Biodesign Out For A Walk

Descartes—Skepticism—Faith

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Whether Rodin’s sculpture of “The Thinker” was generic or not, it was a perfect complement to Rene Descartes’ life, legacy and accomplishments.

There is an old joke that pokes fun at Paris’ “Left-Bank” existentialists like Jean Paul Sartre. Sartre was enjoying a cup of espresso at a sidewalk café when the waiter asked him if he would like a refill. Sartre responded, “I think not” and he disappeared!

Of all the scientists, saints, poets and philosophers we studied in the Biodesign Class, Rene Descartes was truly one of my favorites. My admiration for him is not only rooted in what he believed and accomplished, but his revolutionary approach to education. His passion for learning inspired me to press on and collaborate with students in pioneering a one-of-a-kind Biodesign program.

At the age of 18 Descartes experienced a major epiphany that revealed that everything he thought he knew was the result of other men’s thinking. Ergo he vowed: … “never to accept anything for true which I did not clearly know to be such; that is to say, carefully to avoid precipitancy and prejudice, and to comprise nothing more in my judgment than what was presented to my mind so clearly and distinctly as to exclude all ground of doubt.”

 

Through the daunting process of reeducation, Descartes became a world-famous mathematician, scientist and philosopher. He was arguably the first major philosopher in the modern era to make a serious effort to defeat skepticism. His views about knowledge and certainty, as well as his views about the relationship between mind and body have been very influential over the last three centuries.

He began by questioning his own existence and concluded: “Cogito ergo sum, I think therefore I am.” From that beginning, he went on to reason that art can never exceed the skill of the artist and that the creation cannot be more intelligent than the creator, therefore there must be a more intelligent being than he.

Descartes’ work provided the basis for the calculus developed by Newton and Leibniz, who applied infinitesimal calculus to the tangent line problem, thus permitting the evolution of that branch of modern mathematics. His rule of signs is also a commonly used method to determine the number of positive and negative roots of a polynomial.

 

 

Descartes also wrote a response to external world skepticism. He argued that sensory perceptions came to him involuntarily, and are not willed by him. They were external to his senses, and evidence of the existence of something outside of his mind, and thus, an external world. He went on to show that the things in the external world are material by arguing that God would not deceive him as to the ideas that are being transmitted, and that God has given him the “propensity” to believe that such ideas are caused by material things. He gave reasons for thinking that waking thoughts are distinguishable from dreams, and that one’s mind could not have been “hijacked” by an evil demon placing an illusory external world before one’s senses.

 

“By ‘God’, I understand, a substance which is infinite, independent, supremely intelligent, supremely powerful, and which created both myself and everything else that exists. All these attributes are such that, the more carefully I concentrate on them, the less possible it seems that they could have originated from me alone. So, from what has been said it must be concluded that God necessarily exists.”

Albert Einstein wrote that it is not the immensity of the universe that should command our wonder, but the human brain that can begin to contemplate the immense universe.

In a similar manner, the purpose of studying Rene Descartes was not to inject religion into an advanced biology class, but to consider the thoughts and discoveries of one of the world’s greatest mathematicians, thinkers and philosophers and how he arrived at them. Descartes’ discoveries helped enable Isaac Newton to establish the foundation for modern physics. Einstein regarded Newton as the greatest scientist of all: ergo Descartes was a pivotal player in the evolution of Western Civilization.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Thoreau—King Solomon—Pete Seeger

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60 years ago, I was walking down the hallway of my SFSU college dorm and met a dorm mate. He looked at me and said, “Vanity, vanity, all is vanity sayeth the preacher.” I was a nominal Christian and had no idea of what he meant. 60 years later, I just came across the same quote, laughed uproariously and wrote this piece.

Perhaps Henry Thoreau read King Solomon’s “Ecclesiastes” chaps 2 and 3 and wrote:

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” ― Henry David Thoreau, Walden

In King Solomon’s “Old Testament” book of “Ecclesiastes,” he reflected on how he had spent his life.

“I explored with my mind how to stimulate my body with wine while my mind was guiding me wisely, and how to take hold of folly, until I could see what good there is for the sons of men to do under heaven in the few years of their lives.
I built houses and planted vineyards for myself.
I made gardens and parks for myself and planted all kinds of fruit trees.
I bought male and female slaves; I possessed flocks and herds larger that all who preceded me in Jerusalem.
Also, I collected gold and silver for myself.
I provided for myself, male and female singers and the pleasures of men and many concubines.
Thus I considered all of my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving for wind and there was no profit under the sun.
Vanity, vanity, all is vanity.”

 

However, even though Solomon ends chapter two, chasing the wind, in chapter three he records one of the most famous passages in the Bible. Intriguingly, it is still used at weddings and funerals.

In a wonderful synchronicity, in the early 1960s, folk singer Pete Seeger added a few words to the passage and along with his melody produced, “Turn, Turn, Turn.” At that time Seeger considered himself an atheist, so it is interesting how it occurred that he chose a Bible verse for a song.

Seeger’s voice was probably best suited for campfire sing-alongs, but in another synchronicity the singing group, “The Byrds,” recorded his song. Turn-Turn-Turn is the only popular song, with almost purely Biblical lyrics, to reach the top of the US music charts.

I don’t know if the song affected Seeger’s religious perspective, but he later wrote:

“I feel most spiritual when I’m out in the woods. I feel part of nature or looking up at the stars. I used to say I was an atheist. Now I say, it’s all according to your definition of God. According to my definition of God, I’m not an atheist. Because I think God is everything. Whenever I open my eyes I’m looking at God. Whenever I’m listening to something I’m listening to God.”

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, a time to reap that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
A time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

Seeger received many awards for his humanitarian work, especially encouraging people to strive for world peace, celebrate life and sing more.

In an increasingly more secularized and polarized society, all of these are becoming more difficult. When was the last time you sat around a campfire and sang songs like Country Roads, Blowin’ In The Wind, or Turn—Turn—Turn?

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Wintley Phipps—Amazing Grace—Biodesign

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Excerpt: Biodesign Out For A Walk, chap 28, “Amazing Faith.”

“His ship survived the storm, and years later he became a priest. He had not forgotten his brush with death and was inspired to write a prayer of thanksgiving, describing his perilous journey. The prayer was actually a poem, which he used as a basis for a sermon. It is unknown who later added the melody. The song “Amazing Grace” has spread world- wide and is considered to be one of the greatest spiritual songs written.”

If I were still participating in the Biodesign experiment, I would play the attached YouTube video featuring Wintley Phipps in a heartbeat. This was even before I learned that he has performed “Negro spirituals” (his words) for 7 US Presidents, Mother Theresa of Calcutta, and Nelson Mandela.

His stunning performance at Carnegie Hall reminded me of the small member of men, whom I have encountered over the past 50 years, who are truly spirit-filled. Those mentioned in Biodesign Out For A Walk were Sasha the potter (Mendocino) “The Muleskinner” (Grand Canyon) and “Moses” on top of Yosemite’s Half Dome. I sincerely hope Henry Thoreau was mistaken when he wrote, “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation,” but is rare to see people with sparkling eyes and ebullient personalities.

However my attraction to Rev. Phipps goes beyond his eyes. By his very nature, he demonstrates the immensely important biological process known as biodiversity. There are many biological reasons why people of color have thrived in the equatorial belt where light-skinned people have not. Likewise, there are reasons why light-skinned people have adapted to the cooler northern climes. Understanding the reasons for color diversification renders the argument over racial superiority a divisive “fool’s errand.” Discussions like these added scope and richness to the Biodesign Class.

However, what is extraordinarily intriguing is that Rev.Phipps has taken what has been a stumbling block for millions of black people and turned in into a huge asset. He has not only inspired millions of people with his sermons, humor and grace, he has established the US Dream Academy, that is designed to help at-risk students bridge the gap from poverty to productive citizenship.

Another one of his many talents has been to demonstrate the spiritual power of music, especially Gospel songs. There is a huge amount of anecdotal evidence that music helped black people survive the dual hardships of being enslaved and suffering from chronic poverty. Sadly, some of those racial hardships still remain and we desperately need inspired leaders like him to try to achieve Dr. M.L. King’s unfinished dream: “Free at last.”

Rev. Phipp’s poignant rendition of “Amazing Grace,” conjured up wonderful memories of the hymn/folk-song being sung around a Biodesign evening campfire at Russian Gulch State Park in Mendocino, Ca. Someone requested that we sing the song and Dianna (who was snuggled next to me) whispered in my ear, “I hate that song!” I was surprised, but quietly asked her why? She whispered that she was an unbeliever and found the song phony and irritating. Panic induced paralysis! This was uncharted wilderness for me and I was clueless as to what to do or say. However, after a frightening pause, a mysterious, almost “out-of-body-voice” began to explain the aforementioned story. “Furthermore,” “the voice” went on to say, “Although Amazing Grace has had the extraordinary power to inspire millions of believers, there are others who have not been equally impressed. Some sing the song as a folk song with little spiritual significance and some “devout” non-believers regard the song as not credible and a source of vexation and alienation. “

This opened a discussion about the greater mystery as to why some people feel the presence of a “Higher Power” and some do not. We weren’t able to even remotely resolve the dilemma, however discussing it openly seemed to reduce Dianna’s angst. She stealthily slid her arm between my arm and torso, gave my arm a hug and whispered, “I think we should sing it.”

As we sang the song, the whole group seemed to ascend to a higher level of awareness or perhaps heaven descended to form a wonderful mandorla. Tears trickled down the cheeks of believers as well as non-believers and I realized that I would never sing the song again in a more perfect setting.

God bless Wintley Phipps

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

John Wesley Powell—Unfathomable Grand Canyon

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Zora Hurston (“There Eyes Were Watching God”) is credited with coining the phrase, “You got to go there to know there.” While I have found her axiom to be generally true, it is paradoxically true and untrue regarding Grand Canyon. Although, in order to experience “The Canyon,” one must “go there,” it is humanly impossible to “know there.” It is simply too vast, too deep, too long, too old and too mysterious for the human brain to comprehend. In fact many hikers, who hike to the bottom and back up, emerge blissfully bewildered by their experience.

It is quite likely that the one person who experienced this dilemma the most acutely was John Wesley Powell. Powell belongs to an elite pantheon of explorers who accomplished something that had never been done. Even though he was missing one arm, he successfully led an expedition down a river that was considered unnavigable. Native Americans warned him that he and his crew would be swallowed into the center of the earth. After the three-month odyssey, Powell expressed the futility of trying to capture the spirit of Grand Canyon:

“The wonders of the Grand Canyon cannot be adequately represented in symbols of speech, nor by speech itself. The resources of the graphic art are taxed beyond their powers in attempting to portray its features. Language and illustration combined must fail.”

He arrived at this conclusion after what many seasoned explorers predicted would be a disastrous expedition ending in death and destruction. He and his crew faced odds and challenges that would have made lesser men quail in defeat. The untamed Colorado River meandered 224 miles through a 5000-foot-deep chasm that offered few or no pathways of escape. The combination of roaring water and huge granite boulders produced “standing waves,” some of which approached 35 feet tall. The only way to survive these waves was to tether their specially designed boats and laboriously “rope” them around the potentially lethal obstacles.

They were frequently cold and wet, much of their food had spoiled, there were several near-drownings and they lost one boat. Understandably, Powell’s men were stressed to the breaking point, prompting three of them to agree to abandon the expedition and take their chances of escaping back to civilization.

Powell handled the little mutiny with compassion and dignity. For all he knew they might be right which led to his musing:

“We have an unknown distance yet to run, an unknown river to explore. What falls there are, we know not; what rocks beset the channel, we know not; what walls ride over the river, we know not. Ah, well! we may conjecture many things.”

In profound irony, the next day presented an easily navigable rapid, the last threat to the expedition. The three men were never seen or heard from again.

On a much smaller scale, I identified with the stress that Powell experienced. The Biodesign Class intentionally took high school students in into the uncharted educational wilderness and challenged them to explore their God-given-gifts of soul and spirit. Their discoveries ranged from miraculous, magnificent, even sublime, to stressful, painful and terrifying enough to cause about 3% of them to flee in fear.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

From John Muir To Social Injustice

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In 1976, naturalist T. H. Watkins published, John Muir’s America. He must have felt that he knew Muir’s soul so well that he composed three imaginary conversations with the venerable old mountain man. The first dialogue began on the veranda of Muir’s home in Martinez, Ca. The two men discussed many ecological topics as they wandered up to Muir’s “scribble den.” After discussing some of his inventions, Muir rocked back in his chair and closed his eyes until Watkins innocently wandered into the controversial role that Thomas Huxley played in popularizing Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution.

“The old man exploded out of his silence, thrusted forward in his chair and slapped the flat of his palm on the desk top.”

‘Huxley—that bloodless coof! That fool! He and his kind took the work of Darwin and twisted it to fit their vision of the world. And damme, what a cold and heartless world they would have had it be. They called it survival of the fittest, but no matter what they might have called it, was a damnable theory, a dark and chilly reasoning that chance and competition accounted for all things. Oh it was a useful theory—that I canna deny. It justified all manner of cruelty just as my father’s piety excused all manner of cruelty to his children. Should a man be inspired to destroy his best friend in the marketplace, why, he could shrug it off as the natural consequence of living in the great soulless machine of the cosmos. But it was a damnable theory because it ignored the one real truth of the world, the truth that lives in every rock, flower, leaf, tree and animal—including man: it was all created by a loving God, and His love covers all the earth as the sky covers it, and fills it in every pore.’

Forty years later, Watkins’ words have become a fulfilled prophecy. On July 1, 2015, an undocumented immigrant discharged an illegally obtained handgun that resulted in the death of a young woman who was out for a walk in San Francisco. The trial was recently concluded with the jury rendering a verdict of not guilty.

Contrary to all the blather from media pundits, politicians and lawyers, the jury’s acquittal of the alleged criminal had less to do with ethnicity, immigration status or birth-origin, and more to do with socio-cultural, regressive de-evolution in an increasingly soulless society.

The positive proof of this emerged from the fact that in spite of the perpetrator admitting (KGO TV interview) that he pulled the trigger of the lethal weapon, the jury agreed with a scenario that the defense team presented as they “twisted it to fit their vision of the world.”

Tragically, events like these are going to become more common. In the name of “political correctness,” our public el-hi schools, colleges and universities are systematically sanitizing curricula, removing all references to spirituality. This will doubtlessly produce generations of morally bankrupt adults who are proponents of the Godless religion known as “situational ethics.”

Some of the fruits from this evil tree were recently borne for all to see in the San Francisco courthouse.

Of all the countless millions of words generated by this tragedy, two lines stand out. The day after the verdict was announced, the headline of a SF Chronicle editorial:

“Justice was not served.”

And one of the jurors anonymously commented; “I need to spend some time collecting my thoughts.”

Indeed, don’t we all?

In his classic book, Religions, Values and Peak Experiences, psychologist Abraham Maslow expressed concern for an increasingly spiritless US society. He suggested that the subject of “human spirituality” could be added to a suitably enlarged biology curriculum without breaching the wall that separates Church and State.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Thankful For The Gift Of Life

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In addition to the typical turkey dinner, with all of the fixin’s, Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to pause, reflect and give thanks for the unspeakably perfect gift of life. Without this, nothing else makes any biological sense.

Thomas Edison regarded himself as an agnostic, however he did concede that the universe was too amazingly complex to be the result of chance. Furthermore, he doubted that humans were capable of comprehending even 1/1000th of 1% of anything. Interestingly, Lewis Thomas (The Lives Of A Cell) agreed with the latter conclusion, but from a spiritual perspective. He suggested that God created living cells that are so complex that humans will never be able to fully explain the inner workings of a single cell. The chances of scientists being able to comprehend the physiological interactions of the 100 trillion cells making up a human being are beyond most rational thought. It is little wonder that Meister Eckhart (14th century theologian, philosopher and mystic) suggested that the ultimate answers to the mysteries of humankind will not likely be found in science.

The YouTube video “The Miracle of Life” traces the fantastic voyage of human sperm in search of an ovum. As many as 800 million sperm may be released during sexual activity and only one will succeed in fertilization. After fertilization is complete, the newly formed zygote typically has all the genetic information necessary to direct all the stages of human growth and development. This includes a journey into the mystical realms of Values, Consciousness and Free Will, a journey without precedent on planet Earth. How could we not be thankful?

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Tubbs Fire—Diablo Wind

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An old English proverb suggests:

“It’s an ill wind that blows nobody good”

The recent fires throughout Napa and Sonoma Counties qualify as Ill Winds.

It is common practice for California Dept. of Forestry officials to name fires by their place of origin. Ergo, the fire that destroyed over 3,500 Santa Rosa homes and businesses began near Tubbs Lane in Calistoga. However, it quickly exploded into a firestorm driven by a 70 mph “Diablo Wind.” The name of the wind could not be more perfect: Devil’s Wind.

Devil Winds are atypical winds that result when high-pressure builds over the Nevada desert and causes air to move toward a low-pressure zone over the Pacific Ocean. As the wind rushes down the western Sierra Nevada slope, it is compressed and gets hotter, drier and faster. This condition is the opposite of prevailing westerly winds that typically blow moist, ocean-cooled air over hotter California climes. Diablo Winds typically occur in the summertime when the combination of higher heat, higher wind velocity and extremely low humidity create a potentially disastrous formula for wildfires in California. In SoCal they are known as the Santa Ana winds.

The Tubbs Firestorm destroyed a several-mile-wide swath, devouring forests, vineyards, homes and ranches on its 15-mile rampage to the north edge of the city of Santa Rosa. Reaching the northeast outskirts of the city, it mysteriously veered south in a fiery inferno that consumed over 2,500 homes. Many residents had to flee with only the clothes they were wearing.

The fire is still active and along with several other fires in Sonoma County, the number of homes, structures and businesses destroyed has exceeded 3,500. It has the potential of being the worst wildfire in California history.

Although Sonoma County lies west of Napa County, Napa Valley has been covered in a thick blanket of smoke since Sunday night. The smoke has been bothersome, but a trifling inconvenience compared to the total devastation that 1,000s of Sonoma residents and business owners are struggling to cope with.

This all changed Wednesday. We thought we were safe until a spot-fire erupted 8 miles west of us, near the junction of St. Helena and Calistoga roads. It was headed in our direction and posed a threat to our home and the town of St. Helena. I drove 4 miles to the top of Spring Mt. Rd. where a Napa Co. Sheriff deputy had blocked the road. He described the fire and said that it was rapidly approaching upslope. He went on to say that pilots were desperately trying to suppress it with fire-retardant, but if they failed he would have to close Spring Mt. Rd. He didn’t have to tell me that if the fire crested over the ridge, its downslope path led directly to our home and the heart of St. Helena.

I was confident that if this happened we could pack up prized possessions and evacuate to our daughter’s home in Tiburon. My wife was not convinced and so we packed up and fled, not knowing if we would ever see our beloved home again.

Although our Tiburon family welcomed us warmly, the night was long and sleep was interrupted with images of our house going up in flames. Finally, morning arrived and we were able to call our neighbor, who opted to wait for the mandatory evacuation order. It never came. Evidently, the amazing pilots were able to stop the blaze on the Sonoma side of Spring Mountain and possibly save our home and the town of St. Helena.

Upon returning home, walking through the house was a surreal experience. When we left, we had to concede the possibility that it would not survive the fire. But it did and we felt a bit like we were in a “Twilight Zone.”

The horrific event has created a schizophrenic dilemma. Of course we are grateful that our home was not destroyed, but heartsick over the misery and trauma that so many have been forced to deal with.

Existentialists might dismiss the cause of the horrific conflagration as simply a capricious whim of Mother Nature, however, I suspect that poets, sages and seekers are more likely to describe the massive destruction as the result of the Devil’s Wind:

“It’s an ill wind that blows nobody good”

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Darwin’s Dilemma—Spiritual Gifts Part II

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Sometimes it is aggravating when IT “reads” my posts and sends me links and ads that “they” think I will like (or buy). However, this was not the case when, after I posted the blog involving Darwin, Mozart and Sunny Choi. Quite mysteriously, a YouTube video of Yeol Eum Son’s performance of Mozart’s Piano Concerto #21 popped up. I sat mesmerized by what I was seeing.

As if Ms. Son’s stunning performance were not enough evidence of her virtuosity, she frequently closed her eyes and silently commanded her fingers to find 1000s of notes “in the dark.” The concerto was 32 minutes long, which required her to commit perhaps as many as 30,000 notes to memory. From my highly limited musical ability, I could not detect a single error.

The fact that it is highly unlikely that 99.99% of the world population will ever be able to do what she can do lends credence to the reason why many biological and behavioral scientists call her “gifted.” However, if beauty is in the eye of the beholder, perhaps the ability to discern spiritual gifts is as well.

A well-known British biologist has spent much of his career (and made millions of dollars) railing that there is no evidence for the existence of God. Poor chap. I wonder if he has ever hiked to the top of Yosemite’s Half Dome or to the bottom of Grand Canyon; walked through the Louvre in Paris, visited St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, listened to Handel’s “Messiah,” Mozart’s “Requiem,” or Beethoven’s “Ninth Symphony.”

Paraphrasing Thomas Jefferson, people have been endowed by their Creator with the spiritual gift of “free will.” It may be the greatest human irony that some of them have chosen to use that gift in an attempt to deny their Creator’s existence.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Darwin—Mozart—Sunny Choi—Spiritual Gifts

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It is a rare human being (especially male) who is not vexed by being shown that his logic is faulty. Charles Darwin did not belong to that group and reportedly became furious when Alfred Wallace pointed out that his Theory of Evolution did not explain the origin of exceptional human talents involving music, mathematics and creative arts.

Over 150 years after Darwin’s, “On the Origin of Species” was published scientists reluctantly concede that the origin of Wallace’s triad is still completely enigmatic.

Like Darwin and Wallace, they understand that the three extraordinary talents are not genetically transferred or controlled by instinct and cannot be predicted. Therefore, intellectually honest scientists are obligated to regard these talents as “gifts,” thereby allowing that they must come from beyond the recipients. For devout scientists, this realization can be quite disturbing and require acquiescing to the real probability that, if “gifts” are involved, there must be a “giver.”

Serious “birders,” meticulously maintain a “life list” that records every species of bird they have observed first hand. Likewise, serious “seekers” maintain a spiritual list of wisdom, stories, and events that point to the existence of the “intelligent design” of the universe. This lofty approach of striving for greater spiritual awareness was reflected in the 1954 Audubon Society statement of their philosophy, which began with:

“We believe in the wisdom of nature’s design.”

All of these thoughts gushed forth as I watched Sunny Choi perform a beautiful interpretation of John Denver’s, “Annie’s Song.” Choi is not only a highly gifted musician; she is capable of using a piano as an extension of her body, mind and soul. And if her recital were not enough, to further showcase her gift, about half way through the performance she closed her eyes and silently commanded her fingers to find the notes “in the dark.”

Although it is highly unlikely that 99.9% of the world population will ever be able to do what Choi can do, her gift is not unprecedented.

Wolfgang Mozart lived only 35 years, but demonstrated a level of musical genius that many musicologists regard as “superhuman” and predict will not likely ever be equaled. Although his lifespan was only half of the average of 70 years, he composed an estimated 600 works of music. His music has been featured in over 300 movies. He composed 50 symphonies, 25 piano concertos, 12 violin concertos, 27 concerto arias, 26 string quartet opuses, 103 minuets, 15 masses, and 21 opera works. Some of his most famous operas include “Don Giovanni”, “Magic Flute”, “The Marriage of Figaro”, and “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik or (a little night music)”.

“There is a story that Mozart once said, ‘when the angels sing for God, they sing Bach; but when they sing for themselves, they sing Mozart’”. (Googlesearch.com). There are also reports that some of his works were “note-perfect” on the first draft, which meant that not a single note had to be changed.

Like Mozart, Charles Darwin was spiritually gifted and at the tender age of 19 began to see that the Genesis story of Creation must be allegorical and more profound than man had guessed. He eventually arrived at the conclusion that Creation and evolution must be the result of cybernetic interaction. Evidence of this can be found in, “The Autobiography of Charles Darwin:”

“Another source of conviction in the existence of God, connected with reason and not feelings, impresses me as having more weight. This follows from the extreme difficulty or rather impossibility of conceiving this immense and wonderful universe, including man with his capacity for looking backwards and far into futurity, as the result of blind chance or necessity. When thus reflecting I feel compelled to look to a First Cause having an intelligent mind in some degree analogous to that of man; and I deserve to be called a Theist”

Although I don’t recall him citing Wallace’s triad, he did accept his failure to explain human evolution, which includes the wonderfully mysterious origin of musical, mathematical and artistic gifts.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Sasha The Potter and the Decline of Democracy in the US

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In the spring of 1986, the Biodesign class from St. Helena High School traveled to Mendocino, Ca. to explore the world-famous pygmy forest. They had also been invited to participate in a pottery workshop led by Sasha Makovkin, renowned potter, naturalist and philosopher, whose studio was among the dwarf trees.

As he transformed amorphous lumps of clay into works of art, he shared words of wisdom to spellbound students. After completing his presentation he asked if the students had any questions.

One of the students asked what he thought was the greatest threat to American society. Almost as if the question had been scripted, Sasha responded:

“Situational Ethics.” Sociocultural, family and religious traditions are being eroded and replaced with the doctrine of, ‘if it feels good, do it.’ It’s a spiritual disease, but the farther people drift from the truth, the less they will be aware of that.”

Recently, the citizens of the town of St. Helena, Ca. voted to establish a law banning the use of gasoline-powered leaf blowers that emitted noise levels exceeding 65 dB. The night the election results were announced, the chief of police announced that “her” police department would not actively enforce the new law. Of course, this meant that many professional gardeners and homeowners had no incentive to replace the noisy machines.

By refusing to “actively” enforce the will of the voters, she should have been terminated for dereliction of duty: the failure or refusal to perform assigned duties in a satisfactory manner. Democracy and the rule of law were both diminished that night due to a willful act of situational ethics.

Sadly, St. Helena is a classic example of the, “canary in the coal mine syndrome.” Situational ethics has spread nationwide and has afflicted all three branches of the US government. It is an equal-opportunity social fabric destroyer. It is non-specific relative to gender, race, ethnicity, religion, political stripe or economic status. No one is immune. Even the eminent scientist Albert Einstein admitted that falsifying some of his data to justify his theory was the gravest mistake in his life.

A recent Gallup poll indicated that only 30% of American voters regard mainstream news media as trustworthy, with only 14% trusting TV news. Earlier this year the US Congress hit an astoundingly low approval rating of 8%. Unfortunately many politicians and members of the news media have discovered that they can lie to the public and not be held accountable.

The future is not promising. Few (if any) scientists doubt that the human brain is still evolving. Understandably, some have expressed concern over growing evidence that suggests that this includes the brain’s increasing capabilities of lying and deception.

And so this spring, 31 years after the Biodesign Class listened to a potter, sage and philosopher in the pygmy forest, it is clear that he was also a prophet: The end result of unchecked situational ethics will be anarchy and social chaos.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com