Why does the sun rise in the east and set in the west? According to a recent survey by the National Science Foundation, 1 in 4 Americans believe it’s because the Sun circles the Earth.
That the Earth was the center of the cosmos was, of course, a mainstay of what passed for science for thousands of years. But little by little – first with Copernicus and later with Galileo – this belief fell away, replaced by the knowledge that the Earth orbits the Sun. Somehow, though, that news has yet to reach 25% of Americans. Ironically, it’s even worse in Europe, birthplace of this knowledge. There 1 in 3 don’t know the Earth goes around the Sun.
Does it matter, though, that so many people know nothing about science? After all, so long as people don’t believe it’s a good idea to follow lemmings off a cliff, does it really matter what they do believe?
Bill Nye, the “Science Guy,” thinks it does. Nye recently debated creationist Ken Ham at Kentucky’s Creation Museum. Ham believes everything in the Bible is true and anything that contradicts it is false. Nye maintains that by rejecting science — the basis of our technology — beliefs such as Ham’s jeopardize our nation’s future.
Both Nye and Ham seem sincere in their beliefs, and both would seem to be reasonably intelligent men. Ham believes that “science has been hijacked by secularists” while Nye believes that reason is superior to religious dogma in providing the foundation for knowledge. Which is right – science or religion – is a question that many people grapple with, and though there is middle ground, many refuse to see it.
This debate isn’t unique to the Christian world either; there is strong pressure in the Islamic world to reject science in favor of the Koran. A conference was even held in Pakistan to discuss ways to generate electricity using Genies – apparently there are people who believe that the powers Barbara Eden possessed in that old sitcom I Dream Of Jeannie are real. And they are running much of the Moslem world.
As easy as it is to mock such beliefs, it’s important to remember that humans hold their beliefs so dear that wars are routinely fought over them. Beliefs are vital to our psychological well-being, yet beliefs sometimes have little connection to reality. In fact, our ability to deny reality in favor of belief may be one of human kind’s most successful survival strategies.
In a new book entitled Denial: Self-Deception, False Beliefs, and the Origins of the Human Mind authors Ajit Varki and Danny Brower assert that denying the realities of suffering and death has allowed humanity to prosper. Our ancestors through most of history would not have been inspired to do much, they say, if they’d realized how bleak their future actually was.
Belief in ourselves, belief in the future are essential to living a good life, and have enabled us to create a world – for better or for worse – that no other species could. The problem with belief – whether scientific or religious – comes when we believe we know everything — this makes us unwilling to accept new information.
Denial is a double-edged sword; denying how bleak the future is may be essential to human achievement. But denying that there could be more to the Universe than our text books — or holy books — explain denies us a chance to grow. And our capacity to grow is much more important than is our tendency to deny inconvenient truths. Without growth, there is no future, and there’s no denying that.
Every parent knows that having a child in school means you’re in school too, and your schedule needs to adjust. And while the events you attend and goodies you supply change somewhat as your kids get older, your weekly planner has to accommodate a range of school activities.
This is how it should be; parents and schools partner on one of the most important tasks in life – rearing the next generation. Parents need to work with their school system to make sure their children get the best education they can. This partnering can range from making sure homework gets done and attending parent/teacher conferences to supporting extra-curricular activities like sports, music and speech.
Helping children learn extends beyond helping with school events. Many families travel during the summer and expose their kids to a lot of new places. Some take their kids to events and museums in places like Omaha and Lincoln, and this can awaken young people to new and wonderful things.
Lori and I recently took our son, Thomas, a freshman at Boone Central, on a rather unusual educational excursion. I’m currently chairman of the state governmental ethics commission and we’ve been involved with an important campaign issue that ended up before the Nebraska Supreme Court in early January. Knowing Thomas is considering going to law school, and knowing that this issue could have a major impact on how campaigns are financed, we all three attended the hearing.
And we were glad we did. The questioning from the judges was challenging and insightful. The attorneys had prepared statements and were given only a limited amount of time in which to present them. Yet most of this time was spent answering questions rather than reading their prepared remarks, and it was a good example to how our legal system examines both sides of an issue.
Supporting education isn’t limited to just helping one’s own children. Many businesses “adopt” an elementary class each year and some are now providing internships for students participating in Boone Central’s Career Academies. These are great examples of how the wider community and the school can partner to help our young people grow.
As members of the Boone County Historical Society Lori and I are pleased to partner with various school and scout groups to not only expose students to this area’s past but to engage their help with museum projects. This gives our young people a stronger sense of place as well as a sense of ownership through helping preserve our community’s historical resources.
As co-directors of the Albion Area Arts Council Lori and I work hard to bring a variety of musicians and speakers into the local school systems. So far this season our artists have done residencies at both Boone Central and St. Michael’s schools; just last week an exceptional young mallet artist, Matthew Coley, worked with all the Boone Central band students in both Albion and Petersburg.
After we finished with Matthew’s residency, we hauled most of my musical instruments to St. Edward where I demonstrated them to students there. After that I helped their third grade write a song about St. Ed. It was a busy week and it tired us out, but it was worth it to be able to touch so many young people’s lives. Though it may not require a village to raise a child, an education-friendly community can do much to help its young people get a solid start on life. So even though it can mess up my schedule, I’m always glad for the chance to go back to school.