18 JAN 2013 by ideonexus
Newton Was "Last of the Magicians"
Newton provides an example of how the idea of "science" had not yet fully emerged as something separate from religion in early Enlightenment thinking. In fact, during the seventeenth century, the word "scientist" was not commonly used to describe experimenters at all; they were called natural philosophers"^^ in an extension of the Puritan idea of the study of the Book of Nature. Science had also not fully emerged as a separate concept, but was sometimes thought of as a method or style of stud...There was a great deal of belief in magic in Newton's writings.
08 JAN 2013 by ideonexus
Definition of a Naturalist
If people ask me about my worldview, I say that I am a naturalist. When most people hear that word, they think of someone who spends a lot of time outdoors watching birds and admiring landscapes—and I suppose that description applies to me. But I think of naturalism as a philosophy rather than a lifestyle. F a philosophical perspective, naturalists believe that the physical universe is the universe. In other words, there are no supernatural entities or forces acting on nature, because there...It is a philosophical state of mind, grounded in empiricism, in addition to being one who appreciates nature.
10 JUN 2011 by ideonexus
The Naturalist Virtue of Leaving Nature Untouched
Of course, we can combine natural history
study with gardening, hunting, owning pets, and other
pursuits that keep us close to the earth. The more such
activities, the better, in terms of a full, rich, characterbuilding
relationship to nature. But natural history
study provides training in another key environmental
virtue that the others do not: leaving things alone. The
sportsman’s code prohibits wasting meat from the
animals killed, the organic gardener’s ethics proscribe
unsustainable ...Take only photographs, leave only footprints.
10 JUN 2011 by ideonexus
Teddy Roosevelt Considers the Night Sky
After an evening of talk, perhaps about the
fringes of knowledge, or some new
possibility of climbing inside the minds and
senses of animals, we would go out on the
lawn, where we took turns at an amusing
little astronomical rite. We searched until we
found, with or without glasses, the faint,
heavenly spot of light-mist beyond the lower
left-hand comer of the Great Square of
Pegasus, when one or the other of us would
then recite:
That is the Spiral Galaxy in Andromeda.
It is as large as our......each night to feel appropriately small.
10 JUN 2011 by ideonexus
A Naturalist's Code
Of course, naturalists’ activities themselves
can go astray or fail to provide their full benefits.
Rachel Carson warned that “it is possible to compile
extensive lists of creatures seen and identified without
ever once having caught a breathtaking glimpse of the
wonder of life.”22 A concern to have the newest,
fanciest gear has taken many a birdwatcher away from
simplicity and frugality! As with hunting’s
“sportsman’s code,” a “naturalist’s code” might help
prevent these ...Would include rules about being reasonable and not spending a lot of money on fancy equipment.