Abhijit Naskar's Blog - Posts Tagged "scientists"
Mission of The Scientist
What is the purpose of a scientist? It is the search for truth of course. But is it all that a scientist is supposed to work for! The question that I shall be addressing in this article is what is the purpose of a humanist scientist? Now, here you may wonder, what the heck is a humanist scientist? Aren’t all scientists humanists?
A person can be a humanist in his or her personal life, but in professional life the sole identity of a scientist is a scientist. Now in this case, there is a small proportion of scientists, whom I call “humanist scientists”. The goal of a scientist is to dedicate himself or herself to the search of the raw, unfiltered, pure truth. Here comes the twist. The purpose of a humanist scientist is to discover the purest form of truth possible, and then apply it to the human society in a way that brings most positive outcome in the path of global progress.
For example, the idea of God which has been imposed on us by our society, has nothing to do with the reality. God is not an Supernatural Entity watching over earth and its inhabitants. God is exclusively a part of human consciousness. Without the humans there is no God. Without us, there is no God, that any living creature should be concerned of. However, I never attempt to take away people’s God from them, because that God is associated with a lot of human sentiments in the human psyche that act as fuel in daily survival. If you try to take away some hungry man’s stale bread, he would fight back, but if you give him something healthier and more substantial than the bread, then he would throw away the bread himself and accept your better food. The same is for God. So, instead of adamantly trying to demolish that God, I rather attempt to channel those sentiments associated with it in the human psyche towards something more productive and humane.
My mission is to make the external God of human society obsolete in front of humanity’s internal Godliness.
As a humanist scientist I focus on giving humanity something rejuvenating, healthy and productive, instead of wasting my energy on the negative elements of the man-made God. Remember, negativity cannot be destroyed with negativity. Fill the humans with positivity and the negative elements would eventually become powerless. Darkness cannot be repelled with darkness. It takes light to do that.
Being a scientist does not mean simply saying the hard truth. You can do that in your journal publications, for later scientists to have the raw data to scrutinize and then draw conclusions from. But other than that you have another important job, that is to represent the truth to people beyond the bounds of journal articles, in a way that brings most positive outcome in the society. And that’s where you turn from a run of the mill scientist into a glorious humanist scientist – a thinker by all means.
Humanism itself is the basic quality that defines us humans. And every human who gives humans preference over everything else is a humanist. And when a scientist turns this simple internal character into an important part of his or her work, that scientist becomes a humanist scientist. Then on, his work is no longer purely about the discovery of truth, but also to mould that truth in a proper fashion before presenting it to the humans. Mind you o brave scientist, your job may be to find the truth, but the purpose behind that finding is to take the human civilization a few steps forward. You are a scientist, which means, you have the most effective tool in the entire world, that can actually shape the world, both literally and metaphorically. So, use that tool called science wisely. Science is like religion – in the wrong hands, they both do more harm than good.
So, make sure that your hands are the right hands. The world is filled with scientists, yet it is suffering from the agonies caused by its people. It’s because the world lacks courageous humanist scientists. What the world needs today my friend, is not yet another researcher of science, but a conscientious scientific researcher of humanism. Now, my question to you is – are you that person whom the world is desperately searching for? Are you?
Remember, as long as you deem science and philosophy merely as your work, such work shall only be a drop in a giant unfathomable ocean. You need to make science and philosophy your life, and only then you shall give rise to a tsunami of humanistic progress. It is a tsunami waiting to happen. It’s only a matter of time that you realize the true purpose of your life and make that tsunami manifest, first within and then without. Become the tsunami of practical optimistic truth and wash away all the weaknesses and horrible stains of the human world.
Further Reading
Principia Humanitas
Love, God & Neurons: Memoir of a scientist who found himself by getting lost
A person can be a humanist in his or her personal life, but in professional life the sole identity of a scientist is a scientist. Now in this case, there is a small proportion of scientists, whom I call “humanist scientists”. The goal of a scientist is to dedicate himself or herself to the search of the raw, unfiltered, pure truth. Here comes the twist. The purpose of a humanist scientist is to discover the purest form of truth possible, and then apply it to the human society in a way that brings most positive outcome in the path of global progress.
For example, the idea of God which has been imposed on us by our society, has nothing to do with the reality. God is not an Supernatural Entity watching over earth and its inhabitants. God is exclusively a part of human consciousness. Without the humans there is no God. Without us, there is no God, that any living creature should be concerned of. However, I never attempt to take away people’s God from them, because that God is associated with a lot of human sentiments in the human psyche that act as fuel in daily survival. If you try to take away some hungry man’s stale bread, he would fight back, but if you give him something healthier and more substantial than the bread, then he would throw away the bread himself and accept your better food. The same is for God. So, instead of adamantly trying to demolish that God, I rather attempt to channel those sentiments associated with it in the human psyche towards something more productive and humane.
My mission is to make the external God of human society obsolete in front of humanity’s internal Godliness.
As a humanist scientist I focus on giving humanity something rejuvenating, healthy and productive, instead of wasting my energy on the negative elements of the man-made God. Remember, negativity cannot be destroyed with negativity. Fill the humans with positivity and the negative elements would eventually become powerless. Darkness cannot be repelled with darkness. It takes light to do that.
Being a scientist does not mean simply saying the hard truth. You can do that in your journal publications, for later scientists to have the raw data to scrutinize and then draw conclusions from. But other than that you have another important job, that is to represent the truth to people beyond the bounds of journal articles, in a way that brings most positive outcome in the society. And that’s where you turn from a run of the mill scientist into a glorious humanist scientist – a thinker by all means.
Humanism itself is the basic quality that defines us humans. And every human who gives humans preference over everything else is a humanist. And when a scientist turns this simple internal character into an important part of his or her work, that scientist becomes a humanist scientist. Then on, his work is no longer purely about the discovery of truth, but also to mould that truth in a proper fashion before presenting it to the humans. Mind you o brave scientist, your job may be to find the truth, but the purpose behind that finding is to take the human civilization a few steps forward. You are a scientist, which means, you have the most effective tool in the entire world, that can actually shape the world, both literally and metaphorically. So, use that tool called science wisely. Science is like religion – in the wrong hands, they both do more harm than good.
So, make sure that your hands are the right hands. The world is filled with scientists, yet it is suffering from the agonies caused by its people. It’s because the world lacks courageous humanist scientists. What the world needs today my friend, is not yet another researcher of science, but a conscientious scientific researcher of humanism. Now, my question to you is – are you that person whom the world is desperately searching for? Are you?
Remember, as long as you deem science and philosophy merely as your work, such work shall only be a drop in a giant unfathomable ocean. You need to make science and philosophy your life, and only then you shall give rise to a tsunami of humanistic progress. It is a tsunami waiting to happen. It’s only a matter of time that you realize the true purpose of your life and make that tsunami manifest, first within and then without. Become the tsunami of practical optimistic truth and wash away all the weaknesses and horrible stains of the human world.
Further Reading
Principia Humanitas
Love, God & Neurons: Memoir of a scientist who found himself by getting lost
Sonnet of Science | Handcrafted Humanity
Science is but a bridge of time, it can,
Either take us forward or dump us in prehistory.
Science alone does not ensure our advancement,
Unless it's practiced with warmth and accountability.
Sheer reason without any sentiment is,
As dangerous as sheer sentiment without any reason.
In order to forge a world fit for humans,
We must break the ice between reason and emotion.
Problem is that we like picking sides,
Either we are too emotional or too rational.
A civilized human ought to be none of that,
A civilized human acts upon the need of the situation.
So I say o mighty human, be not an intellectual moron.
Science is a means of service, not intellectual gratification.
Either take us forward or dump us in prehistory.
Science alone does not ensure our advancement,
Unless it's practiced with warmth and accountability.
Sheer reason without any sentiment is,
As dangerous as sheer sentiment without any reason.
In order to forge a world fit for humans,
We must break the ice between reason and emotion.
Problem is that we like picking sides,
Either we are too emotional or too rational.
A civilized human ought to be none of that,
A civilized human acts upon the need of the situation.
So I say o mighty human, be not an intellectual moron.
Science is a means of service, not intellectual gratification.
Mess With A Scientist (The Sonnet) | Dervish Advaitam
Mess with a police officer,
You may end up in prison.
And you may end up dead,
If you mess with a politician.
Mess with a bureaucrat,
You may end up exploited.
Mess with a programmer,
You may end up humiliated.
If you offend a teacher,
Your children might suffer.
If you offend a preacher,
You'll be deemed a blasphemer.
But mess with a scientist, that’s your ticket to hell.
Neither dead nor alive, you'll dangle in the middle.
You may end up in prison.
And you may end up dead,
If you mess with a politician.
Mess with a bureaucrat,
You may end up exploited.
Mess with a programmer,
You may end up humiliated.
If you offend a teacher,
Your children might suffer.
If you offend a preacher,
You'll be deemed a blasphemer.
But mess with a scientist, that’s your ticket to hell.
Neither dead nor alive, you'll dangle in the middle.
Genius by The Dozen (A Sonnet) | Amantes Assemble
Given the resources, I can build any technology,
Unlike some people, I do not need to hire genius.
Yet I gave up my obsession of electronics, because,
Building rockets is easy, building society not so much.
Not everybody is born with a silver spoon in mouth,
Rest of us have to choose among bread, dreams and tears.
But don’t assume that I am whining about a misfortune,
Because, a reformer is worth a hundred entrepreneurs.
Rocket science is child’s play for even a fisherman’s son,
Cognitive Science is common sense for a laborer’s child.
Yet you boast about a bunch of counterfeit geniuses whose,
Greatest power is that they are born with a golden hide.
If you seek true genius, lend a hand to developing nations.
And they’ll give you Gates, Musks and Byrons by the dozens.
Unlike some people, I do not need to hire genius.
Yet I gave up my obsession of electronics, because,
Building rockets is easy, building society not so much.
Not everybody is born with a silver spoon in mouth,
Rest of us have to choose among bread, dreams and tears.
But don’t assume that I am whining about a misfortune,
Because, a reformer is worth a hundred entrepreneurs.
Rocket science is child’s play for even a fisherman’s son,
Cognitive Science is common sense for a laborer’s child.
Yet you boast about a bunch of counterfeit geniuses whose,
Greatest power is that they are born with a golden hide.
If you seek true genius, lend a hand to developing nations.
And they’ll give you Gates, Musks and Byrons by the dozens.
Sonnet 1106 | Vande Vasudhaivam
When an expert doesn’t know something,
They say, “I don’t know”, without tricks.
But an armchair intellectual knows it all,
Tiktok and Insta are their clinics.
An expert’s worth remains the same,
with or without Tiktok and Insta.
Armchair intellectuals are here today gone tomorrow,
with the tiniest algorithm change of social media.
My work will continue,
with or without social media.
My work will continue,
with or without internet.
My work will continue,
with or without electricity even,
so will the work of every expert sapiens.
Instant popularity vanishes just as instantly,
Today you are relevant, tomorrow you are gone.
Make a real contribution that isn’t overshadowed
by the next big tech revolution.
They say, “I don’t know”, without tricks.
But an armchair intellectual knows it all,
Tiktok and Insta are their clinics.
An expert’s worth remains the same,
with or without Tiktok and Insta.
Armchair intellectuals are here today gone tomorrow,
with the tiniest algorithm change of social media.
My work will continue,
with or without social media.
My work will continue,
with or without internet.
My work will continue,
with or without electricity even,
so will the work of every expert sapiens.
Instant popularity vanishes just as instantly,
Today you are relevant, tomorrow you are gone.
Make a real contribution that isn’t overshadowed
by the next big tech revolution.
