All Entries in the "Future Thought" Category
Nature’s Taskmaster
If the messages embedded in folklore mean anything, then until very recently humans were terrified of the natural environment. In many cases, the scariest part of folk tales involves foolish individuals–often kids, in order to emphasize the cautionary nature of the tales–who wander into situations where they fall prey to the many terrors that lurk [...]
Race: The World’s Deadliest Social Disease
Racism is a socially-constructed disease of the mind. Racism is an infectious disease that is caused by a specific form of ignorance: a groundless, pre-scientific belief that race is based in fundamental biological differences among humans. Nothing could be further from the truth. When it comes to biology, humans are all like (Gregor Mendel’s) peas [...]
Technology-Enhanced Learning in Developing Nations: A review
Of interest to Sociologists and students is the possibility of technology to break down class barriers. Here’s an interesting paper from the journal IRRODL that discusses the revolutionary potential of “technology enhanced learning” in developing nations. Food for thought, especially considering the revolutionary potential of Moodles, Moocs, and so on. Check it out.
Racism and Hypocrisy: Celebrating Diversity–Just Not Among Humans
As Darwin pointed out in the The Origin of Species (1859), species often exhibit enormous variation. Darwin was a pigeon breeder and described at length the astounding variation that, with the help of artificial selection, pigeon breeders had succeeded in cultivating in an otherwise humdrum bird species. Similar forces operate on Canis familiaris and, if anything, have [...]
Sapient Apes Ascendant: The Costs and Benefits of Human Agency
If the messages that are embedded in folklore mean anything, then until very recently humans were terrified of the natural environment (Grimm, et. al., 1915). In many cases, the scariest part of folk tales involves foolish individuals–often kids, in order to emphasize the cautionary nature of the tales–who fall prey to one of the many [...]
Good Science: An Evolutionary Theory of Truth
Thomas Kuhn (1996) argued that scientific revolutions take place when dominant paradigms are dislodged by emergent paradigms. Science undergoes such transitions when established paradigms fail to account for an increasing number of empirical anomalies. Anomalies may be understood as enigmas for which existing knowledge systems lack convincing explanations, e.g., dark energy (Panek, 2011). Kuhn’s perspective [...]
Elementary My Dear Watson! The Beauty (and Baloney) of Being Right about Everything
Fate is the most potent weapon in a the arsenal of determinists like Stephen Hawking. To contend, as determinists plainly do, that the outcomes of events are pre-determined is essentially the same as saying that the ebbs and flows of history are all dictated by fate. Actors, whether animate or inanimate, have no control over [...]
Time Surfers: Problem-Solving as the Path to a Better, Brighter, but Unpredictable Future
What does the future hold? Though many have argued that humans are inevitably going to destroy themselves, McGettigan argues that this is no such thing as Fate. The future, McGettigan argues, is not pre-determined, and the crises that threaten to destroy humanity (overpopulation, pollution, global warming, pandemic, nuclear armageddon, etc.) should instead be perceived as opportunities. Humans will continue to thrive so long as they approach crises as invaluable opportunities to elevate their thinking.
Charles Darwin: The Unlikely Revolutionary
The concept of evolution continues to be controversial hot button. Did God create the universe or it is simply random happenstance? Evidence suggests that the universe has been around and changing for billions of years, but does that mean it is all random and meaningless? Maybe. But then my dog is the product of the creative hand of the human breeder, and modern technology is bringing unprecedented change and agency is obvious in both. One thing is for sure. Random evolution may have gotten us here, but human agency is what will make or break the future of this species.
A Bungling Fox in the Henhouse: The Corporatization of Higher Education
If you ask me, business is good, but not necessarily so. Checks and balances need to be applied otherwise things get out of hand, like they are now. With the European economy on the brink of total collapse, and higher education going through some of the most fundamental transformation it has ever faced, business continues as usual. But unless something fundamental changes, the ship is apparently going to go down. Course correction required! So stand up and make yourself heard. Better yet, do your local business person a favour and tell them, too much it too much and enough is enough.
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Sociology for the revolutionary in you. 