Thursday, February 3, 2011

things I don't know

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WalMart, a source for staples around the house, was closed today, perhaps the victim of snows that damaged many roofs in the region. One of the things that has never been explained to me in a way I can understand is why large industrial buildings located in temperate climates use flat roofs. I can understand that flat may be cheaper than peaked, but how much cheaper can it be when those flat roofs collapse beneath a load of snow or spring leaks in heavy rain?

That's one thing I suspect I will never know.

Another is some explanation as to why the Chinese and others settled on chop sticks as eating implements. By the time Europe began using forks (in France, the personal fork didn't gain sway until the 17th century), the Chinese had been using chopsticks for centuries. Although the exact origins are open to speculation, there are records of use during the Shang Dynasty (1766 BC - 1122 BC). Some suggest that the style of Chinese cooking (small bits of food) contributed to the use. And then there was a sense of delicacy and distance from the slaughterhouse. But what wonders me is that knives and fingers seem much more logical ... and who knows, maybe that is how it all began. I don't know.

And I will probably never know.

I once asked the prolific science writer Isaac Asimov what he thought the greatest unknown was. In less than a nanosecond, he responded with assurance, "The mind."

How marvelous it is to know whatever it is we know -- each person stuffed like a Christmas turkey with gobs and gobs of information, each bit intersecting and enlivening the next ... it's pretty humongous. But however humongous it may be and however assured and reassured we may be by our collections, still, what we don't know is always humongous-er. I'm not suggesting that everyone run out and get an advanced degree, but rather that an occasional reflection on what is unknown is probably a good idea ... humbling and inclining people to a greater social kindness.

More than that, there are some profound idiocies we all indulge in. We are, for example, convinced by and attached to things that we assume are concrete and enduring but are in fact ephemeral. "Me" is a pretty good example, but there are others as well. Having conceded our own arrogance does not mean we have to then wallow in our ignorance and idiocy. It does mean that any sensible person might want to check in with and check out the things that are honestly not know.

A little curiosity and a little investigation never hurt anyone.
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12 comments:

  1. The real question is on what level should a person check out what they don't know . If they have an interest in china , should they just go there immediately or is a more casual approach appropriate , doing a little Internet research , reading a book on the subject etc.. Its difficult to know how important or urgent it is to know or where one should really place things in priority , when you just don't know , Anita

    ReplyDelete
  2. With all respect I urge you to view the documentary "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price"
    I don't think after viewing this excellent film you will again have Wal-Mart as your first stop place to shop!

    ReplyDelete
  3. "A little curiosity and a little investigation never hurt anyone."

    OK, if you say so:

    building 7

    building what ?

    mysteries


    architects and engineers

    just the facts, ma'am

    speak out

    physical evidence

    Let us know what you think.
    Or would you rather put the genie back in the bottle ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. "A little curiosity and a little investigation never hurt anyone."
    OK, if you say so...

    ReplyDelete
  5. Received in email, but don't see it here ... from "Anonymous"

    Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "things I don't know":

    "A little curiosity and a little investigation never hurt anyone."

    OK, if you say so:

    building 7

    building what ?

    mysteries


    architects and engineers

    just the facts, ma'am

    speak out

    physical evidence

    Let us know what you think.
    Or would you rather put the genie back in the bottle ;)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sorry I can't make the links, but the "mysteries" movie is one of the few 'conspiracy' arguments I find compelling. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1337231563159418946# Really is worth the watch, for my money.

    ReplyDelete
  7. blogger's spam filter at work...

    to get past it, just click on the links above

    Put
    the
    genie
    back
    in
    the
    bottle?

    and let us know what you think.
    Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Quit the cute stuff ... I think the argument deserves better than obscure gand-standing.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh, you commented already!
    Thanks for your thoughts!

    Now what might be the right action?

    (besides continued daily sitting ;)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Dang! Censored by blogger's spam filter again!
    Here are the raw links for copy-and-paste...

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LD06SAf0p9A

    http://www.buildingwhat.org/

    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1337231563159418946#


    http://www.ae911truth.org/

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b74naeawdCs

    http://911speakout.org/

    http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=13049

    Sorry for the grand-standing, but it's hard to get
    people's attention on this matter.

    ReplyDelete
  11. At 911speakout.org, physics teacher David Chandler makes some
    very convincing youtube videos that present a very simple argument:

    1) Law of Conservation of Energy

    2) In free-fall, all of an object's gravitational potential energy is
    transformed into kinetic energy with no energy left over to
    do the work of crushing other objects in its path.

    3) Building 7 collapsed in free-fall for over 2 seconds.

    4) This is pretty much impossible without the addition of enormous
    amounts of energy (such as from explosives) to the system.

    5) Therefore, the collapse of Building 7 was a controlled demolition.

    Q.E.D.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous -- Thanks for posting the links. I should have done so.

    ReplyDelete