Hello, I’m your host, Michael Alan Prestwood and this is the January 15, 2025 Edition of the Weekly Wisdom Builder. Our goal is to cultivate your inner wisdom, empowering your inner voice, your inner coach – your philosopher guide, as Socrates would say.
To frame this week, let’s start with our “Quote of the Week.”
Philo Quote, “…allegories…lay hold of the hidden sense which is concealed beneath the words”
Now onto this week’s 4 1-minute Hot Topics.
1. Philosophy
First up, a question rooted in the minds of our great philosophers…
Does Musk’s Mars vision highlight poor reasoning?
Elon Musk’s vision to colonize Mars is undoubtedly ambitious and inspiring, but it also highlights significant flaws in his reasoning. Is Musk the richest man on Earth because he’s a genius, or because he’s opportunistic, a master marketer, and, perhaps, very lucky? Regardless, his drive to prioritize Mars colonization is just another example that reveals his fundamentally flawed thinking abilities. Let’s explore why his mission to make humanity a multi-planetary species is more misplaced than revolutionary.
The challenges of establishing a sustainable human presence on Mars are immense—harsh radiation, extreme cold, and a lack of breathable air, to name a few. While Musk argues that colonizing Mars is essential to preserve “consciousness,” this assumes that Earth is doomed and that humans are the sole stewards of consciousness. This anthropocentric view overlooks the possibility that consciousness may exist elsewhere, as discussed in The Fermi Paradox is Too Anthropocentric.
As for terraforming Mars? That’s not really a question for our generation—or even the next few. According to my TST Futurism Timeline, the process of terraforming Mars is unlikely to begin until around the year 3825, give or take several centuries. And here’s the key point: if humanity develops the technology to terraform an entire planet, fixing the challenges we face on Earth would be far easier and more practical in comparison. Colonizing Mars is exciting, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of addressing urgent issues here on Earth.
Finally, building space stations between Earth and Mars could be a more practical stepping stone. Stations around the Earth, Moon, and Mars would provide critical infrastructure and valuable experience for interplanetary endeavors without committing prematurely to Mars’ gravity well.
2. Science
Our second of four topics this week takes us into the empirical, into science…
When did play evolve in mammals?
Play, a seemingly simple behavior, has ancient roots in mammalian evolution, shaping survival strategies and social dynamics over millions of years. It began as a basic tool for honing essential life skills and later evolved into a sophisticated means of social bonding and cognitive growth. The story of play is one of adaptation and ingenuity, reflecting the incredible diversity of life on Earth.
Lower play abilities first emerged around 190 million years ago, in the earliest mammals. These small, nocturnal creatures likely engaged in simple physical play—chasing, pouncing, and wrestling—to develop coordination, reflexes, and basic survival skills. Today, animals like squirrels, kangaroos, and hedgehogs continue to embody these foundational forms of play. Even cows, especially young calves, demonstrate the universality of play, prancing and head-butting with a joyful exuberance that echoes their ancient ancestors.
Higher play abilities evolved later, around 80 million years ago, as mammals with larger brains and more complex social structures began to diversify. These advanced forms of play, seen in carnivores like wolves and cats, became essential for cooperative hunting and group cohesion. Elephants added emotional depth to play with their intricate social interactions, while primates took it to unparalleled heights. Among primates, play fosters problem-solving, establishes social hierarchies, and even includes creative role-playing, demonstrating how this universal behavior has grown into a tool for thriving in a challenging and ever-changing world.
Play, whether in its simplest or most advanced forms, is a testament to nature’s creativity and adaptability. From the playful wrestle of a squirrel to the imaginative antics of a chimpanzee, it reminds us that even the most lighthearted behaviors have profound evolutionary significance.
3. Critical Thinking
Our third topic this week takes us into the area of thinking well…
Perhaps at the core of philosophy is the idea of skeptical thinking. Remember, one of the few things you have control over in your life is what you allow into your mind. This week’s question is…
CRITICAL THINKING: Does the Fermi paradox lack good thinking?
The Fermi Paradox itself doesn’t lack good thinking—it’s a useful framework—but some of the conclusions drawn from it do. A critical thinking lens reveals that the paradox is often entangled in cognitive biases, one of the Four Mind Traps that can distort our reasoning. These biases lead to overly simplistic assumptions, such as the belief that we “should have” encountered alien life by now. For more on avoiding such traps, see the TST Framework.
First, there’s the availability heuristic: we assume that the way life developed on Earth must be a universal blueprint for all life in the cosmos. This bias blinds us to the diversity of evolutionary paths and alien priorities that might make them fundamentally different from us. Critical thinkers recognize that extrapolating from limited examples is a flawed approach.
Second, the paradox often falls into the trap of confirmation bias, favoring evidence that supports human exceptionalism. It assumes that if aliens exist, they would think, communicate, and explore like humans do. Yet, truly alien civilizations might operate on timescales, technologies, or goals that are beyond human comprehension. Good thinking challenges us to confront and overcome these biases.
For more on why the Fermi Paradox’s built-in assumption doesn’t hold up, take the deep-dive: The Fermi Paradox is Too Anthropocentric.
4. History
Our final topic this week brings historical context to our lives. Knowing the past helps you navigate the future…
In the area of history, this week’s question is…
Did Pythagoras coin the word philosophy?
No, Pythagoras did not coin the word philosophy. The word “sophos,” or wise ones, was the term of the time. Given his pioneering application of mathematics to nature, Pythagoras was sometimes called a “mathematikos,” meaning student of mathematics.
This FAQ came up because of Brian Thomas Swimme’s 2013 video titled “Journey of the Universe” on YouTube. In the introduction, he says:
“Legend has it, Pythagoras coined the word philosophy, a love of wisdom.”
This caught my ear only because my studies indicate that philosophy was not the word during that time. By the way, Brian’s video is GREAT and I highly recommend it, watch it here.
However, the attribution of philosophy to Pythagoras is historically incorrect. Brian is right that a legend exists attributing the term to Pythagoras, but that legend has been thoroughly debunked. This critique is a nuanced correction of one sentence in an otherwise fantastic video. One of the great things about the internet is that it allows us to collectively refine the record as new understandings emerge.
So, what is the etymological origin of the word philosophy?
The earliest known usage of the word “philosophy,” or philosophia, is attributed to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, around 440 BCE. Herodotus used it to describe the pursuits of Solon, an Athenian statesman and poet. A bit more than a century later, it was Plato and Aristotle who popularized the word. Their works solidified the term’s association with the pursuit of wisdom and knowledge.
Over time, the term sophist acquired a negative connotation due to criticisms from philosophers like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. They criticized these traveling teachers for valuing winning debates over genuine understanding. They saw sophists as prioritizing rhetorical skill and personal gain over genuine wisdom and truth-seeking.
That’s it for this week!
Join us again next week. A new set of ideas lands every Wednesday at 3PM, and is emailed on Thursdays at noon. If you don’t subscribe, please visit TouchstoneTruth.com and click the Join Now button at the top of the page.
Be sure to follow us on social media. We share this content over the weekend. Social media is a great way to stay inspired, and we all know social media could use a lot more content like this.
Until next time, live your days in a way that sends virtuous ripples into an unseen tomorrow you will never witness. Be authentic, and may you always:
“Enjoy the journey, with truth and honor, causing no harm.”
— The End. —