Wednesday, December 3, 2014

The Curiosity Towards Bewilderment

In “Our Universe Might Be a Giant Hologram”, Brian Greene mentions how our universe can be a mere reflection, or hologram, of another universe way out of our reach. Our reactions could be triggered by another parallel universe’s actions, and in that case we are to that universe as a puppet is to a puppeteer. Greene states that the word universe has lost its meaning because it used to mean “everything that is” and now we know that we are not the only universe out there, so it’s sort of a paradox to say that there are many of everything. Knowing that there might be a parallel universe out there somewhere make me more aware of my surroundings and actions, because everything I do could be for a reason, and maybe is being done in a complete opposite way in another universe. I believe that by being more aware of your actions changes the whole way we live our lives because then we over-think everything we do instead of just doing it naturally.
In “The Serpents of Paradise”, Edward Abbey has a really close-knit relationship with the environment and his surroundings. He is able to describe in great detail everything he sees and feels, whether it be in the nice mornings or harsh, hot afternoons, or freezing cold nights. He says he likes to have his “bare feet planted on the bare ground”, meaning he likes to be one with Mother Nature, and feel its beauty on his skin. Personally, I would get the same feelings as Abbey when I lived with my parents. Every morning before school, I would go outside barefoot and just watch the sun rise, and ponder about life. This sort of “meditation” would put my mind at ease and make my day just that much better. Abbey seeks to learn more about the unknown, but only to a certain extent. For example, when the two snakes are performing their little dance, he watches them for a while, but then realizes that they too need their own privacy.

In Brian Greene’s essay, he writes that when he was a child he would daydream during class about all of the different “hims” that he would she in his two mirrors in his room, and he showed confusion and curiosity as to how all of that worked, and whether or not there was actually a reflection of him that didn't really reflect his movements. This curiosity led him to him to come up with the holographic universe idea. Similarly to Greene, Abbey shares this curiosity about the environment around him and how some things affect others in different ways. I also share this curiosity, and by understanding that everything happens for a reason, I am able to think about things differently and more thoroughly than before.

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