"To use a comparison, we could say that creating a new theory is not like destroying an old barn and erecting a skyscraper in its place. It is rather like climbing a mountain, gaining new and wider views, discovering unexpected connections between our starting-point and its rich environment. But the point from which we started out still exists and can be seen, although it appears smaller and forms a tiny part of our broad view gained by the mastery of the obstacles on our adventurous way up."
Albert Einstein and Leopold Infeld
The Evolution of Physics. 1938, p159.
This article was originally an introduction to all the different sources of data I had explored concerning possible histories of this planet and other more distant ones. It has been re-written to focus more on the question of: Is it worth it to collect tons of data from a variety of sources on this subject, sift through it all and look for patterns, similarities, differences? What would be the purpose of such an activity?
With the desire to handle a situation comes the desire to achieve a higher-level understanding or awareness of it. And as Einstein wrote in his textbook, this involves "climbing a mountain" to get a better view. But in the case of a subject as broad as the history of life, or of human life, what is the situation that needs to be handled? And are we in a position at this time to attempt to handle it?
All thinking men and women agree that there is a situation to be handled, or perhaps several situations. We have the decay occurring in the biosphere due to pollution and other human activities. We have the various moral crises involved with war, the growth of industry, and our focus on materialism in general. Education seems an ever greater challenge because of the level of expertise required to master our newer technologies. And so on.
If there is any common theme to all these situations, perhaps it could be called human ability. We seem to be reaching the limits of our ability to cope with our own expanding activities and desires.
The traditional approaches all assume that human ability has certain limits that cannot be exceeded except by the creation of ever more powerful physical technologies. My studies have taught me that this assumption is basically incorrect; that in fact an increase in human ability is the only viable way to improve our condition. Why, then, spend endless hours trying to sift through facts when we can increase human ability to handle situations instead?
If you are not, then, simply interested in an academic exercise (and I have been, many times!) and would prefer to do something that gets results, then why not look for a subject to study that gets results?
Others who have offered us "help"
All thinking men and women agree that there is a situation to be handled, or perhaps several situations. We have the decay occurring in the biosphere due to pollution and other human activities. We have the various moral crises involved with war, the growth of industry, and our focus on materialism in general. Education seems an ever greater challenge because of the level of expertise required to master our newer technologies. And so on.
If there is any common theme to all these situations, perhaps it could be called human ability. We seem to be reaching the limits of our ability to cope with our own expanding activities and desires.
The traditional approaches all assume that human ability has certain limits that cannot be exceeded except by the creation of ever more powerful physical technologies. My studies have taught me that this assumption is basically incorrect; that in fact an increase in human ability is the only viable way to improve our condition. Why, then, spend endless hours trying to sift through facts when we can increase human ability to handle situations instead?
If you are not, then, simply interested in an academic exercise (and I have been, many times!) and would prefer to do something that gets results, then why not look for a subject to study that gets results?
Others who have offered us "help"
ETs communicating to us through a telepathic (or similar) contact. The most obvious problem with these contacts is that we can't verify who is really making the contact. They seem special because they are telepathic. But even if they are ETs, what they offer seems wishy-washy or simply not useful. There is often an expressed undertone that we should rely on their advice because they are our superiors.
ETs communicating through direct contact. This phenomenon was made famous by Billy Meier. However, if the people flying the craft look human, how can we be sure if they are really ETs? And beyond that, they don't seem to be offering us much more than what has been communicated using telepathy or channels. Some people with websites about such things have had both types of contact.
Evidence-based Researchers. There are a variety of humans who claim to have obtained data about ETs, related matters, and of course all the usual subjects you might think of, through more normal modes of research. They are often not sympathetic to the "ET" messages coming from the two sources above. Most of these folks are all caught up in how amazing their data is. Whistle blowers, mostly from the military, have also provided data to us, either directly or through researchers. While this data is often sensational, it is otherwise largely unhelpful, and tends to only point fingers.
Action or study?
Some of us study data just to have something to do. Others, more purposeful, study so they can act. Your best bet, if you want to take action in the direction of handling the various situations on Earth, is the latter approach.
