The more we learn, the more it pushes the boundaries of what we don't know. Marcelo Gleiser, professor of physics and astronomy at Dartmouth, describes this problem by using the metaphor of an island. Knowledge is an island. As this island grows, Gleiser says, the border of what we do not know also grows. So the history of knowledge will always be incomplete.
Here is one of the great existential problems that caused a lot of 20th century angst: the more we learn about the universe, the more we realize how insignificant we are. Here is 21st century science's answer to that: Humans are very sophisticated conglomerates of materials. We are very special indeed. Dartmouth professor Marcelo Gleiser walks us through some of the key milestones in our understanding of the universe.
Marcelo was director of The Institute for Cross-Disciplinary Engagement at Dartmouth (ICE) β a nucleus of intellectual and spiritual transformation, a bridge between the sciences and the humanities that people can cross in both directions and, in doing so, enrich themselves and their worldview.
In this virtual meeting, convened by Synergos, Marcelo Gleiser discusses how Covid-19 is impacting our worldviews and ways to co-create a new world through our individual and collective actions.