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Recently, I saw a lecture by the late famous physicist Feynman on the Internet entitled "The Value of Science", and later found that Wang Chunyan, a well-known blogger of Science Network, had published this article as early as 2012. However, Teacher Wang did not comment at that time, so the author mentioned this article again, and mainly commented.
Richard Phillips Feynman (May 11, 1918 – February 15, 1988) was a Jewish-American physicist, professor of physics at the California Institute of Technology, and winner of the 1965 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Feynman Source: google.com
Feynman's academic ideas accompany every tentacle of his work life, touching on depth and breadth extremely far away, from the Manhattan Project, the death of his wife Allin, and teaching at the California Institute of Technology.
The first value of science is the knowledge it provides, although it can be used to do good as it can do evil. Feynman quotes a proverb from the Buddhist scriptures: "Everyone has a key to open the gates of heaven, and this key can also open the gates of hell." "The value of science is this key—without it we cannot open the gates of heaven; without it, we are helpless even if we distinguish between heaven and hell.
Further clarification is needed here on the differences between scientific knowledge and other knowledge.
First, science provides knowledge of the facts and laws of nature, such as Newton's laws, relativity, ecology, and so on. With heliocentrism, humanity rolls from the center of the universe to an x, and with the theory of evolution, humanity knows where it came from. In this way, human beings are able to know their place in nature and live sober and restrained lives.
By extension, knowledge of the facts and laws of human society, such as the theory of the market economy and the concept of the Enlightenment, is also the basis for every individual to live a sober, active and restrained life with the state, to live together in society and the world, and to share a common destiny.
Second, the knowledge provided by science is also the guide of life, such as systems theory and cybernetics, complexity science and the interpretation of "entropy" have attracted more and more attention.
Another value of science is to provide the enjoyment of wisdom and speculation. This enjoyment can be attained by reading, learning, and thinking, while others are satisfied by real in-depth study. This enjoyment of intelligent speculation is reflected in Archimedes jumping out of the shower and running into the street to shout "I found", reflected in Kepler's great efforts in discovering the three laws of planetary motion and the great joy afterwards... In contrast, power and money are just things outside the body, passing through the clouds.
Feynman said that if the ultimate goal of our social progress is precisely to allow all kinds of people to enjoy what they want to do, then the enjoyment of scientists' speculation and curiosity is as important as other things.
From the poems in the speech, we can appreciate Feynman's "enjoyment" and can go back to the natural philosophy of ancient Greece, which is the "original intention" of science. This can also be associated with Qu Yuan's "Heavenly Questions". The difference is that Qu Yuan made this "question" in the depressed and indignant Chinese side who had no way to deal with politics, and human affairs were Qu Yuan's first choice.
This value of science, as Feynman analyzed, is actually not just about scientists. As far as human society is concerned, curiosity and then curiosity are the first link in the knowledge chain, the first step in all human cognition and behavior, and the last link in the chain is practical. Abandoning curiosity and free exploration and putting practicality first is the reason for the lack of 0-1 links in the industrial field.
Feynman uses an example to illustrate the difference between curiosity and practicality.
A scientific paper says, "The radiation-labeled phosphorus in the rats' brains was cut in half in two weeks. What does this mean?
Image source: google.com
What it means is that half of the phosphorus in the rat brain (there is no difference between you and mine) is no longer the atom of two weeks ago, it has been replaced. So I have to ask, "What exactly is a conscious molecule?" Is there anything wrong with it? These brand new molecules can carry memories from a year ago in my brain, but the molecules that occurred at that time have long been replaced! This discovery is like saying that I am an individual who is just a choreographer of a dance. The molecules entered my brain, danced a dance and left; the new molecules came in again, still dancing exactly the same dance as yesterday— they could remember! "How active and beautiful the mind is!
Curiosity- Curiosity leads to divergence and openness, and there are infinite possibilities.
A practical explanation might look like this: "Scientists think this discovery is very important for treating tumors...", focusing only on what is the use of that discovery? Practical convergence means the end, and that's it. In a word, pragmatism stifles creativity.
The third value of science that Feynman speaks of is actually the spirit of skepticism. He is ignorant when the scientist does not know the answer; he is uncertain when he probably has a guess in his mind; and even when he is full of certainty, he will always leave room for doubt. Acknowledging one's ignorance and leaving room for questioning are both essential for any development. Scientific knowledge itself is a collection of different levels of credibility: some are fundamentally uncertain, some are relatively certain, but nothing is completely certain. Doubt not only the conclusion, but also yourself.
In history, science has fought repeatedly with authoritarian authorities to gradually win the freedom we question. What a hard and protracted battle it was! It finally allows us to ask questions, to question, to be uncertain. We must never forget history and lose the freedom we have so hard fought for. This is the responsibility of scientists to society. Feynman's words read with a sense of relevance.
Feynman realized that different doctrines have their own adherents, and that adherents of one doctrine always look at believers of the rest of the doctrine with fear. This fear comes from the incompatibility of beliefs, which leads to a dead end in what would otherwise be a good starting point. And when we acknowledge our inadequacies and even fallacies, and when we acknowledge the complexity and uncertainty of the world we face, we begin to find the way.
Feynman's final ending is:
As scientists, we know that great progress stems from acknowledging ignorance and from freedom of thought. So it is our duty – to proclaim the value of freedom of thought, to educate people not to be afraid to question it but to welcome it, to discuss it, and to insist on having it without compromise – and this is our responsibility for future generations to come.
That's the value of science.
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