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The why of science.

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crazychica On March 13, 2011
A taste of insanity





Aberdeen, United Kingdom
#1New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 12:50:39
This had to be shared. This is what learning stuff makes me feel. It's so hard to explain how it makes me feel but I think there's something in this video that gets close. Enjoy!

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So when someone says to me, "Why does there have to be an explanation? Why can't you just leave it as it is?"
The answer is that the answer itself is beautiful. The answer adds to the beauty of the phenomenon. I feel more in awe of the Northern Lights knowing that it's just charged particles hitting the Earth's atmosphere than I did when they were just pretty lights. And who doesn't want that?
Tako_400 On April 19, 2010
Keep Ya' Head Up


Deleted



Beirut, Lebanon
#2New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:09:01
"I feel more in awe of the Northern Lights knowing that it's just charged particles hitting the Earth's atmosphere than I did when they were just pretty lights."

Really? I find calling them "pretty lights" much more interesting and beautiful. Giving something too much scientific or technical definition just kills it.
crazychica On March 13, 2011
A taste of insanity





Aberdeen, United Kingdom
#3New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:12:29
@Tako_400 Said

"I feel more in awe of the Northern Lights knowing that it's just charged particles hitting the Earth's atmosphere than I did when they were just pretty lights."

Really? I find calling them "pretty lights" much more interesting and beautiful. Giving something too much scientific or technical definition just kills it.



No way. Knowing what causes it just makes it so much more than just "pretty lights". It's just awesome with an explanation accompanying it.

I mean, I do get the beauty of a mystery. I had a calendar with pictures of Ancient Egyptian heirglyphics and I liked to stare at it being so mysteriously pretty. But I think they would be a lot cooler if I knew what it said.
Tako_400 On April 19, 2010
Keep Ya' Head Up


Deleted



Beirut, Lebanon
#4New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:17:12
@crazychica Said

No way. Knowing what causes it just makes it so much more than just "pretty lights". It's just awesome with an explanation accompanying it.

I mean, I do get the beauty of a mystery. I had a calendar with pictures of Ancient Egyptian heirglyphics and I liked to stare at it being so mysteriously pretty. But I think they would be a lot cooler if I knew what it said.



Yeah, but when they said "Wash the dishes", you would look at the calendar and look at the words "Clean the dishes" rather than at words you cannot understand but "probably mean something amazing".
crazychica On March 13, 2011
A taste of insanity





Aberdeen, United Kingdom
#5New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:23:14
@Tako_400 Said

Yeah, but when they said "Wash the dishes", you would look at the calendar and look at the words "Clean the dishes" rather than at words you cannot understand but "probably mean something amazing".



No. It would be amazing in its own way.

I mean, look at the stars. They're beautiful. But when you realise that they're balls of burning hydrogen, undergoing nuclear fusion, something we're still trying to duplicate, that they live and die and cycles that can last billions of years, they become amazing, fascinating.

Or a rainbow. Rainbows are beautiful, but when you realise what causes them - the scattering of light - you have so much more to stand in awe of. The idea that white light is made up of different colour components and that these can be revealed in such a simple way...

It's this that has fuelled some of mankinds greatest innovations, from germ theory which has saved so many lives to putting a man on the Moon.
Tako_400 On April 19, 2010
Keep Ya' Head Up


Deleted



Beirut, Lebanon
#6New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:28:46
@crazychica Said

No. It would be amazing in its own way.

I mean, look at the stars. They're beautiful. But when you realise that they're balls of burning hydrogen, undergoing nuclear fusion, something we're still trying to duplicate, that they live and die and cycles that can last billions of years, they become amazing, fascinating.

Or a rainbow. Rainbows are beautiful, but when you realise what causes them - the scattering of light - you have so much more to stand in awe of. The idea that white light is made up of different colour components and that these can be revealed in such a simple way...

It's this that has fuelled some of mankinds greatest innovations, from germ theory which has saved so many lives to putting a man on the Moon.


Well you're talking about things like the stars and rainbows very simply. You aren't doing what is done today. You aren't going into the details of a rainbow, or of the life cycle of star. What you're doing here is skimming over them. Now, do what is done in schools, and explain the entire thing from A to Z. You're smothered with so much information that you just don't see the beauty in a rainbow anymore, only the science.
crazychica On March 13, 2011
A taste of insanity





Aberdeen, United Kingdom
#7New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:31:25
@Tako_400 Said

Well you're talking about things like the stars and rainbows very simply. You aren't doing what is done today. You aren't going into the details of a rainbow, or of the life cycle of star. What you're doing here is skimming over them. Now, do what is done in schools, and explain the entire thing from A to Z. You're smothered with so much information that you just don't see the beauty in a rainbow anymore, only the science.



Sure you do. I'm a forensics student and we do a lot of chemistry and a bit with light and stuff and I come out of those lectures with more respect for what we learned, rather than less. It was the same in high school. I was a favourite student because, as a chemistry teacher put it, when he started talking about stuff my eyes would "light up".

To me, knowing about the world doesn't take any of the beauty out of it. It just adds an extra layer of awe and wonder. It makes it more beautiful.
Tako_400 On April 19, 2010
Keep Ya' Head Up


Deleted



Beirut, Lebanon
#8New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:33:57
@crazychica Said

Sure you do. I'm a forensics student and we do a lot of chemistry and a bit with light and stuff and I come out of those lectures with more respect for what we learned, rather than less. It was the same in high school. I was a favourite student because, as a chemistry teacher put it, when he started talking about stuff my eyes would "light up".

To me, knowing about the world doesn't take any of the beauty out of it. It just adds an extra layer of awe and wonder. It makes it more beautiful.



It depends on the person. I don't know why I didn't say this in the beginning and save us all the time. I'm sorry. It depends on the person. Personally, I don't see any beauty in memorizing names, colors, numbers, formulas, etc.
crazychica On March 13, 2011
A taste of insanity





Aberdeen, United Kingdom
#9New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:35:20
@Tako_400 Said

It depends on the person. I don't know why I didn't say this in the beginning and save us all the time. I'm sorry. It depends on the person. Personally, I don't see any beauty in memorizing names, colors, numbers, formulas, etc.



You don't even have to memorise it all. It's just the understanding I'm talking about.
SKUBER On July 20, 2009

Deleted



N/A,
#10New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:36:06
Mankind's eternal struggle, has been to understand the nature of the world around him and himself. Usually replacing ignorance with myth and superstition! There have always been those seldom listened to, intelects who sought to explain the world rationally. But today, although the struggle against superstition continues,mankind has begun to unlock those secrets so long hidden! A TOAST TO THE EMPIRICAL MIND!
Paradigm10 On July 09, 2010




Old Forge,
#11New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:38:16
There will never be a shortage of mysteries and understanding is something that must be sought after continuously. The field of science has certainly demonstrated that even though something is thought to be understood it may not be understood fully or correctly and so we keep seeking the truth. It is beautiful either way.
Tako_400 On April 19, 2010
Keep Ya' Head Up


Deleted



Beirut, Lebanon
#12New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:40:40
@crazychica Said

You don't even have to memorise it all. It's just the understanding I'm talking about.



If only it were "understanding". It's all about memorizing in school nowadays, undoubtedly.
alexkidd On February 07, 2012
Captain Awesome!


Deleted



in a bog, Ireland
#13New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 13:41:56
Knowledge of how the universe works just makes it more amazing in my eyes,
Pondering supernatural causation and superstition pales in comparison to observable demonstration of principles.

It's beautiful.
Paradigm10 On July 09, 2010




Old Forge,
#14New Post! May 26, 2009 @ 14:16:28
I enjoy pondering the supernatural. That is a realm of complete mystery at least for now. At one time people laughed at the idea that there was any thing so small that it couldn't be seen. Lo and behold...bacteria. Now there are some pretty amazing discoveries being made in the field of quantum physics. I confess that quantum physics is a difficult subject for me to grasp but it fascinates me just the same.
crazychica On March 13, 2011
A taste of insanity





Aberdeen, United Kingdom
#15New Post! May 27, 2009 @ 20:38:19
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