89. The Future Is Open
There is so much more that is unknown and undiscovered about nearly everything than is currently known and understood.
The word “science” comes from the root – to know. And school textbooks give the impression that the sciences are based on irrefutable evidence and hard facts.
Wouldn’t it be more accurate to say “science” means our current best understanding of things?
Believe it or not, every single branch of science, from biology to astrophysics, from geology to chemistry to human physiology, you name it, is loaded to the gills with more unanswered questions than answered ones. Yes, we know a lot more than we did a hundred years ago, but what we don’t yet know (or perceive for that matter) is way more substantial!
That is why the future is totally and utterly open!
Pure science is the search for knowledge through a method or system of observation. The emphasis is on ‘the search’ for knowledge! And yet, the textbooks and the experts give us the impression that what is ‘science’ is solid, concrete, conclusive truth. That mindset (set in concrete) leaves little room for discovery.
Young minds need to know and feel and believe that their lives can make a difference!
Wouldn’t it be better simply to say to our students: “There is so much more to discover and we need you to discover it!” Or – “This is the best knowledge come to so far, what is missing?” Or – “Can you think of a different way of doing this, understanding this?”
What is to motivate young lives, if they don’t feel needed?
The future is open!
~PAZ
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