosco is cognitus, -a, -um, means known, proved.
Another Latin verb which
does not rely upon the sense of driving, as cogito, or
acquaintance through inquiry, as cognosco, and yet means to
think in the sense of to consider, to weigh or to judge, is pendo,
-ere, pependi, pensum. This meaning is a transference of
the transitive meaning of pendo, to cause to hang down.
A frequentative of pendo is the verb penso, -are,
which means to weigh out carefully, which transfers into the
meanings of to estimate, ponder or consider.
The English word
sapient, meaning wise, comes from the Latin word meaning to taste,
to be capable of tasting, sapio, -ere, and which also
transfers into a verb meaning to think, to discern.
The concept of
understanding or comprehending something also can be parsed for its
root-level meaning from the original Latin. In Latin the verb
meaning to comprehend, to perceive, to become aware of, to
discriminate or to understand is the verb intellego, -ere.
This verb is a combination of the preposition inter, meaning
among or between, and legere, meaning to collect, to
gather, to choose or even to read, peruse or read aloud. The
derivation itself of the Latin verb intellegere illustrates
the mental process which supports the ideation and discriminative
thinking which stand behind a conclusive mind of knowing. The
Latin noun intellectus, -us, meaning understanding or
comprehension, describes a state of awareness which had been
preceded by a process of collecting among and choosing between.
Finally, there is
the verb in Latin which means to know, to understand, to have
knowledge of, and that is scio, -ire, scivi, scitum. However,
the verb scisco, -ere, scivi scitum literally means to seek,
to find out, to investigate, to find out by inquiry, so that these
two verbs converge upon the common meaning of knowing with the past
principle parts, or the past participle, for example, of scitus,
which means knowing or judicious, whereupon such knowledge had been
arrived at by inquiry in the first instance, as in scisco.
The actual English word science is from the present participle
of scio, sciens, scientis, which means knowing, aware.
The English word science
refers to an existing body of knowledge, yes; and the power of
intellect as a tool of proper discrimination upon empirically
observed phenomena has through a methodical process founded upon
inquiry and implemented by experimentation and reasoning processes,
allowed the thinking scientist to so prove a premise of truth, that
thought has been validated. That which had been hypothesized
to be real and so, has through the scientific method been turned
into knowledge, as thinking worked actively together with knowledge
: cogito et scio invicem. There is an expression
'working knowledge,' which refers to the idea that as much as is
known and applied in an active thinking context, that 'working
knowledge' bears fruits to the purpose or task at hand, and implies
that more is yet to be known. The readiness of any
discriminating intellect to believe on faith the results by hearsay
of a given scientific point of truth, and especially if that point
of truth bears directly on the quality of life at hand or upon a
vital decision in life's maze towards preservation and proper
destiny, is certainly a matter for deeper consideration. The
literary classics specialize in illustrating through an intensive
language platform the vital importance of awareful thinking and the
necessity to consider and at times reconsider any knowledge commonly
accepted as true, wherein stories and historical recount may
pose the way in such as living, strife, in governing, in tales of
war and concerning observations on the nature of things, for
example. In today's modern world we live as according to
tenets of scientific truths upon which we have relied and can still
steadily rely for sustenance and even good governing, such as
communications systems which give us open and at times live privy to
the doings in the governing systems of our locales, our states and
our national forums. However, in the question of the fare of
health, the allocation of federal monies for scientific research,
and the ethics involving such issues as cloning, nuclear science,
and the politico-military questions of bio-terrorism, as well as
nanotechnology, to name a few, the individual intellect must regroup
and establish a careful discriminating faculty at the fore of the
thinking process; this careful discrimination will mirror the way a
scientist works and thinks as according to existing knowledge in
concert with new thoughts as the knowledge grows during the
discovery process in scientific research. So must man think
and ever think judiciously and with values for humanity within
immediate reach, remembering that to fundamentally uncover the
nature of things is one matter; how to put the resultant knowledge
which grows from the basic scientific inquiry as to the nature of
things in a perspective which will foment a proper and sane avenue
for further research in respect to humanity to all potentially
affected by such work is a leading quest in the scientific ponder
today. It therefore would behoove any thinking individual with
an interest in science and some reading knowledge of science, let
alone those highly educated scientists, to practice and guide
the pursuit of knowledge with careful discrimination. In this
way will the political corridor down which we choose to walk as a
scientifically enlightened culture be of sure footing. And
this is again seen in the meaning of the Latin verb scisco, -ere,
discussed previously, whose literal meaning of to inquire, to
find out, becomes transferred into the politically scientific sense
meaning to vote, to approve by voting or to resolve.
This elaborate provision of concise words from the rich classical
language of Latin once again disciplines the mind of the scientific
thinker into realizing the rudiments of the very science in which we
revel in a sense. For what had led to the development of
science as we now know science had been the dream of a better
understanding of the world, so that invisible, somehow higher
authorities, could not by dicta and dogma tell an individual how to
think and what to think. That particular arena of free
thinking by value and popular remand had to evolve, and its history
tells the story of the growth of the highest science of mankind,
political science. No matter what is known of the nature of
matter stretching from the atom and sub-atomic particles to the
stars and the nature of matter at the origin of the universe : if
man cannot know a free day of good living but for a fair and
democratic governing system, through which the political arena is
scientifically structured and actuated in the favor of the freedom
and human rights of all equally, then the scientific knowledge of
the leading thinkers might as well be profligated unto the dictates
once again of a ruling few, or of a dangerous despotic regime, per
chance. This is a chance we cannot take as an enlightened
culture of people, so that we must understand the scientific method
and the very nature of the working scientific mind as precisely and
as minutely as we care for the betterment still of all of
mankind. May the classics and such languages as Latin remind
us that no matter how evolved we are as a scientific culture whose
science has blossomed out of the objective, relative world, the
fundamental values we cherish must still guide as we think.
Moreover, how we think in the pursuit of knowledge has not changed
in essence over the centuries through which mankind has evolved.
Even though knowledge is now highly advanced and elaborate upon the
nature of the world about us through the many branches of science,
still the nature of that world has not changed, even despite our
sophisticated tools of technology. Therefore, we must guard
against a backlash in the acquisition of our advanced knowledge in
the sciences, and remain ever vigilant to social and philosophical
mores and ethics, that we remain one-pointed in our quest to always
serve in the best interests of all of mankind without hesitation;
and with great fervor must we forge ahead as pioneers, equally as
brave as Galileo must have been in announcing his discovery.
That is why the more refined universities still teach the classics,
and many have across-the-board requirements of courses in the
humanities, as well. Since the quest of objective science is
expansive in kind, and endless in its challenge and ponder, the
thinking scientific mind has absolutely nothing more vital to
accomplish than that of an agenda based upon the sound
principles of moral duty and righteous endeavor, wherein the
classics of antiquity's hold will even in this modern day yet
instruct us, and hold us now as ever before.
Science of the Self :
The Beacon of Mankind
It is instructive to
remember that our scientific method is certainly validated and
fruitful towards the culling of knowledge, while at the same time, the
use of scientific research has been made possible and popular; and
this popularity is partly due to the freedom we enjoy in this nation,
and the philosophy of democratic living and governing. The
higher purpose to which we have as a dynamic culture of enlightened
scientists dedicated ourselves, and who also lead and enlighten the
people unto the knowledge uncovered through science and its
application for the common good, is partly what has fed the growth of
science in its many branches and prospects for the assurance of
continued growth. There is a current threat abroad which has
caused ethicists to be called to the fore of the direction we might
choose as an evolving, scientifically effective culture. For we
are a nation free to mold lives from a substantial premise of knowing
what is good for the human being and our environment, and that through
the vision of changes in various sectors of living which have been
determined through scientific discovery. Where the democratic
forums of ancient Greece and Rome concerned themselves with largely
agrarian economies and the sheer rudiments of living and governing,
and perhaps conquering by dint of cause, the contemporaneous
democratic states, or the free world together, must now open its
forums to such questions as nuclear threat and proliferation, the
ethical questions arising from possibly cloning humans, genetic
engineering of humans and nanotechnology. Much as a young man or
woman would consult his or her elder from a previous generation on
matters of vital and challenging import, so does modern man gain
direction in studying the messages of truth from our historical roots.
Particularly because our technologically-ridden culture is considered
to be so advanced and sophisticated might we ask after the
wisdom of the ancients in times of great and pressing uncertainty;
truth does not change, though it may be subluxated momentarily.
Never before has mankind been at such a juncture as this, wherein we
have the power on the one hand of an atomic bomb to destroy widely in
a militaristic or terrorist might of unprecedented proportion, and on
the other hand, to consider the possibility of pursuing nanotechnology
as a visionary alternative in the practicum itself of living, creating
needed food, clothing and other necessities from a standpoint of
molecular building. The sanctity of an individual is now under
fire, as that individual's clone might be called forth as a substitute
for freedom in the name and spirit of immortality. The place of
the family is now also labile to a categorical re-definition of
sanctity as to genetic flow, since life's giving attributes as
expressed in the uniqueness of the human born to a set of given
parents might be altered through engineering, invoking a
decision-making process for a price. To be able to write out the
desired characteristics of a child of the future is a kind of power
which can conceivably cause dire social unrest, upsetting the sense of
equality of all citizens born, and which equality was hard-won
in our history as we asserted our desire for freedom of
self-determination through wars together. If clones can be built
instead of people being born to free and loving parents, imagine the
destructive power made thus available to any despotic ruler; for such
beings might have no sense of loss in the depth of their enslavement,
since no real, viable genetic line had through humanity's cloister
ever fostered them. Such clones would be widely hated and feared
by natural human beings, those reared in the traditional context
of family. Parents are a basis of power in the socio-political
fiber of a society, and proper parenting is what makes a given people
strong. To attempt to counter that natural formation of a
society through the family unit with such artificial people as clones,
amounts to a subtle form of incitement to civic injustice and
therefore, civic unrest, if not a form of deep-seated terrorism in its
eventual outcome.
From the well-spring of
love do a people grow and produce, giving contributions to the
preservation of their fellow citizens and culture which are greatest
when such contributions arise from a holistic sense of balance and
compassion working in a given field born of knowledge. In such
cultures wisdom can be nurtured and held in great value, and that
wisdom lives in people; wisdom is passed on from person to person, and
in some traditional cases, from generation to generation in the family
line. There is no substitute for the wisdom which resides in a
human being, even if it is rare, for it is powerful enough to
influence, guide and rule even though it is rare. If we as a
scientifically-oriented culture remand the social context of our
family unit to the questions of ethics which are placed upon the
legislative table of our governing bodies, then we are experiencing
the quest for control over the destinies of born citizens of the
future, abstract people. Such people are not yet present and
accounted for, they cannot vote, they are not yet born. Our
value should be for the wisdom of the living people, for wisdom is the
equivalent of the know-how of knowledge. Instead, there are
scientific sensationalists who hunger for the power and name of
creating clones of people. This is an example of how the value
for knowledge must be kept strict and true to the best interests of
all, which best interest indeed is being dramatically imposed upon by
this question of cloning, a dire question. The purpose of this
essay, What Is Science, is not to delve into an attempt to
resolve the many particulars of the ethics of such topics as have been
named here; rather, the purpose here is to summarize all such
sensationalist prospects for science going awry from its proper place
to study the nature of things. We should hope to contribute humbly and
also remarkably still to the preservation of the good of all, and
also, to the good of all of mankind at times and in certain instances.
Such a cursory level review herein of any sensationalist prospectus of
modern science will allow in the abstract an unfolding of the place of
the true individual to remain in charge of the culture from the unit
level of the sanctified individual. Our democratic philosophy holds
the individual as sacred, and upon that creed is our republic built by
constitutional writ. Such sanctity of the individual
should never be socio-politically assaulted with artificially and
mass-produced people such as clones, nor instructed as to what kind of
children must be born in the face of the possibility of genetic
comptrollers, for instance.
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