Wednesday 6 October 2010

Early Learning.

What have we humans learned so far about solid matter? That it isn’t solid. There’s no such thing as solid. Even a chunk of cast iron is composed of nothing more than quantities of empty space punctuated by tiny bits of energy. Solidity is just a relative concept. We’re convinced that the iron is solid because we’re convinced that we’re solid, and so it hurts if we walk into a girder. But pain is only an emotion. So is emotion real?

It seems that quantum physicists are coming to believe that emotion is actually more real than cast iron. That’s good, because so am I.

It’s a start.

2 comments:

Maria Sondule said...

I wish I could give this to my physics teacher. Maybe then he'd stop bugging us to do homework. :P

JJ said...

Well, ordinary physics - as far as I understand it - only works at the macro level. I would suggest you ask him to explain quantum theory, especially with reference to the supposed proof that a particle can exist in more than one place at the same time. Then you might ask him what consciousness is, since the quantum guys insist that consciousness exists in every cell in the body. And then you might delve into the idea that everybody's world is essentially their own construct, and not some pre-existing thing through which they move. Etc.