Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space

The book is a beautiful philosophical introduction to planetary astronomy. I like the way in which Sagan presents the arguments for the necessity of exploring the space. We  live in a limited environment. Our confined planet is a pale blue dot in space. This is all that we have and all that we are accustomed to. It gives you a perspective on our struggles as a species in the vast incommensurable Universe.

Humans have come a long way since believing that the Universe was all that we saw and it was created to suit our purposes. Science provided us an objective way of seeing ourselves for who we are: an intelligent life form that is evolving. Our evolution was formerly confined to the exploration of our planet, but as we grow in numbers we are jeopardizing our future. We must find new ways to colonize the space if we are to evolve.

Before reading the book I was aware of the limited resources that we have on the planet. I was also aware of the struggles that scientists had to overcome in order to broadcast their findings and the negative role that religious institutions had on stopping the progress of science and technology. After reading it, I feel like we [the human species] are foolishly thinking that we could circumnavigate the problems that we have created: global warming, the thinning of ozone layer, the overpopulation and the modification of life-threatening viruses. These problems are already taking a toll on how we live. We are more prone to climatic changes and the scarce food resources already determine a struggle for survival. These are important points to consider and problems that Sagan has foreseen more than 20 years ago.

For me, it is  refreshingly encouraging when I see the human species for what it is. It is a species with vast potential for evolution, creation and destruction. The perspective given by the planetary exploration probes Cassini, Voyager I and II, and the Apollo missions, are crude, objective status of what we are. We are a fragile species. We have evolved more in the last 100.000 years than before, and our evolution has pushed other species into extinction.

The search to find new inhabitable places brings hope and sense of purpose into our evolution. Scientists are finding new planets, satellites, asteroids with a chemical composition that would put our ingenuity to the test if we want to make them inhabitable. The terraforming, as Sagan calls it, would create suitable living condition and creation of human outposts on the Moon, large asteroids, and Mars. It would be a new kind of migration and would need the concerted support and involvement of all the nations. We must find solutions and find them fast if we want to secure our place in the universe.

I am optimistic about the future when I see the progress made with colonizing Mars and also the research into safely landing and taking off from asteroids. Maybe there is hope for the human species. Maybe I will see it in my lifetime. Carl Sagan’s book is a beautiful exposition of the reasons which motivate the search for intelligent life and also for places were humans could continue living after Earth has exhausted it resources and the environment in no longer suited for life. 

Wine: A Cultural History

Having a little more time after finishing my dissertation studies I decided to start cultivating my love of wine and what better way to start than reading about its history? And what a history wine has! It starts sometime between 8500 BC at the earliest and 4000 BC at the latest (p.11). The book is perfect for afternoon readings, especially if you have a glass of nice wine to accompany it.

John Varriano carefully selects historical sources to carry you through the journey of wine making and consumption, from ancient times to modern day times. It is beautifully illustrated with works of art: sculpture, pottery, paintings and lithographs, all thoughtfully inserted to make the reading more enjoyable. It made me aware of the importance of wine in all rituals and aspects of life, in ancient Greece, where the drank wine mixed with water, than in ancient Rome, where members of high class used to feast on wine taking it as a reminder of momento mori and carpe diem, whilst also encouraging the people to drink it for medicinal purposes. Often time throughout the history wine was used to cure various ailments both topically and internally.

Galen’s account of wine usage for treating wounds is one of the most vast and attentively constructed medical books of those times, widely used until late 17^th century, describes mixes of herbs with wine and even usage of wine as a disinfectant for open wounds. It really made me think twice about what natural medicine can do in order to cure diseases, especially those linked to mineral deficiencies.

The story of wine and how it became widely enjoyed by all people also describes the first wine with controlled denomination, Château Haut-Brion – founded by Jean de Pontac- 1550, to be named by the region where it was made. Wine continued to be enjoyed by members of high class, royalties and popes (Châteauneuf “Vin du Pape” – 1316-1334) (p. 103). The pleasure and rituals associated with wine are depicted beautifully in art. Works of art: painting of Michellangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Bellini and Titian, Rubens, Poussins, Vermeer, and sculptures and lithographs embroider the story and make you wish you could see them all first hand.

Modern time abounds with pictures, descriptions and studies all hailing the benefits of moderate wine consumption. Starting with wine’s effect as a means of aiding people suffering from minor social inhibition and continuing with recent studies suggesting that by drinking wine we attain longevity and better health, the list is vast. It makes you wonder why with every meal you don’t appreciate the curative and pleasurable effects of moderate wine consumption. It definitely makes me want to know more about wine and cultivate my taste so I can enjoy both the health benefits and also the small pleasures of life.  

Confessions of an English Opium-Eater

Since ancient times the nature and behaviour of people taking psychic altering drugs has been surrounded by a lot of preconceptions. When reading Tomas de Quincey’s book you are transported into the 19^th century English society and discover the stereotypes and preconceptions regarding drug use.  de Quincey starts in a more descriptive and apologetic note just to make sure that he appeals to his readers. At first this style seems a little too contrived in 21^st century biographic writing, but one must keep in mind that when this book appeared it stirred the high circles of society and created a new awareness regarding the use of opium.

It seems a courageous move to describe and expose publicly a private behaviour, such as drug usage. Whether the reason was to make the public aware of this or simply the book emerged as a result of de Quincey’s belief that preconceptions must be changed is a matter of historical hypothesising. Needless to say, you come into first contact with the exhilaration of the drugs effect but also with the negative effects that it can have on the consumer and his family.

I enjoyed reading this book simply because it was a way to gain access into a world of sealed doors and social stigma. I applaud his heroic act of describing his behaviour and by doing so exposing himself to public criticism. A lot has changed since that time, but the stigma surrounding the drug consumption still remains. Even the author warns against opium usage and argues that better medical care or better living conditions should be a necessary condition for all those who wish not to take the drug or be tempted by other psychedelic drugs. At one point de Quincey presents his hypothesis stating that opium might alleviate the symptoms of Consumptions or other grave medical condition that affected British Society at that time, but tones down his tone to include a cautionary message that the drugs early positive effects should not be abused and care must be taken when measuring the dosage. Another noteworthy hypothesis is that a life that includes regular exercise and a balanced diet could provide more positive effects on overall health rather than subsiding to drug use.

Taken together the messages that de Quincey sends to his readers are worthy of consideration and admirable, especially when thinking that this is the first biographic book to expose opium usage.

Too Far

Robbie, a small boy of six-seven years moves to Alaska with his family. There he discovers a world of great and incommensurable meaning. Shapero describes this transformation by following his main character through the journey of growing up and letting go of small boys mystical fantasies. Robbie learns to explore the surrounding forest, befriends Fristeen and together they form a bond that helps them both overlook the dramas unfolding in the adult world. Robbie’s parents are emotionally crippled by relationship issues: his father is enmeshed in his studies and his mother is battling depression. Fighting often, they neglect Robbie and this constant bickering pushes their son in to the arms of an imaginary world, ruled by the Dream Man and Shawn, under constant threat of being captured by Shivers.


Fristeen’s world is even less structured than Robbie’s. Without knowing her father and with no involvement from her mother, a drug addict, she is often left to herself, and sometimes the only food that she gets is Robbie’s sandwiches. Together the children set forward in an adventure through the woods and try to make sense of the world around them. They are very careful when exploring, and also are under constant threat by the imminence of Shivers power. (Apparently living in Alaska means that one must always be prepared to face a sudden freeze.)

Throughout the brief Alaskan summer the drama in their houses unfolds, to the point that at the start of the autumn Robbie’s parents decide to separate and Fristeen’s mom decide to get back with an abusive partner. The children decide to run in the forest and hide, thinking they will manage to survive independent, but a sudden freeze, Shivers, puts them in grave danger. The rescue team finds them in time. This last adventure concludes their initiation into a different stage of existence, marked by an absence of magic and fantastical beings.

Too Far is an enjoyable book, one that emphasizes the human power to search for meaning in the surroundings and also pinpoints to the mental characteristics that led early humans to construct gods endorsed with magical powers.  

Hindsight - The Promise and Peril of Looking Backward by Mark Freeman

Freeman’s book attracted me from the first sight of it. It was a mixture of curiosity with a sense that this book, implicitly its contents, is something that I need in this stage of my life. It proved out to be just that!

Hindsight is rather an essay on the problem of human reconstruction of the self through incorporating and giving meaning to past experiences. Written in a clear concise and yet philosophical style it transports you into a world of thought and guides you through the stories of other real life humans that have sought some peace with the past in order to look at the future in a more positive way. Some of the protagonists in the examples chosen, found their peace and strength to recreate themselves and to embrace the future selves in a more powerful and creative way, whilst others have become prisoners of their own past: regrets and failed expectation leaving them scarred and unable to progress.  

Human beings need to have a feeling of narrative self, the integrative part of us that is unique but as a whole represents us, becomes a part of our identity. In light of present knowledge we tend to evaluate past experiences and seek to amend them in order to create an acceptable image of ourselves. It made me think a lot about the power of our understanding and the frailties of our expectations about the future when anchored in the present and also the disappointment of the realization that, what we thought will be a sure course of our developmental trajectory did not happen. Stopping to re-evaluate our personal history can be a source of immense growth and also the crossing-point to new avenues for future enterprises. It can also be a source of regret and resentment when we realise that what we set up to do was never achieved or we perceive as failing to meet our hopes and expectations. No matter what the result will be, it is important for us to reconsider from time to time our values, our expectations, our past decisions, just to be aware of the direction I which we are heading.

I loved the book and especially the way in which I found the opportunity to think of my own journey of growth and to reconsider the expectations that I hold and how to let go of regret and of un-necessary worries about the future. 

The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared

Allan Karlsson, a hundred-year-old man sets on another adventure.

The book is a fascinating account of adventures and happenings in Allan’s life. It all fits with the perfect twists of occurrences, fate, whatever you want to call it. Reading the book, I had a feeling that Allan’s life is magnificent, but I guess every life in which you have no expectations other than: nice food, a place above your head, and something to drink is the dream. Given the strange context in which Allan live, it appears that only by constantly wanting to live he sets himself yet on another adventure.

During his 100 year life he has become a bomb specialist, helped create the most deadly bomb, be-friended presidents, and also spend a nice long vacation on the beach (more than a decade), and during the whole time he was an honest, open-minded and completely apolitical person. On the celebration of his 100 year birthday he decides to do something new, other than spending his day in the senior house, so he climbs out the window and just goes off to another place/ adventure.

In a fantastic twist of randomly circumstances, just as anyone would know to expect from an ordinary life, he comes in the possession of a troller full of money, than pursued by the rightful Swedish mafia proprietors, and by the police, suspected of kidnap and manslaughter. While taking part in this exciting adventure the author carefully portrays Allan’s previous history, just to make the reader clear that when we come to know this person we will see how all the things make sense, and culminate in this adventure that started on his 100^th birthday.  It is really a beautifully written account of the story of a man who is true to himself, his morals, his beliefs, and constructs his sense of self-coherence by reflecting on the issues bigger than himself, thus being genuinely open to people, to happenings, to revise his actions and construct his life in accordance to his beliefs. Although the author or the main character doesn’t state the beliefs plainly, by the end of the book I had the feeling that Allan’s main belief is in the power of people accepting themselves and others as they are, without imposing external morals, ideas, or political agendas.

This fantastic story made me reflect on the ways in which I too construct the story of my life. The way in which I can revise what I am living and what I am experiencing, to make sure I spot the difference between unrealistic expectation of events going the way I want them to go, or happening in the putative way that I can imagine them to take place. It is indeed a liberating feeling to know that I will not come to understand all the potential outcome of a decision, situation, and my best action is just to act the way that my morals and beliefs dictate me. Keeping in mind that I cannot envisage all the potential situations is the best feeling, but that doesn’t mean I should be paralysed by inaction; on the contrary that means I am more responsible for how I act and react to everything that comes in my life, thus I will take a step closer to having and behaving in accordance to my free will – because, you see, whenever I know there are multiple course of action, what I choose to do becomes my decision, even is the setting is not in my control, the decision, reaction, action Is.

The Satanic Verses

There are a lot of things which can be said of a novel that has caused religious debates

I found the novel interesting, and to sum it in a word, brilliant. I must confess, reading about the fact that a death sentence was issued to the author for writing it, made me curious and willing to pay great attention to every metaphor or other stylistic approaches to literature. I found the book to be a clear account of the lives of two main characters, Gibreel Farishta and Saladin (Salahudin) Chamcha. I couldn’t find any remarks or any passage that could indicate any mockery towards any religion.

The story seems very awry and is filled with mythological references and historical facts that could be attributed to the period in which the Prophet made the revelation. The main characters are the only survivors of a plane hijack and both are trapped in Britain trying to rebuild their life after the plain crash. Because they are listed as dead by the official statement of the aviation company they seem to have a period in which they must prove to themselves and other that they are in fact alive. Gibreel Farishta finds this to be much easier than Saladin Chamcha because he was a great Bollywood superstar and apparently is recognized be many. Saladin Chamcha goes through a series of transformations in order to regain his identity. The characters are presented in an antithetic fashion, Gibreel, for whom any mistakes are forgivable, and Saladin a man who is seen as threatening and must prove himself as a British citizen through times of abuse and maltreatment.

Due to the way in which Rushdie builds his novel, the plot and its tension seem to gradually arch and bend in each episode, as the characters go through metamorphosis and transformation. The author constructs the novel be creating narrations in narrations, using the metaphor of revelation to provide continuity. Gibreel assumes the role of the Archangel Gabriel and Saladin is sometimes perceived as Shaitan (the devil) especially through his ordeal in London in order to regain his old life and identity. Both characters seem to have problems with identity, Gibreel presenting episodes of recurring schizophrenia and Saladin having problems with British authorities. Although the characters are Indian they seemed to me to be universal, because I could relate to them and the problems which they sought to solve are universal. Both seek love and a way of living it with the person they love. Each of them seems to have a distorted view of love (one due to mental illness and the other due to an illusion regarding the British way of life and his wife’s morality). In fact their ethics about love and morality are tested and in the end one of them manages to construct himself and live accordingly while the other succumbs to his misinterpretation and distortions of reality due to mental illness.

The book made me think about my own struggle with my identity and made me realize that part of the resolution lies in the persons you manage to have around you, because if you have people around you which can offer support when you need it, you can grow and become stronger and therefore a step closer to living your life in a full and enjoyable manner.

Man’s Search for Meaning

When you are left with nothing but yourself sometimes the resolution becomes clear as an end. But what can you do in face of repeated adversity and conditions no man/woman should ever feel?  Viktor Frankl’s answer to this question emerges from personal suffering and having to put up with conditions that threatened his existence. The answer he gives is that one must find a meaning in everything he/she does, even in pain, in simple pleasures and in trial that every life contains.

To be able to create a meaning out of pain is truly an exercise I can only compare to those made by Buddhist monks, because I imagine that only after meditation or intense thought one can accomplish that the essence of all things lies in the purpose that our actions pertain.

The horrors of being in concentration camps in Auschwitz, Dachau and others and afterwards finding out that those people that made you find a purpose for the pains endured are dead can be hard to live with. And wet his theory of finding a purpose for all there is to life, to ones life, give him strength to carry on living, to find people, things and action that can fulfill the need for meaning, a personal purpose to an individual life.

The book was really inspiring and made me think and realize the meaning behind my actions, and the purpose of chosen paths in life. It made me more aware and more responsible and yet it made me free. I strive to find the purpose of my life, the meaning of my actions and to endure with courage and optimism all that lies ahead in the great unknown of my life.

I also started reading about logotherapy and found it very useful in my work.

Frenchman's Creek/ "Golful francezului"

When you see the title you immediately seem to expect pirate story and it’s… exactly what you get! Well, not the pirate from Pirates of The Caribbean, but a more elaborate, bourgeoisie kind of pirate (the one which is rich enough and has the middle life crisis just in time to pillage some English coastal villages). I must admit it was a bit far fetched to empathize with the sorrows of being rich and not understood in your ideals to be free but I understood the general idea.

Most of us think their free, we were set to think this in order to want more stuff and to motivate ourselves into doing, achieving more. Are we really free? Could we all be pirates or just wander around in nature and find food and piece of mind for ourselves? Why are we not all tramps? What keeps us from experiencing total freedom?
All these questions made me look for answers and because I commute by train I’m immerse in the real flow of many human lives so the answer comes quickly: Most of us don’t have the luxury of being bored by our life, position, friends or a limited social circle, most of us are concentrated on living, on having the necessities we think are necessary.

But are we all not happy with what we do or how we make a living? I’m sure that’s not the case as it’s not the case with the idea of freedom. One can be free even subdued to all this necessary but arduous day to day work. What’s important is the conviction that you chose what is to happen in your life (on a general level).

I’m beginning to think that free will isn’t as free as we make ourselves think. For instance, if we were to really chose what to become in life and be sure that it is a completely free decision than we must be sure to choose from all the things we like to do and commit to some decision process before proceeding. We don’t do that, we often find the path that is more attractive and seems in a way tailored for us. Is this free will or destiny one might argue? I would have to say neither. I assume it is part of our genetic predisposition to do what we are good at, even though sometimes we might found later in life that we were good at something (and I attribute this setback to the environment, stimuli or however you may call it). It might be the influence of other books and of a comment made by aproapealb that I’m questioning the existence or the influence, if any, of free will. What do you think?

The book was ok, two characters bored by their rich life finding love and freedom in a more rustic environment near the sea. Their adventure marks the need for exploration of one’s limits and for understanding our life and the important things, people that are in it.

Cloud Atlas

When you see the title you start projecting things regarding the book… It’s not a bad thing to do, as the book tells the story of different generations, different times an yet they all are intertwined in a beautiful, whole narration, that makes you think more about your values.

Would you be able to save someone from slavery? Would you be able to save yourself? Could you pursue the truth with the cost of your life? Would you realize that your life is not perfect? Or would you have the courage to speak your mind? These are some of the question that arises from reading the book. Its characters are divided into stories that take place at different times in somewhat different locations.

One can feel a thread throughout the book. It’s the thread which puts the characters into relations to one another, and that thread seems to be the essence of humanity, the building block of moral values, the thing that sets apart good from evil. Finding the thread in your own life and thoughts is easy, because you are to choose from a variety of characters that depict several periods of a life. You not only seem to transcend into different times, but you are left with the longing to return…

A great book to read indeed, astonishing in its narration and real in its dialogues. Truly it is set to make an influence, and has made an influence on me.

Flow. The psychology of optimal experience

I have finally read this book. I've heard about it and was curios of the perspective presented in it. I must confess I'm pleased and contempt with what I have found out. Some of the results from research confirm some of my personal beliefs and ruminations, while others provide new ground for philosophical discussions with friends and loved ones. It was the book that marked the arrival of spring for me (for my mind and body).

Because it sums up the result of qualitative and quantitative research it might at first glance sound like a book intended to change everything you know. After a close reading the book opens one of the most fundamental subjects that any human being addresses during her/his lifetime: How can I be happy? How can I live a meaningful life?

The realization and answer must come only after close consideration of purposes, goals and important things in life (including experiences). Only when we invest a little time to figure out what is important for us and what we want to be and be defined of, we will be sure to make the decisions which will takes us close to our optimal experience and ultimately to a life of meaning and accomplishment.

I think it is empowering to find out what things and experiences make other humans feel happy or optimal about their action and life. The huge diversity of examples gives any mortal hope that she or he will find out (if she/he is willing to search within herself/himself) what must or can do to take their lives seriously and on a new level of awareness and happiness.

I took my time enjoying it, but as with all great books it’s purpose is to stir things inside you and then to challenge you to see the importance and relevance of your own decision and to help you keep in mind that order in the mind is the thing that keeps us strong.

May the force(perseverance and order in mind) be with you!

You shall know your velocity

The story of how two friends plan to see the world in a week, well, not the entire world, only the "relevant" (to them) parts. Their adventures are full of the plans and dreams they made when they were kids, and now they want to run from their ordinary lives and make them happen.

It was a tragic year for them. Their friend, Jack, died in a car accident and they seem lost without the only good piece in their trio. Will got beaten by some guys, because they had mistaken them for Hand(who in a way was guilty of something). Will got an astounding amount of money for some picture with him changing a light bolt, and now he felt like giving them all away in an impulse of catharsis. He convinces Hand to take a leave from work and to travel with him for a week.

They go to Senegal, and then Morocco, London and Estonia and New York and then Will finishes his journey to a wedding in Mexico City. They start in Senegal where they have different plans on how and to whom they should give money, the same in Morocco and other places where they venture. They seem to be drawn in adventures where they are at the edge of death and living, and come triumphant. This gives them the feeling that they could accomplish anything. But Will cannot forgive his friend Hand for leaving them to get the beating and in the end of the journey he realizes that the only friend that wouldn't have let him alone has Jack, but that Jack is dead and he couldn't do anything to save him, or to avenge his death. He only tries to live with a disfigured face and to come on top of his depressing thoughts. In the end he does seem to realize the things important to him and how he would like to be, but like a complete circle of events, this epiphany is the mark of an approaching death. He dies, two months after attending his friend wedding in Mexico.

The journey, the monologues that Will has, the way that Hand seems to take life as a big joke, are only aspects of different approaches to what seems important in this life. Money do make a difference, the characters know and feel that, but the friendship they had also made a difference. Unfortunately their friendship cannot be the same as a part of what made it special is gone(Jack their friend was the rational part, the one that seem to take confort in the little things). Sometimes, friendships can be ruined by the lack of understanding of the perspectives that the people in it have. Every person has different approaches to life, to important things and sometimes is easy to mistake them for being irrelevant, and then hurt each other.

Maybe all friends should have a journey during which they could make a clear stance on what the important things are to them, but it might seem hard and sometimes unattainable.

The Mummy at the dinning room table

This book is excellent for those thinking about a career as a psychologist, counselor or for those which want to know that sometimes people behave in different and unexpected ways because they weren't taught otherwise or the conditions were extreme.

Jeffrey Kottler and Jon Carlson, two of the most prolific therapist started to gather the most unusual cases that great therapists had during their practice. The most memorable, the most challenging for themselves are included in this book. It's a though reading sometimes, because you are put directly in contact with someone else's pain and you must read it with your mind open and judgement free attitude.

I enjoyed reading it and it gave me a deeper understanding of the techniques and methods taught during my masters years, and now I am eager to start my own private practice. The reason for that is that I have come to realize that people are much more engaged in the therapeutic process when they start by giving money/paying for the help they want rather than receiving that help in a public setting, where it is free, and only those who are really committed or know the value of the service can make the change last. I see it in my school office, where I am responsible of speech therapy, and sadly the parents rarely come to make sure that their chid is making progress or how to make the therapy more productive by doing a "homework" at home with their child.

The book is filled with examples of the human power to make changes in their life/environment and by doing this to achieve the goal of happiness or at least the goal of being able to live your life in a peaceful manner. All the therapist had different approaches to their patients problems, but the line that connected all their efforts was that of respect for the power of their patient /client to make a change and their attitude of acceptance towards the person in front of them. That is an attitude we can rarely enjoy from strangers, only the close ones can really accept for what we are and to keep in mind that we have the power to change and to make our dreams/plans come true(though it is a great burden sometimes for our closest not to judge us or to give solutions that they think are helpful for us).

The Inflationary Universe

Alan Guth's story of how a community of scientists is working a problem so complex as to know what happened at <1 second after the universe appeared is astonishing.

I always thought that it takes a lot of determination, patience and perseverance to tackle big questions and reading this account of how the theory on an inflating universe appeared, only validated my assumptions. The remarkable thing, alongside with the explanation for the universe, was the fact that a community of physicists were so actively involved in disseminating the knowledge, and in trying to think of explanations for how things appeared to be. Only in a community which solves a "puzzle problem"(main characteristic of a puzzle type problem is that a big number of scientists are involved in solving it) could the spreading of ideas be so fast. Another important characteristic is the fact that the culture was ready to accommodate with a new theory for explaining the universe. This, I come to think, after reflecting at big discoveries, is an important factor which contributes to the general public's acceptance of an explanatory theory.

To make the most of what I understood of the inflationary theory, or the new inflationary theory, I'll try to summarize it in a few words: At a point in which matter was in quasiequilibrium state(false vacuum) the energy density was so big and yet the matter acted in a stable form until some nonuniformities appeared, which set the motion of the inflation. An inflaton field was created so quickly near a false vacuum bubble, that once some energy got separated it went on to expand at a rate of unimaginable speed. Due to the nonuniformities, it appears that the universe is expanding but the speed with which it is doing this is mostly constant, but slowing. The data in cosmic radiation support this slowing of the expansion. Of course the numbers are so big, that even to try to imagine the zero's was a huge task, but I understood something about the physics and its laws, and my curiosity grew bigger.

I mean to find out that there are many universes, and that the one in which we live is a pocket of universe, and even our observable universe is a speck in the universe in which we reside, not to say that the Milky Way is just a galaxy amongst other galaxies, not even at the center of the universe (this pocket universe). And to think that our sun is just a medium size star in a galaxy at the outskirts of the Milky Way, and that our planet is inhabited by more than six billion people, it really makes you think about the uniqueness of each other. And coming to speak about humans, which have a tiny amount of time on this planet, and in this solar system, and in this galaxy, and in this universe, it really sets me to think that maybe the only “durable” change, and the most impact I’ll ever have is on my life and the people around me so I have to really make the change count, don’t I?

So in my on small, peculiar “universe life” I’ll try to make good things inflate and dwell on a bigger space, try to accommodate the potential “black holes”(for the purpose of accommodating psychology I’ll call them irrational belief), maybe revert them into “white holes”(rational coping mechanisms), and hope that I will have more “matter”(realistic optimism and confidence in setting goals) than “antimatter”(things to annihilate my optimism).

I still hope to see some new news on the universe and the cosmos, because now, after finishing high school, when I gave a last shoot into understanding physics, I’m ready to understand more about everything, and know that my quest to knowledge will take me further.

Wild Minds- What animals really think

The fascination with different intelligent beings is something that grasps the imagination and attention of scientists all over. but who are we to say how intelligent beings must look or behave like?

Marc Hauser's book is an intriguing way of asserting this question. First it surprised me that we have such an anthropomorphic way in which to explain animal behavior. Apart from saying that animals can be jolly or sad I haven't attributed them with many emotions, but apparently other scientist have tried to explain animal behavior using terminology and concepts applicable only to humans. Like the author says, maybe some of the modalities by which we think we test animal intelligence aren't fit for what pressures nature has put on the evolution of those animals. For instance chimpanzees and orangutans seem to recognize themselves in the mirror, but gorillas seem not to care. We tend to take this as an sign of self-awareness, but maybe the animals don't obtain an advantage by recognizing themselves in the mirror, in the arms race of evolution. So then, it seems that our methods are the ones that aren't measuring the right concepts, the ones that would appear in our mind eye as signs of intelligent thought, or processing.

The author provides an array of examples when experimental work has shed light on processing or feelings we tend to see as landmarks of the human race. For example, problem solving and the capacity to inhibit an initial impulse in order to get to the right solution seem to be present in humans, rhesus macaques and in some chimpanzees. It is interesting to see the experimental conditions and the research questions addressed in order to test some hypothesis. It i in a way a limitation of our human way of reasoning, or so it seemed to me. For instance we put the question of altruism to the test, but we must exclude the potentianlity that the anmswer given by the tested animals represented an response to something totally different.

Marc Hauser carefully brings the attention to all of these details and addresses new questions for those which search understanding in the way animals process information or react to the environment and the question natural selection puts on them.

I Enjoyed having a glimpse into the field of comparative psychology, animal ethology and bioethics, the main fields which seem to draw knowledge from experimental work done on animals.

I can't wait to have a pet to try to entail some experiments on it...

Fire in the Mind- Science, Faith and the Search for Order

George Johnson provides a stimulating book that has given me some stimulating ideas to think of. A complex and intelligible way in which theories from physics, computational theory, biology and evolution are mixed together to form a part of something that is a trademark for the scientist working in the 90's.

It was a great way for me to finally get a hold of some concepts from string theory in physics and quantum mechanics. Hoping that my understanding got deeper than before it did shift my perception of what I knew about the world around me. Theories evolve and develop themselves through the work of scientist, and scientist are in a way form by the theories they work with so it might seem hard to try to shift the view the theory gives you just to try to make better sense of things using a different "looking glass". But this is exactly what the book is all about(as it seemed to my Iguse- information gatherer and using system).

The try to make sense and predict the events happening is a endeavor that has kept our human minds busy since the dawn of consciousness. Maybe it's only an artifact of human culture and the anthropic environment in which humans engulf themselves, but it's obvious from the work in fields like anthropology,history and psychology, that the drive for knowledge and a sense of meaning to the world is what defines our species. In order to make sense we construct laws which help explain most of the events, and we try to make predictions using the knowledge we gain through using these laws. But events often seem random and sense if given to subjective state, or random condition so the meaning is in a way superstitious, attributed to things or behaviors particular to every individual.

What happens when somebody doesn't seem to see through this intricate web of everyday events? An answer is that that certain person might choose to use system of navigating through the mesh of events designed by other. Some of the most basic forms of ensuring an order is by using superstitious rituals, and afterwards using some more elaborate rituals, like those performed at religious gatherings. But whatever the form in which these systems are used they too represent compressions of the knowledge of the world.

And so it appears that there are more ways in which compressions about the world can be made and the understanding of the events can be achieved. The part in which science as a system of beliefs is superior to religion is that it always try to improve it's theories, testing them using instruments, whereas religion, as a system of beliefs works more on personal revelations alongside with those of other more illustrious people.

My favorite quote of the book is actually an reiteration of Murray Gell-Mann's words about compressions of the world around us: "when you don't see compressions that are there, that is denial; when you see compressions that don't exist, that is superstition." I strive to achieve understanding of the theories regarding life so that my personal area of compression that don't exist and are perceived by me is narrowed.

Then again, who knows what is the definition of existence? It's up to the community of scientists to define a standard of what can be seen as a part of the realm of existence and what is not.

Let's hope that we don't just invent machines that measure what are intent to measure and we will be able to shift the perspective every so often as it is needed to expand the knowledge and not to disregard things and events which might actually be happening but outside the reach of our designed instruments of perception and recording.