Science 2.0

Scientific American inviting us to contribute to the next feature article.
Welcome to a Scientific American experiment in "networked journalism," in which readers—you—get to collaborate with the author to give a story its final form.

A Complaint Free World

“Complaining is not to be confused with informing someone of a mistake or deficiency so that it can be put right. And to refrain from complaining doesn’t necessarily mean putting up with bad quality or behavior. There is no ego in telling the waiter your soup is cold and needs to be heated up—if you stick to the facts, which are always neutral. ‘How dare you serve me cold soup…?’ That’s complaining.”

—Eckhart Tolle, “A New Earth”

A great website and wonderful concept - A Complaint Free World

Mother India

"I cling to India like a child to its mother's breast, because I feel she gives me the spiritual noursihment I need. She has the environment that responds to my highest aspiration. When that faith is gone I shall feel like an orphan withut hope of ever finding a guardian."

-Mahatma Gandhi

Progress

The idea that humans can make progress strikes some as naïve. With every war and its chaotic aftermath, looming ecological disasters, and the deviance reportedly inherent in human nature, it seems absurd that things can get better. In fact, say some, things seem to be getting worse.

Of course, even pessimists admit that improvement of a certain sort has been made. Humans have made progress, if we mean an increase in the quantity of commodities. Some speak of the inevitable progress of technology, and who can question that more people have access to more information than ever before? But, say pessimists, increases in commodities or access to information do not indicate genuine progress.
Either nothing can make the world a better place, or the world will necessarily become better. To say it another way, progress is either impossible or inevitable. Which do we choose? A third option exists. This option says that progress is possible, but not inevitable. In terms of moral progress, we might say that love can make progress. But we can also step backwards, fail to love, and witness evil's increase. In either possibility, there is no inevitability. Love may or may not make progress.

Most, if not all, of us actually want to witness love making progress. Progress in love, in other words, presupposes that we have at least a vague notion about which actions promote wellbeing and which do not.

--Thomas Jay Oord

Be The Change

This video is awesome. Instead of saying "I hate this country", let's be the change we wish to see in this world.

Science & Religion

Science and religion are two windows that people look through, trying to understand the big universe outside, trying to understand why we are here. The two windows give different views, but they look out at the same universe. Both views are one-sided, neither is complete. Both leave out essential features of the real world. And both are worthy of respect.

Trouble arises when either science or religion claims universal jurisdiction, when either religious dogma or scientific dogma claims to be infallible. Religious creationists and scientific materialists are equally dogmatic and insensitive. By their arrogance they bring both science and religion into disrepute. The media exaggerate their numbers and importance. The media rarely mention the fact that the great majority of religious people belong to moderate denominations that treat science with respect, or the fact that the great majority of scientists treat religion with respect so long as religion does not claim jurisdiction over scientific questions.

Dyson

Second Life? Get a life.

Are we really screwing up our first lives to take care of our second lives? What are all the kids doing now instead of playing, running, walking, biking and above all just "talking" to a human being? They are busy beautifying their Myspace profiles, or uploading pictures and videos to their facebook accounts.

There are good things associated with the kind of communication that Web 2.0 technologies enable. Long lost friends meet, better communication helps long distance relationships. Workforce is more efficient with better communication.

But I think the pendulum is swinging too far too quickly. I am not sure if it is all for the good. Technology evolutions and disruptions are inevitable. Should we leave all the good things from our past as we move into the newer territories? Should we not take care of our real first lives before we start spending major chunk of our time on our virtual lives?