T.S. Elliot. Burnt Norton, in V. Four Quartets. London: Faber &
Faber, 1936.
For information on the development of science and philosophy in
early civilizations, see:
Shigeru Nakayama and Nathan Sivin, Editors. Chinese Science:
Exploration of an Ancient Tradition. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1973.
Karl W. Butzer. Early Hydraulic Civilization in Egypt: a Study in
Cultural Ecology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1976.
Heinrich von Staden. Herophilus: The Art of Medicine in Early
Alexandria. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press,
1989.
The Cultural Heritage of India, (in 6 volumes). Calcutta:
Ramakrishna Mission, Institute of Culture, 1953.
James H. MacLachlan. Children of Prometheus: A History of
Science and Technology. Toronto: Wall & Thompson, 1989.
Isaac Asimov. Asimov's Biographical Encyclopedia of Science and
Technology. The Lives and Achievements of 1195 Great Scientists
from Ancient Times to the Present. Garden City NY: Doubleday,
1972. Fritz Kraft. Geschichte der Naturwissenschaft. Freiberg:
Romback, 1971.
G.E.R. Lloyd. Methods and Problems in Greek Science Cambridge
University Press, 1991.
Robert K.G. Temple. China, Land of Discovery. London: Patrick
Stephens, 1986.
Temple documents discoveries and techniques such as row
cultivation and hoeing ("There are 3 inches of moisture at the
end of a hoe,"), the iron plow, the horse harness, cast iron, the
crank handle, lacquer ("the first plastic"), the decimal system,
the suspension bridge as originating from China. In the
Introduction, Joseph Needham writes: "Chauvinistic Westerners, of
course, always try to minimize the indebtedness of Europe to
China in Antiquity and the Middle Ages" (p.7).
What is of interest in the story is the fact that all these
discoveries occur in a context of configurational focus, of
synthesis, not in the sequential horizon of analytic Western
languages. In some cases, the initial non-linear thought is
linearized. This is best exemplified by comparing Chinese
printing methods, intent on letters seen as images, with those
following Gutenberg's movable type. Obviously, a text perceived
as a holistic entity, such as the Buddhist charm scroll (printed
in 704-751) or the Buddhist Diamond Sutra of 868 (cf. p. 112)
are different from the Bibles printed by Gutenberg and his
followers. Contributions to the history of science from India
and the Middle East also reveal that many discoveries celebrated
as accomplishments of Western analytical science were
anticipated in non-analytical cultures.
Satya Prakash. Founders of Science in Ancient India. Dehli:
Govindram Hasanand, 1986.
G. Kuppuram and K. Kumudamani, Editors. History of Science and
Technology in India. Dehli: Sundeep Prakashan, 1990.
Seyyed Hossein Nasr. Islamic Science. Persia. Tihran: Surush,
1987.
Charles Finch. The African Background to Medical Science: Essays
in African History, Science, and Civilization. London: Karnak
House, 1990.
Magic, myth, and science influence each other in many ways.
Writings on the subject refer to specific aspects (magic and
science, myth as a form of rational discourse) or to the broader
issues of their respective epistemological condition.
Richard Cavendish. A History of Magic. London: Weidenfeld &
Nicholson, 1977.
Gareth Knight. Magic and the Western Mind: Ancient Knowledge and
the Transformation of Consciousness. St. Paul: Llewellyn
Publications, 1991.
Umberto Eco. Foucault's Pendulum. New York: Harcourt, Brace
Jovanovich, 1989.
In this novel, Umberto Eco deals, in a light vein, with the
occult considered as the true science.
Jean Malbec de Tresfel. Abrège de la Théorie et des véritables
principes de l'art appelé chymie, qui est la troisième partie ou
colonne de la vraye medecine hermetique. Paris: Chez
l'auteur,1671.
Adam McLean. The Alchemical Mandala. A Survey of the Mandala in
the Western Esoteric Traditions. Grand Rapids, MI: Phanes Press,
1989.
Titus Burckhardt. Alchemie, Sinn und Weltbild. London: Stuart &
Watkins, 1967. Translated as Alchemy. Science of the Cosmos,
Science of the Soul, by William Stoddart.
Longmead/Shaftesbury/Dorest: Element Books, 1986.
Marie Louise von Franz. Alchemy. An Introduction to the Symbolism
and the Psychology. Toronto: Inner City Books, 1980.
Neil Powell. Alchemy. The Ancient Science. Garden City, NY:
Doubleday, 1976.
Stanislas Klossowski de Rola. Alchemy. The Secret Art. London:
Thames and Hudson, 1973.
J.C. Cooper. Chinese Alchemy. The Taoist Quest for Immortality.
Wellingborough, Northamptonshire: Aquarian Press, 1984.
Robert Zoller. The Arabic Parts in Astrology. The Lost Key to
Prediction. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions International
(distributed by Harper & Row), 1989.
Dane Rudhyar. An Astrological Mandala. The Cycle of
Transformation and Its 360 Symbolic Phases. 1st ed. New York:
Random House, 1973.
Cyril Fagan. Astrological Origins. St. Paul: Llewellyn
Publications, 1971.
Percy Seymour. Astrology. The Evidence of Science. Luton,
Bedfordshire: Lennard, 1988.
Rodney Davies. Fortune-Telling by Astrology. The History and
Practice of Divination by the Stars. Wellingborough,
Northamptonshire: Aquarian Press, 1988.
"Astrological herbalism distinguished seven planetary plants,
twelve herbs associated with signs of the zodiac and thirty-six
plants assigned to decantates and to horoscopes" cf.
Lévi-Strauss, Le cru et le cuit, p. 42. Ruth Drayer.
Numerology. The Language of Life. El Paso, TX: Skidmore-Roth
Publications, 1990.
Albert Einstein (1879-1955) Nobel prize laureate, 1921.
He discusses the conditions of existence for which we are not
adjusted in Über den Frieden, Weltordnung und Weltuntergang (O.
Norden and H. Norden, Editors.), Bern. 1975, p. 494.
In a letter to Jacques Hadamard (1945), Einstein explained: "The
words of the language, as they are written or spoken, do not
seem to play any role in my mechanisms of thought. The physical
entities which seem to serve as elements in thought are certain
signs and more or less clear images which can be 'voluntarily'
reproduced or combined" cf. A Testimonial from Professor
Einstein, in The Psychology of Invention in the Mathematical
Field, edited by J. Hadamard, Princeton: Princeton University
Press, 1945, p. 142.
Raymond Kurzweil, The Age of Intelligent Machines, Cambridge: MIT
Press, 1990.
"Rather than defining intelligence in terms of its constituent
processes, we might define it in terms of its goal: the ability
to use symbolic reasoning in the pursuit of a goal" (p. 17).
Alan Bundy, The Computer Modelling of Mathematical Reasoning. New
York: Academic Press, 1983.
Allan Ramsey. Formal Methods in Artificial Intelligence.
Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
M. Reinfrank, Editor. Non-Monotonic Reasoning: Second
International Workshop. Berlin/New York: Springer Verlag, 1989.
Titus Lucretius Carus. De rerum natura (edited with translation
and commentary by John Godwin). Warminster, Wiltshire, England:
Aris & Phillips,1986.
-. The Nature of Things. Trans. Frank O. Copley. 1st ed. New
York: Norton., 1977.
Epicurus, called by Timon "the last of the natural
philosophers," was translated by Lucretius into Latin. His
Letter to Herodotus and Master Sayings (Kyriai doxai) were
integrated in De rerum natura (On Nature). A good reference book
is Clay Diskin's Lucretius and Epicurus, Ithaca: Cornell
University Press, 1983.
Galileo Galilei. Discorsi e dimostrazioni matematiche (Two New
Sciences: Including Centers of Gravity and Force of Percussion,
translated, with a new introduction and notes, by Stillman
Drake). Toronto: Wall & Thompson, 1989.
-. Galileo's Early Notebooks. The Physical Questions (translated
from the Latin, with historical and paleographical commentary,
by William A. Wallace). Notre Dame IN: University of Notre Dame
Press, 1977.
Starting out as a dictionnaire raisonné of the sciences, the
arts, and crafts, the Encyclopédie became a major form of
philosophic expression in the 18th century. Philosophers
dedicated themselves to the advancement of the sciences and
secular thought, and to the social program of the Enlightenment.
The Encyclopédie showcased new directions of thought in all
branches of intellectual activity. The emergent values
corresponding to the pragmatic condition of time, tolerance,
innovation, and freedom, were expressed in the Encyclopedic
writings and embodied in the political program of the revolutions
it inspired. One of the acknowledged sources of this orientation
is Ephraim Chamber's Cyclopedia (or an Universal Dictionary of
Arts and Sciences), London, 1728.
The examination of star naming is in some ways an exercise in the
geology of pragmatic contexts. The acknowledgment of what is
high, over, above, and beyond the observer's actions suggested
power. The sequence of day and night, of seasons, of the
changing weather is a mixture of repetitive patterns and
unexpected occurrences, even meteorites, some related to wind,
fire, water. Once the shortest and the longest days are
observed, and the length of day equal to that of night (the
equinox), the sky becomes integrated in the pragmatics of human
self-constitution by virtue of affecting cycles of work.
Furthermore, parallel to the mytho-magical explanation of what
happens follows the association of mythical characters, mainly
to stars. Saturn, or Chronos, was the god of time, a star known
for its steady movement; Jupiter, known by the Egyptians as
Ammon, the most impressive planet, and apparently the biggest.
Details of this geology of naming could lead to a book. Here are
some of the names used: Mythomagical: Mercury, Venus, Mars,
Jupiter, Uranus, Pluto; Zodiacal: Gemini, Capricorn, Sagittarius,
Scorpio, etc.
Space: limitless, 3-dimensional, in which objects exist, events
occur, movement takes place. Objects have relative positions and
their movement has relative directions. The geometric notion of
space expands beyond 3-dimensionality.
Paradigm: Since the time Thomas Kuhn published The Structure of
Scientific Revolutions (1962), the concept of paradigm was
adopted in philosophic jargon. The underlying thesis is that
science operates in a research space dominated by successive
research models, or paradigms. The domination of such a paradigm
does not make it more important than previous scientific
explanations (paradigms are not comparable). Rather it effects a
certain convergence in the unifying framework it ascertains.
Logos: ancient Greek for word, was many times defined, almost
always partially, as a means to express thoughts. By
generalization, logos became similar to thought or reason, and
thus a way to control the word through speech (legein). In this
last sense, logos was adapted by Christianity as the Word of
Divinity.
For a description of holism, see Holism-A Philosophy for Today,
by Harry Settanni (New York: P. Lang, 1990).
Techné: from the Greek, means "pertaining to the making of
artifacts" (art objects included).
Francis Bacon (1561-1626): Statesman and philosopher,
distinguished for establishing the empiric methods for
scientific research. Intent on analytical tools, he set out
methods of induction which proved to be effective in the
distinction between scientific and philosophical research. In The
Advancement of Learning (1605) and especially Novum Organum
(1620), Bacon set forth principles that affected the development
of modern science.
René Descartes (1596-1650): Probably one of the most influential
philosophers and scientists, whose contribution, at a time of
change and definition, marked Western civilization in many ways.
The Cartesian dualism he developed ascertains a physical (res
extensa) and a thinking (res cogitans) substance. The first is
extended, can be measured and divided; the second is
indivisible. The body is part of res extensa, the mind
(including thoughts, desires, volition) is res cogitans. His
rules for the Direction of the Understanding (1628), influenced
by his mathematical concerns, submitted a model for the
acquisition of knowledge. The method of doubt, i.e., rejection
of everything not certain, expressed in the famous Discourse on
Method (1637), together with the foundation of a model of science
that combines a mechanic image of the universe described
mathematically, are part of his legacy.
Edwin A. Abbot. Flatland. A Romance of Many Dimensions. By a
Square.
A broad-minded square guides the reader through a 2-dimensional
space. High priests (circular figures) forbid discussing a third
dimension. Abruptly, the square is transported into spaceland and
peers astonished into his 2-dimensional homeland.
Spatial reasoning: a type of reasoning that incorporates the
experience of space either in direct forms (geometric reasoning)
or indirectly (through terms such as close, remote, among
others).
Linearity: relation among dependent phenomena that can be
described through a linear function.
Non-linearity: relations among dependent phenomena that cannot be
described through a linear function, but through exponential and
logarithmic functions, among others.
Jackson E. Atlee. Perspectives of Non-Linear Dynamics.
Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990.
S. Neil Rasband. Chaotic Dynamics of Non-Linear Systems. New
York: Wiley, 1990.
Coherence: the notion that reflects interest in how parts of a
whole are connected. Of special interest is the coherence of
knowledge.
Ralph C.S. Walker. The Coherence Theory of Truth: Realism,
Anti-Realism, Idealism. London/New York: Routledge, 1989.
Alan H. Goldman. Moral Knowledge. London/New York: Routledge,
1988.
A major survey, focused on the contributions of Keith Lehrer and
Laurence Bon Jour, was carried out in The Current State of the
Coherence Theory. Critical Essays on the Epistemic Theories of
Keith Lehrer and Laurence Bon Jour, with Replies (John W.
Bender, Editor, Dordrecht/Boston: Kluwer Academic Publishers,
1989).
David Kirsch. Foundations of Artificial Intelligence. (A special
volume of the journal Artificial Intelligence, 47:1-3, January
1991. Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Self-organization is a dominant topic in artificial life
research. The Annual Conference on Artificial Life (Santa Fe)
resulted in a Proceedings in which self-organization is amply
discussed. Some aspects pertinent to the subject can be found
in:
H. Haken. Advanced Synergetics: Instability Hierarchies of
Self-Organizing Systems and Devices. Berlin/New York: Springer
Verlag, 1983.
P.C.W. Davies. The Cosmic Blueprint. London: Heinemann, 1987.
G. M. Whitesides. Self-Assembling Materials, in Nanothinc, 1996.
http://www.nanothinc.com/webmaster @nanothinc.com
More information on self-assembling materials and nanotechnology
can be found on the Internet at
http://www.nanothinc.com/webmaster @nanothinc.com and at
http://www.foresight.org/webmaster@foresight.org.
Richard Feynman, in a talk given in 1959, stated that "The
principles of physics...do not speak against the possibility of
maneuvering things atom by atom. [...] The problems of chemistry
and biology can be greatly helped if our ability to...do things
on an atomic level is ultimately developed, a developmet which I
think cannot be avoided." (cf. http://www.foresight.org).
Preston Prather. Science Education and the Problem of Scientific
Enlightenment, in Science Education, 5:1, 1996.
The money invested in science is a slippery subject. While direct
funds, such as those made available through the National Science
Foundation, are rather scarce, funding through various government
agencies (Defense, Agriculture, Energy, NASA) and through
private sources amounts to hundreds of billions of dollars. How
much of this goes to fundamental research and how much to applied
science is not very clear, as even the distinction between
fundamental and applied is less and less clear.
Ernst Mach. The Science of Mechanics (1883). Trans. T.J.
McCormick. LaSalle, IL: Open Court, 1960.
Henri Poincaré. The Foundations of Science (1909). Trans. G.B.
Halsted. New York: The Science Press, 1929.
N.P. Cambell. Foundations of Science (1919). New York: Dover,
1957.
Bas C. van Fraasen. The Scientific Image. Oxford: Clarendon
Press,1980.
Richard Dawkins. The Selfish Gene. New York: Oxford University
Press, 1976.
-. The Extended Phenotype. New York: Oxford University Press,
1982.
Elan Moritz, of the Institute for Memetic Research, provides the
historic and methodological background to the subject in
Introduction to Memetic Science.
E.O. Wilson. Sociobiology: The New Synthesis. Cambridge:
Belknap/Harvard University Press, 1975.
Mihai Nadin. Mind-Anticipation and Chaos (from the series
Milestones in Thought and Discovery). Stuttgart/Zurich: Belser
Presse, 1991.
-. The Art and Science of Multimedia, in Real-Time Imaging (P.
Laplante & A. Stoyenko, Editors). Piscataway NJ: IEEE Press,
January, 1996.
-. Negotiating the World of Make-Believe: The Aesthetic Compass,
in Real-TIme Imaging. London: Academic Press, 1995.
"Philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways;
the point is to change it," Karl Marx (cf. Theses on Feuerbach
(from Notebooks of 1844-1845). See also Writings of the Young
Marx on Philosophy and Society, Garden City NY: Anchor Books,
1967, p. 402.
Paul K. Feyerabend. Against Method. Outline of an Anarchistic
Theory of Knowledge. London: Verson Edition,1978.
-. Three Dialogues on Knowledge. Oxford, England/Cambridge MA:
Blackwell,1991.
Imre Lakatos. Philosophical Papers, in two volumes (edited by
John Worrall and Gregory Currie). Cambridge, England/New York:
Cambridge University Press, 1978.
-. Proofs and Refutations. The Logic of Mathematical Discovery
(John Worrall and Elie Zahar, Editors). Cambridge, England/New
York: Cambridge University Press, 1976.
Multivalued logic: expands beyond the truth and falsehood of
sentences, handling the many values of the equivocal or the
ambiguous.
Charles S. Peirce ascertained that all necessary reasoning is
mathematical reasoning, and that all mathematical reasoning is
diagrammatic. He explained diagrammatic reasoning as being based
on a diagram of the percept expressed and on operations on the
diagram. The visual nature of a diagram ("composed of lines, or
an array of signs...") affects the nature of the operations
performed on it (cf. On the Algebra of Logic: A Contribution to
the Philosophy of Notation, in The American Journal of
Mathematics, 7:180-202, 1885).
Brockman, John. The Third Culture: Beyond the Scientific
Revolution. (A collection of essays with Introduction written by
John Brockman.) New York: Simon & Schuster. 1995
Here are some quotations from the contributors: Brockman
maintains that there is a shift occurring in public discourse,
with scientists supplanting philosophers, artists, and people of
letters as the ones who render "visible the deeper meanings of
our lives, redefining who and what we are."
"We're at the stage where things change on the order of decades,
and it seems to be speeding up...." (Danny Hillis)
Auguste Compte, in whose works the thought of Positivism is
convincingly embodied, attracted the attention of John Stuart
Mill, who wrote The Positive Philosophy of Auguste Compte
(Boston: Lee and Shepard, 1871). Some of Compte's early
writings are reproduced in The Crisis of Industrial Civilization
(Ronald Fletcher, Editor, London: Heinemann Educational, 1974).
Stefano Poggi. Introduzione al il Positivisma. Bari: Laterza,
1987.
Sybil de Acevedo. Auguste Compte: Qui êtes-vous? Lyons: La
Manufacture, 1988.
Emil Durkheim. De la division du travail social. 9e ed. Paris:
Presses univérsitaires de France, 1973. (Translated as The
Division of Labor in Society by W.D. Halls, New York: Free Press,
1984.
Durkheim applied Darwin's natural selection to labor division.
Herbert Spencer (1820-1903): very well known for his essay,
Progress: Its Laws and Cause (1857), attempted to conceive a
theory of society based on naturalist principles. What he defined
as the "super- organic," which stands for social, is subjected to
evolution. In his view, societies undergo, cycles of birth-
climax-death. Productive power varies from one cycle to other
(cf. Principles of Sociology, 1876-1896).