“I have a friend who's an artist and has sometimes taken a view which I don't agree with very well. He'll hold up a flower and say "look how beautiful it is," and I'll agree. Then he says "I as an artist can see how beautiful this is but you as a scientist take this all apart and it becomes a dull thing," and I think that he's kind of nutty. First of all, the beauty that he sees is available to other people and to me too, I believe. Although I may not be quite as refined aesthetically as he is ... I can appreciate the beauty of a flower. At the same time, I see much more about the flower than he sees. I could imagine the cells in there, the complicated actions inside, which also have a beauty. I mean it's not just beauty at this dimension, at one centimeter; there's also beauty at smaller dimensions, the inner structure, also the processes. The fact that the colors in the flower evolved in order to attract insects to pollinate it is interesting; it means that insects can see the color. It adds a question: does this aesthetic sense also exist in the lower forms? Why is it aesthetic? All kinds of interesting questions which the science knowledge only adds to the excitement, the mystery and the awe of a flower. It only adds. I don't understand how it subtracts.”
― The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: The Best Short Works of Richard P. Feynman
― The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: The Best Short Works of Richard P. Feynman
“If you begin to understand what you are without trying to change it, then what you are undergoes a transformation.”
―
―
Political Philosophy and Ethics
— 6136 members
— last activity Dec 14, 2025 10:53AM
Study and discussion of the important questions of ethical and political philosophy from Confucius and Socrates to the present. Rules (see also the ...more
Science and Inquiry
— 4460 members
— last activity 3 hours, 48 min ago
This Group explores scientific topics. We have an active monthly book club, as well as discussions on a variety of topics including science in the new ...more
Law and Legal Philosophy
— 42 members
— last activity Aug 24, 2024 06:52AM
This is a group for anyone who wants to read and discuss books on topics such as natural law, legal positivism, constitutionalism, human rights, juris ...more
Philosophy
— 5761 members
— last activity Dec 04, 2025 02:58PM
What is Philosophy? Why is it important? How do you use it? This group looks at these questions and others: ethics, government, economics, skepticism, ...more
George Orwell Matters!
— 435 members
— last activity Dec 14, 2025 11:15AM
A niche for the readers of Eric Arthur Blair's writings, among the groups for literature and fiction lovers. Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903–21 Januar ...more
Shreyas’s 2024 Year in Books
Take a look at Shreyas’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
Polls voted on by Shreyas
Lists liked by Shreyas



















