Untapped Human Potential

There are those of us that dedicate our lives to scientific discovery and invention, and those of us that are completely oblivious to the world around us. Most of us fit comfortably in between these two extremes: Einstein and Paris Hilton, respectively, if you will. The average person gauges leisure with fun, as shown by the eight hour work day. A work overload seems sometimes counterproductive.

The passage read and video seen for this week's lecture are obviously geared towards technological advancements and future predictions from two well-learned individuals. They both had a lot to say, and got a fair amount right. One passage that stuck out to me was this:

"If the aggregate time spent in writing scholarly works and in reading them could be evaluated, the ratio between these amounts of time might well be startling. this sort of catastrophe is undoubtedly being repeated all about us, as truly significant attainments become lost in the mass of the inconsequential." - Vannevar Bush

As stated, only a handful of people get recognized, when there may be theories from ten other great minds that have never been discovered. Bush also states that Mendel's concept of the laws of genetics was not found or understood for a generation's time, being lost and consumed in the masses of theoretical scholarly work. Is it this sense of leisure that holds the human race back from making scientific strides slower than our 'fullest potential'? Or are we better off limiting work time with leisure?

Considering this argument between leisure and science, there has always existed a parallel argument between science and the existence of religion. It is in our curious nature as humans to not only further our endless knowledge and untapped ability, but to also discover our roots. This is where many people turn to religion; to let faith root their origins. But, nothing personal, what if religion never existed? The always controversial cartoon series Family Guy attacked that question in their most recent episode Road to the Multiverse (click for a soundclip). Stewie and Brian find themselves traveling to different parallel universes, one where Christianity and "the dark ages of science" never existed, leaving our world in seemingly much better shape than it is now. So faith, to many, seems like the blind leading the blind into outdated traditions that often seem to fight science. To many others, religion guides and control his or her life.

So, are we really behind the point that we should be, or is this just the way of life? After all, as quoted famously from The Shining, "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy".