"The suppression of uncomfortable ideas may be common in religion or in politics, but it is not the path to knowledge, and there's no place for it in the endeavor of science."So what should one do with them? If they are relevant to any discussion, talk about them. But what really made me remember the quote was when I thought about feelings (sensations), not ideas. The word mindfulness comes to mind, as a way to deal with changes in life that aren't always anticipated or welcomed. Life is a process of change, the better you are at working with it, the better your quality of life will be.
-- Carl Sagan
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
dealing with discomfort
I came across this quote on a webpage a while back, and recalled it recently.
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2 comments:
Totally in agreement over here with your assessment. The Sagan quote, though, I don't agree with because it leaves out the grey area that abounds in science. Particularly, there is the fact that you often have to destroy things to study them, including living things and non-living things; this is even true for studying beliefs and knowledge where reaction to destruction of thoughts is sought as it often is in psychology. I think there are innumerable examples of valid endeavors in science that are so far beyond the pale that we would actively suppress them in outright horror, and the range of what constitutes this feeling varies from one person to the next.
Very true.
Message to Sagan: "Ethics... Ur Doin It Rong"
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