Darwinian Revelation

Within the past years, I have had a disclosure of great significance to both myself personally, and my perception of the world. This “revelation” of mine had been percolating through the depths of my beliefs for ten years of my life. That is exactly how long I had been involved in mandatory Catholic religious studies. Throughout learning the perceived profundity of my religion, I kept finding myself disagreeing completely with what was being preached. As time continued on, I grew further and further apart from the church. After I had finally finished religious education during my sophomore year of High School, I consistently felt empty.

I soon realized that I had been neglecting to embrace the studies of one of the most pivotal individuals science had ever witnessed. The name of this individual was Charles Darwin. His similar experiences pertaining to his reluctance to thrust forth his findings into the crux of 20th century beliefs directly related to how I felt about my own convoluted beliefs.

As a student, Charles Darwin had little guidance as to what career path was destined for him. He eventually attended Cambridge, with the intent of studying for the ministry. He soon found that his interests laid more within the Entomology category, rather than Theology. (1-3, Appleman)

Darwin then was given the chance of a lifetime: Be part of a 5 year journey aboard the ship Beagle, exploring various naturalist venues around the world. This trip established in Darwin an outstanding ability to observe and document, which he was known greatly for. (3-4, Appleman) Darwin’s education and his expedition aboard the Beagle can be viewed symbolically as my own personal religious education journey: We both found ourselves within environments we couldn’t possibly be satisfied with, until we realized that there was something entirely else more enthralling.

But what exactly was the root of my issues with the Church? I consistently pondered this question over and over, as my family became dismayed with my lack of “confidence” in religion. The only comprehensible point I could fault for my lack of faith was the stubbornness which inevitably lingers within religion’s core. A fantastic example of this I found was within the article “How the Teach Science to the Pope.” This article explores in depth the various issues and consequences surrounding science and religion. While I read, I found an interesting passage. This passage illustrated how the Catholic Church administers science to its liking through the use of a league of scientists known as the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.

“…the purpose of your academy is precisely to discern and to make known, in the present state of science and within its proper limits, what can be regarded as an acquired truth or at least as enjoying such a degree of probability that it would be imprudent and unreasonable to reject it.” In the pope’s eyes, the academy is an instrument that teases scientific fact from fiction.” (Mason)

I immediately recognized with this statement, and had to laugh at the notion that the religion’s own scientific wing could only do what the Church deemed was important. Therefore, The Pontifical Academy of Sciences, in itself, was completely pointless, and failed to strengthen any possible new scientific findings the Church deems “unnatural.”

Another example of the perceived stubbornness of religion in general comes from the short story “Exhibit Piece” by the author Philip K. Dick. This story illustrates the day of 20th century historian George Miller in a future setting. Miller is responsible for creating and caretaking an exact replica of a 20th century scene. Miller soon becomes trapped within this exhibit piece, and refuses to be coaxed out of his dream world. (155, Dick) This relates to the stubbornness of religion through representation. The 20th century exhibit piece is an embodiment of religion in general. Miller symbolizes individuals within religions who continually refuse to change their ways out of pure tenacity. The story clearly illustrates (through representation) how future ideals often become drowned out through stubbornness and what some call “faith.”

Darwin has undoubtedly influenced my personal beliefs pertaining to religion. It’s unfortunate that science and religion has become such a convoluted and hot button issue in our society, and I wish I had learned more about Darwin earlier in my academic teachings, but that’s a whole other debate…I must also declare that these are my own opinions and experiences which the work of Darwin has aided in surfacing. Furthermore, let it be known that I’m not here to jab or point fingers at the integrity of religion, I only speak what I feel. I have no intentions of “representing” the views of every agnostic, atheist, ect. populating the universe.

Youtube Video:

This video demonstrates the issue of Stem Cell research, which is just one of the many issues which surround religion and science. The video also shows how The Pontifical Academy of Sciences is governed completely by the church, and is therefore restricted to researching only what's considered ethical by the church.

Works Cited

Appleman, Philip. “Darwin: On Changing the Mind” in Darwin. 3rd ed. Philip Appleman, ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2001

Mason, Michael. "How to Teach Science to the Pope | Human Evolution | DISCOVER Magazine." Discover Magazine. 18 Aug. 2008. Web. 26 Nov. 2009. .

Dick, Philip K. The Philip Reader, New York: Citadel Press. 1987.

Rome Reports. "Stem Cell Research Against Human Dignity." 1 April 2009. Video Clip. YouTube. 26 Nov. 2009

Schizophrenia in the 1800's

Little was known in the scientific world about Schizophrenia in the 18th century. We will explore how the world reacted to this unknown disorder, and the history behind it.
Throughout the 1700's, Schizophrenia was commonly confused with the mental illness dementia. Starting in the 18th century, scientists began to notice small differences between the two disorders yet the actual term Schizophrenia was not coined until the early 19th century.
The rise of mental institutions began at the turn of the 17th century. In prior decades, mental patients were housed in insane asylums and normal hospitals. These places treated patients as a near sub-human class. They were put onto display for the entertainment of the public. The mental institutions introduced the moral treatment method which was far more humane. These buildings were set away from the busy cities, giving the patients a calm environment.
One of the largest barriers for Schizophrenia research comes from the lack of scientific case studies. Throughout the evolution schizophrenia, many medical scientists attempted to pinpoint the exact symptoms of it, through the observations and study of various "mad" individuals. One of the greatest contributors to this progression was the medical psychiatrist John Haslam. Haslam's case study of the individual James Tilly Mathews helped to identify and classify the various rudimentary contributing symptoms of schizophrenia.

Find out more about schizophrenia from this book, Amazon.com
And for a patients story follow this link: http://www.youtube.com

The Motion Sensing Revolution

In the past, games and gamers have always been abstracted from each other. Through awkward little plastic joysticks and controllers, players were tried absorb themselves into games. But, as technology increasingly pushed forward, games and gamers alike began witnessing the advent of the motion sensing revolution.

My First experience with human integration in games was with the Nintendo Entertainment System’s “Zapper” light gun. The Zapper worked by reading the light emitted by a television screen, and it determined whether or not it was pointed at a target. (Baer) Although this wasn’t true motion sensing, I still recognized the amazing mechanic of shooting virtual objects on a television screen with an actual physical object that I could move around, and that this was only a precursor of what was next.

During the 2009 Electronics Entertainment Expo (E3), gamers were introduced to one of the biggest revolution in terms of motion sensing technology. All three of the home entertainment consoles introduced a new motion sensing technology to the audience. Nintendo’s Wii’s motion controller was given a precision upgrade, while both Microsoft and Sony unveiled their own versions of motion sensory peripherals. While Nintendo’s motion tracking technology remains the same, both Microsoft and Sony have taken a different approach to technology by introducing more precise tracking sensors. (Nguyen)

Microsoft’s approach to motion sensing was through the apparatus named “Natal”, which could sense where players were moving and interacting. (Nguyen) Sony’s approach was similar, but it required players to use a secondary controller as a prop. This theoretically leads to better motion control and sensing. One of the biggest reasons why motion sensing technology has become a priority for console developers is to draw in people who would never consider themselves gamers and prompt them to buy a console. (Terdiman)

The first source of information that I used for this post came from the website “Übergizmo”, which is a site dedicated to blogging all aspects of emerging technology, news, and gadgets to whoever has an interest in technological goodies. The website and article can be found here. This website has legitimate credentials, and has been invited to cover the events of game expos, such as E3, PAX, and GDC. The main reaction that this article had to the Motion sensing revolution was cautiously optimistic: For every good move that Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft made, it also addressed multiple pitfalls and possible downsides.

While researching this topic further, I found a much different article in regards to the so called motion sensing revolution. The website and page can be found here. The article went into detail about the novelty of motion sensing controllers, and how they actually constricted player’s interactions within a gaming environment. The article firmly stated that motion sensing technology was nothing more than a relic of the past, and that modern games are being held back by this limited technology. (Reisinger)

The reason why I chose this article is because it came from an extremely reliable and credible online source, CNET.com. This site is known widely as one on the best review sites in regards to technology, gadgetry, blogs, news, tech tutorials, and downloads. It doesn’t surprise me that this site has a more negative outlook on the motion sensing technology revolution as CNET is also known for being quite blunt when it comes to reviews. In my opinion, that’s a good quality.

When comparing both of these articles, I found the Übergizmo piece to be much more credible and convincing. The reason for this is because Übergizmo address both sides of the argument, rather than siding with one which is evident in the CNET article. Despite Übergizmo being less credible, they did a much better overview of the motion sensing technology, and how it has the potential to truly change gaming.

Here are the Electronic Entertainment Expo Demonstrations of Microsoft's Natal, and Sony's motion sensing controller:

Works Cited

Baer, Ralph H. “Television precision target shooting apparatus and method.” US Patent 4395045. July 26, 1983.

Nguyen, Hubert. "Motion Control - The Art of Motion Control: Beyond the Hype." Ubergizmo, The Gadget Blog. 4 June 2009. Web. 13 Sept. 2009. .

Terdiman, Daniel. "Microsoft's Project Natal: What does it mean for game industry?" Technology News - CNET News. 1 June 2009. Web. 13 Sept. 2009. .

Reisinger, Don. "Is motion-sensitive gaming a gimmick?" Technology News - CNET News. 16 June 2009. Web. 13 Sept. 2009. .

Ethics and Science...

Hello, while pursuing information for this topic, I came upon a document on the history of ethical issues related to scientific research. This document outlines how many scientific organizations have undergone questionable and blatantly immoral experiments, and the relations they have culturally. A leading example of this are the Nazi Germany experiments conducted behind the veil of internment camps. While the Nazi’s experiments were all unquestionably wrong, they also had an impact on Germany’s culture by dehumanizing other races, while simultaneously boosting the ego of their own. (Proctor) Another interesting topic in this document is how research on animals has become a very taboo issue. A few years ago, I remember seeing a shampoo commercial which proudly stated that they didn’t participate in animal testing. From my perspective, it would seem that the general American culture disagrees with animal scientific research. Although animals are not humans, (in my opinion, mind you) it still relates to how scientific research and the culture around it influence each other. Thanks for reading; the link to this document can be found here.

Works Cited

Proctor, Robert. Racial Hygiene Medicine Under the Nazis. Cambridge: Harvard University
Press, 1988