Wisdom Builder
Quick Hits
Topic:
Wisdom Mode
Timeless ideas at the intersections of science, philosophy, critical thinking, and history.
MODE:
~
4 minutes
Wisdom Builder.
Quick Hits
10 random key ideas.
1.
Column summary:
Beliefs deserve confidence only when they are justified. Truth helps determine degree of confidence in public belief.
2.
Quote:
- Epicurus.
- 300 BCE.
Meaning:
Happiness fails when “enough” is never allowed to be enough. In other words, if enough isn’t enough, nothing ever will be.
3.
From History: ~262 Million years ago (+/- 2 million)
Late caseids represent the fading old-line synapsids: still mammal-side animals, but not yet therapsids.
4.
Antimatter moves forward in time like normal matter. The “backward in time” idea is a useful mathematical interpretation, not an observed physical fact.
5.
Quote:
- Hannah Arendt.
- 1963.
Meaning:
Great harm is often caused not by hatred, but by people who stop thinking and simply comply.
6.
From History: 7000 BCE
Good journalism slows the spread of error by checking what happened, who said it, and what supports it.
7.
Article summary:
Roger Williams entered New England early, and John Winthrop’s journal lets us watch the first major clash between liberty of conscience and Puritan authority unfold almost in real time.
8.
Quote:
- W. V. Quine.
- 1951.
Meaning:
Never defend a belief blindly; examine the larger web around it and decide what fits your authentic self.
9.
From History: ~232 million years ago (±2 million years)
Sauropodomorphs, in their early forms, were lightly built, often partly bipedal, with long necks, small heads, leaf-shaped teeth, and grasping hands.
10.
TST Term.
The Unknowable Dao is a TST term that stems from the Dao of Daoism. It points to a mysterious universal reality that transcends language and thought, while also suggesting the ultimate reality and natural order.
Done. Refresh for another set.