Science: Commentary:

Any activities of science sometimes remind us about the value of what a point of view is changed to another one which can make us aware of satisfying new images concerning the same world. This lesson is independent of technology and can help us improve our imagination. Any activities of science can provide exciting images that can stimulate us and can give everybody pleasure similar to that obtained from fantasies created by activities of the arts. Only the arts cannot contribute to such images, but science also has the potentiality of contributing to ones. This potentiality is one of important factors obtained from science.

Everyone can realize himself or herself to have been trained through various experiences. From the experiences, everyone derives many advantages. A few specific situations can, however, cause a few disadvantages dependent on the experiences. It is always difficult to think and imagine things beyond the limits of our own knowledge that results from our experiences. Any activities of the arts, however, tend to transcend experience of geographical characteristics and the boundaries between histories. Science also has such tendency. Such a characteristic possessed by science and the arts can help us construct common understanding.

That characteristic of science is caused by specific knowledge which is made objective by efforts logically and consistently to understand connections between different observations. At least objective logically consistent and objective ideas are widely acceptable, and science helps us become objective existence. The arts can directly stimulate through the sensory systems connected to vision and hearing. Hence, the characteristics of the arts may be caused by neuron network systems that involve the hypothalamus and the amygdala being located at deeply inner sides of the brain. Through the characteristic of such brain activities, the arts can influence everyone. With scientific activities being able to help us keep consistency and satisfaction, artistic activities can widely help us keep satisfaction in our society which have the tendency to be developed and complicated.

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Science does not only supply ideas to technology, but also help objectively reconsider our perception and perspective. We can be reminded at least about something that must be considered from perspectives which have been made deep by relativistic theory and quantum theory, something that must be considered after finding biological evolution and biological roles of DNA, and something that must be considered by understanding the contribution of neuron network circuits to brain activities. Science can remind us what even perspectives on the most familiar phenomena help reconsidering a way of becoming aware and a way of thinking.

The fall of an object is one of the most familiar phenomena. "What a person's mind becomes free from the restricted perception that the fall is imagined as the motion of the object toward a lower position" means that the possibility of generating new images and ideas rises. If the fall is considered as a phenomenon equivalent to what that object and the earth pull each other through an attractive force, an image according to the attractive force cannot help only to understand the fall, but also to understand the solar system. If it is taken for a perception to mean that the fall of an object is the object's motion which minimizes the effect of gravity contributing to every local part of the object except the effect of gravity due to the object itself, the perception cannot help only to understand the solar system, but also to understand a star's evolution toward forming a black hole and the evolution of the universe. That perception and the support of logically consistent thinking can, moreover, make us realize that gravity makes clocks go slowly.

Thus, a change of a perspective to another consistent one raises the potentiality to generate new images and ideas. This change means that we obtain an opportunity to derive new images from the same phenomenon. To be aware of a consistent new perspective, raises the potentiality of resulting in deep understanding according to the support of logically consistent thinking. Such a perspective enables our exciting new images consistently to come beyond our imagination which is restricted in limited pictures by our experiences. Such manner makes us generate consistent explanations for the exciting reality of the universe possible.

An attempt to create a consistent new image often remind us what our imagination is strongly restricted by the knowledge that we have accumulated through personal experience. Then, science always shows that it is valuable to develop logically consistent thinking. This suggestion is the primary value resulting from science. Science can help us create logically consistent and objective images. If we can think and imagine things beyond the limits of our own knowledge, we can create many useful ideas and things for our society.

Science shows that the most efficient way to overcome difficulties is what a lot of time is spent to become free from the limited images and to understand consistently. Even if a lot of time is spent to become free from the limited images and consistently to understand an anomalous phenomenon, these efforts can be valuable. New ideas obtained from the efforts can contribute to forming new images of substances, and as a result, they can contribute to current technology. Furthermore, the ideas to explain gravity and the characteristics of a microscopic particle having the nature of wave can help us imagine the earliest universe. These facts remind us about potentialities generated by efforts to think logically and consistently.

Science shows that logical thinking and efforts to create consistent ideas help to wake us up from unconsciousness and help us think and imagine beyond and over the limits of experience. Even when a phenomenon in a microscopic region is anomalous and is not consistent with a limited image formed through our general knowledge, our consideration for creating new ideas must proceed with the assumption that keys to creating them are exposed in it. We should, however, be reminded about the necessity of becoming free from limited images controlled by the general knowledge. This situation should cause difficulties for us to develop thinking. Efforts logically and consistently to develop the thinking, fortunately, help us overcome the difficulties and create an idea to explain consistently. Although this logically consistent treatment requires us a lot of restrictions on thinking, it definitely or realistically raises the probability of going realistically beyond experience. Science reminds us what such restrictions are useful for guiding our thinking to new ideas that contribute to forming real images beyond experience. Thinking under the restrictions cannot easily proceed. Science has, however, reminded us what the efforts are one of the best ways to become free from limited images depending on the general knowledge. Our society has the tendency to be developed and complicated, so that effects to create objective consistent ideas having the tendency to be widely acceptable are important.

We have been able to learn exciting images of the universe, such as the birth of stars, the dazzle of super novas, the formation of galaxies, the movement of galaxies, the activities of quasars, and the evolution of the universe. These images seem like fantasies, but are realities. The learning of such images can excite our imagination which is restricted in limited pictures by our experiences, and can lead to the confidence in what we can have various consistent thoughts. It is possible for science to provide effects similar to those resulting from the arts. These effects represent a secondary value resulting from science.

Specific images coming from science can stimulate us and can give us the confidence in coming beyond our imagination which is restricted in limited pictures by our experiences. It is always difficult to think and imagine things beyond the limits of our own knowledge accumulated through personal experience. Despite this fact, any activities of the arts can transcend experience of geographical characteristics and the boundaries between histories. The arts can supply fantasies. Science can be made supply exciting images similar to fantasies due to the arts, although the images are real. Science has a value which is similar to that due to the arts. The exciting images can activate our imagination. If the knowledge of science is translated into specific expressions similar to the arts, science should give us much satisfaction similar to fulfillment resulting from fantasies.

Pictures of fractal and the universe, and the configurations of biological macromolecules are exciting and interesting even without translating scientific images to artistic images. Exciting pictures obtained from the Hubble space scope can remind us what clear objective images of the universe are similar to artistic pictures. Many scientific images, however, need to be translated according to the meaning of each image. Feynman diagrams are not only a powerful method for investigating microscopic worlds, but can be also regarded as a way to translate images of microscopic worlds to artistic images. It is possible to make science play an exciting role, and as a result, science can give us valuable effects without depending on its application to technology. The translation of scientific knowledge into specific expressions similar to the arts can, moreover, cause a specific situation which helps us readily recognize that efforts logically and consistently to create images are valuable.

The diversity that has supported life in various environments on the earth for over 3.5 billion years can be a key to challenging difficulties. The lessons of diversity from the life history must be a suggestion of ways to live on the earth. The arts have the potentialities for providing acceptability shared over diversity, although it is always difficult to think and imagine things beyond the limits of our own knowledge.

The arts always change simple time and space to make us satisfying. The arts can essentially be subjective activities being different from science. Almost all the activities of the arts or the arts themselves stimulate the sensory systems connected to vision and hearing. Then, impulses generated in the sensory systems propagate along nerve paths and activate neuron network systems which involve the hypothalamus and the amygdala. It is essentially important for birds, dolphins, and other animals to recognize information caught by sensory organs connected to vision and hearing. Each animal has the hypothalamus and the amygdala in the brain. Stimuli supplied by the sensory organs connected to vision, hearing, touch, taste, and smell come to the amygdala which have many kinds of specific substances such as dopamine, noradrenaline, adrenaline, and serotonin that serve as neurotransmitters and influence emotional states. Stimuli caused by the arts inevitably come to the amygdala. As a result, the amygdala-hypothalamus system dependent on connections between the amygdala and the hypothalamus generates emotional responses. This phenomenon suggests the possibility to compose music which may be enjoyed with birds, dolphins, whales, and so on.

The amygdala-hypothalamus system cooperates with the memory system dependent on connections between the amygdala and the thalamus, and this cooperation should decide whether to develop emotional responses due to the arts or not. Then, the cooperation should essentially decide to tend to make the brain pleasant. Although activities of the arts are subjective, the aim of the activities is not what somebody is made feel unpleasant. Therefore, the activities should tend to transcend experience of geographical characteristics and the boundaries between histories. We well know that music, regarded by each ethnic group as their own music, can provide melodies making all of us feel pleasure, relaxation, or confidence. Vibrations made by these melodies resonate through the instruments and penetrate our bodies.

When stimuli corresponding to specific attention are induced owing to activities of the arts by the cooperation between the amygdala-hypothalamus system and the memory system, if these two systems cooperate with activities between specific regions in the outer layers of the brain through that stimuli, the attention should be developed toward a firm interest. When we face a particular painting, thus, it is possible for looking at the painting to raise our consciousness on normal days. We can even find unique and interesting imaginary worlds described in works of literature that can remind us what our imagination is restricted to our personal experience. We are very fortune simultaneously to have both satisfaction and an opportunity to be aware of what our imagination is restricted. An advantage of the arts is, hence, recognized.

If difficulties require us to go beyond limited images from experience, a lot of time must be spent to overcome them. A key to keep on challenging the difficulties is to keep interests on them. Those interests are caused by a positive contribution of the amygdala-hypothalamus system, and more powerfully help to overcome difficulties than duties against a negative contribution of the amygdala-hypothalamus system. If specific nerve circuits trained through specific activities of the arts involve either a positive contribution of the amygdala-hypothalamus system or a contribution to thinking of a specific difficulty, the thinking itself must become interesting. This hypothesis is probably true. Any activities of the arts remind us what the activities can make us confident. Positive contributions of the amygdala-hypothalamus system are not able only to heal mental states gotten hurt, but also to encourage to proceed against difficulties. Thus, we can be reminded about the great potentiality of the arts.

In addition, it is interesting to remind us about a specific imaginary atmosphere generated by the activities of neuron network circuits, when the earth should be recognized. In a tearoom having an atmosphere of a limited space, a place located so far away from our word can be imagined. A tea ceremony is regarded as an art which is not connected only to vision and hearing, but also to taste and smell. A garden affiliated with a tearoom is designed as a reduction of nature. If the garden has an atmosphere which helps us feel a local universe which is separated from our world in order to comfort our mind, the garden can provide a suitable feature as a garden affiliated with a tearoom. The atmosphere which continuously links architecture to the garden or vice versa is an important factor of tearoom design. A wooden lattice covered with white paper, called shoji, separates the tearoom from the garden. The shoji plays a role as a screen where the shadows of the garden's atmosphere are projected, and also act as a filter which white light and the sound of winds or leaves pass through. We can experience an image represented by what we are located so far away from our world. The harmony of nature and architecture can be found there.

Although people's desire develops technology with economy, the development of technology must proceed in harmony with our environment. The use of technology based on narrow thinking of a specific convenience and a specific economical efficiency is risky. The earth is valuable and is only one spaceship on which every lifeform lives together in the universe. A picture taken by the crew of the Apollo 8 Mission is an objective image of the earth looking like only one blue planet oasis in the universe. An objective image of the earth appearing in the universe reminds us what views have to be renewed or improved. This cognition suggests that it is difficult to live far away from the earth, and should persuade us to consider a way to coexist.

Efforts to create objective images and explanations can result in deep cognition. Simply to obtain knowledge, does not always make us conscious, however. Although we know the earth moving around the sun according to Newton's law of gravity, it is not easy to realize the earth that is the most valuable object supporting what we coexist in the universe. It is true for our incomplete consciousness to be supplemented by a specific experience giving objective images. This truth can sometimes be hidden by our imagination which is strongly restricted by the knowledge accumulated through personal experience. The objective image of the earth suggests that it is more important to recognize the meaning of knowledge than simply to obtain that knowledge.

In order to make us conscious, it is important to recognize the meaning of knowledge. According to our understanding of the human genome, it is possible to overcome hereditary diseases by inserting lacked genetic information into the genome of a patient through a genetic treatment. Our understanding of the human genome and other genomes is leading to the possibility that biological evolution and the direction of biological evolution may be controlled by humanity, although the evolution of life has been left to chance so far. Biological evolution left to chance is different from biological evolution left to humanity. The meaning of the difference between two those should not cause a difficulty, since the application of genetic treatments continues to be effective. At least scientific concepts can, then, remind us to consider consistency with satisfaction in order to keep the harmony of our society.

Attempts at what our desire for the use of technology is made consistent with appropriate moral standards are important, since people's desire complicates our society. Each person has a right to coexist peacefully on our planet as well as other people. Similarly, the disturbance of a right to coexist peacefully is not acceptable to each person as well as other people. Efforts to consider a way to coexist should be helped by what people objectively recognize each other and by understanding every people's own culture.

People desire technology in order to gain economic efficiency, convenience, and comfort. As a result, many people have the tendency to try achieving similar desire with the use of technology. The use of technology, thus, makes our cultures have the tendency to become homogeneous. The intersection of a culture with another one can give us an opportunity to understand the meaning of a contrast between the cultures, and can activate the creation of new cultures. We can, thus, be reminded what we are helped create new interests by what our cultures are not homogeneous. The diversity of cultures is important for evolving our cultures, and for resulting in many pleasures in our society. Thus, the arts that can contribute to the development of cultures are interesting for every people to coexist on our planet.

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Ultimately, science reminds us about the importance of logically consistent ideas. It also reminds us about the values of what consideration is made logically and consistently proceed and what logically consistent thinking can make us generate objective and quantitative images. Science can show that images being made objective by such manner are located at the nearest position to the truth. Science also helps us become objective existence.

Efforts to continue to develop logically consistent thinking sometimes require the change of a familiar idea to another one. Then, our imagination can be aided to develop by the change of perception or perspective. This is a valuable lesson which science gives us who desire to develop and improve ideas and images. Science reminds us about the importance of that change.

Science is activities that make objective ideas and images. The arts can, however, be categorized as subjective activities. The arts as well as science have the tendency to transcend experience of geographical characteristics and the boundaries between histories. The arts and science can remind us ways and values beyond experience. It is always difficult to think and imagine things beyond the limits of our own knowledge accumulated through personal experience. Freeing our imagination from the limited images of our experience means that we obtain an opportunity to derive new images from the same world. This is also important in helping people to understand each other, and for world peace. The arts and science encourage us to go beyond experience.


BWW Society Member Tetsuo Kaneko received his degrees in both Chemistry and Physics from Japan's Chuo University.  His career includes service at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute, the Koto Microbe Laboratory and he is currently Technical Advisor to Kurarkenchikuzoukeisha Co. Ltd.  He is a Member of the American Physical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences, the Chemical Society of Japan, the New York Academy of Sciences and the Physical Society of Japan.