end of year

This past year for Paideia was my favorite thus far. I got a better picture of what Paideia is, of what it “has to be,” and the value of such a basic way of learning. It almost seems trivial when compared to such an organized instituted manner of learning that is for us the experience of going to class. On the outside, Paideia is a class, sure. It has a credit marked up, but it is certainly not like any other class I have, nor is it meant to be. Its benefit comes in this fact. I’ve said it before, but I truly believe there is more value than is given to raw discussion. Apart from it as a dwindling form of entertainment, it gets you thinking differently. A lot of times, as I’ve said, we get so into certain projects that we become somewhat blinded. Taking a step back then, has tremendous value. Put simply, it gives you a view of the big picture. This in turn, lets you, at least potentially, refocus specific investigation in a more constructive way.
I realized that Paideia, programs, and occurrences like it within the everyday (educated discussion on whatever with friends), prepares you for life. This might seem exaggerated at first, however I don’t think it is. Going of an essay I read by David Hume, I think that often times, when on our own, we come up with ideas which are skewed—somewhat off, mostly I’d say, as a side-effect of the fact that our experience in the world is unique. Conversation fixes this. It unites human experiences and verifies some of your own ideas while perhaps allowing you to do away with those which are more inaccurate. This, in turn, allows me to deal with all the day to day shit that pops up in life.
Thinking about it, it’s like cubism. Keep in mind here that I know nothing of art, but the basic principles of cubism are that an object is redrawn in order to appear to be looking at it from multiple perspectives—A clearer picture of things, given to me by including multiple perspectives on a matter. Seeing things from different angles, in this case an understanding of human behavior by looking at as diverse of issues as neuroscience, psychology, biology, technology, and so on. One gains a more complete understanding of what is actually going on. The world is not concrete and one dimensional. Rather, we can move around and look at it from a wide variety of angles, which we look from depends upon our interests. Indeed, come to think of it now, this is the epitome of what liberal arts education is.
I am going to determine the specific direction of my creative works project this summer, however I know that I want it to reside somewhere in the intersection of biology and philosophy. I like thinking about the idea that science is in the hands of the few, and the results it has on the masses. Additionally, of science’s limits. What it can say about what. What are the benefits of making it “mainstream?” What are the effects this has on such issues as the notorious conflict between science and religion?