Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums"The Ascent Of Man"
For Dr. Bronowski, the moral consequence of knowledge is that we must never judge others on the basis of some absolute, God-like conception of certainty.
FROM:
The Dangers of Certainty: A Lesson From Auschwitz
By SIMON CRITCHLEY
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/02/02/the-dangers-of-certainty/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&smid=tw-share&_r=1&
..............
The ascent of man was secured through scientific creativity. But unlike many of his more glossy and glib contemporary epigones, Dr. Bronowski was never reductive in his commitment to science. Scientific activity was always linked to artistic creation. For Bronowski, science and art were two neighboring mighty rivers that flowed from a common source: the human imagination. Newton and Shakespeare, Darwin and Coleridge, Einstein and Braque: all were interdependent facets of the human mind and constituted what was best and most noble about the human adventure.
For most of the series, Dr. Bronowskis account of human development was a relentlessly optimistic one. Then, in the 11th episode, called Knowledge or Certainty, the mood changed to something more somber. Let me try and recount what has stuck in my memory for all these years.
He began the show with the words, One aim of the physical sciences has been to give an actual picture of the material world. One achievement of physics in the 20th century has been to show that such an aim is unattainable. For Dr. Bronowski, there was no absolute knowledge and anyone who claims it whether a scientist, a politician or a religious believer opens the door to tragedy. All scientific information is imperfect and we have to treat it with humility. Such, for him, was the human condition.
This is the condition for what we can know, but it is also, crucially, a moral lesson. It is the lesson of 20th-century painting from Cubism onwards, but also that of quantum physics. All we can do is to push deeper and deeper into better approximations of an ever-evasive reality. The goal of complete understanding seems to recede as we approach it.
............
More please:
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
8 replies, 1563 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (7)
ReplyReply to this post
8 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
"The Ascent Of Man" (Original Post)
kpete
Feb 2014
OP
jsr
(7,712 posts)1. One of the very finest television series ever made.
Xipe Totec
(43,892 posts)2. I read the book, cover to cover, in one night
I could not put it down.
It was one of several books assigned as reading for an undergraduate "History and Philosophy of Chemistry" course.
I remember the sunrise coming through my dormitory window as I finished reading the last page.
That book has been an inspiration to me throughout my life.
longship
(40,416 posts)3. Love Jacob Bronowski!
He was only about 5 feet tall but was a giant in thought.
The excerpt above from the Knowledge or Certainty episode of "Ascent of Man" is the end of his most profound and wise essay in the series.
It always brings tears to my eyes.
R&K
GreatCaesarsGhost
(8,585 posts)4. "The Ascent of Man" is available on Youtube.
fyi
reusrename
(1,716 posts)5. As far as absolute truths go, I really like "All men are created equal."
I think because it has a mathematical underpinning to it.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)6. I'm a cactus, trying to be a canoe.
muriel_volestrangler
(101,405 posts)7. Interesting documentary by his daughter on his war work
Ichingcarpenter
(36,988 posts)8. It was required viewing for all freshmen at U of Central Fla.
I thought it was a fascinating series back in 74. It filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge of the world.