Description
Book SynopsisThe quest to understand defines our humanness. Since time immemorial it has given rise to art and literature, philosophical reflection, religious practice, myths, metaphor, and allegory, as well as, in more recent history, disciplined scientific inquiry. Seeking understanding is a lifelong journey towards a goal the parameters of which change as our pursuit progresses, until, at life’s end, the goal vanishes beyond the horizon. Such is humanness. Along the way, we build, in an enduring self-transformative fashion, our mind—the scientific mind. But what is that mind? A transdisciplinary team of 21 prominent authors, from areas such as music history, psychiatry, physics, cosmology, education, astronomy, mathematics, medicine, gaming, artificial intelligence, science communication, early child development, science education, and economics, shed light on what it takes humans to build and cultivate the scientific mind along the lifespan. A decade of intercultural dialogue preceded the book. It comprised six major international Building the Scientific Mind colloquia in culturally diverse settings that spanned the entire planet. Several hundred people from different disciplines and interests—among them distinguished scientists, policy and decision makers, practitioners and thinkers—contributed to the dialogue. Building the scientific mind transforms our ‘way of being in the world.’ It is driven by the desire to understand deeply—cognitively and affectively—who we are in a world of which we are an integral part. It has great relevance for sustained human existence in the Anthropocene and profound implications for how we organize the conditions for informal and formal learning.
Table of ContentsForeword Walter R. Erdelen Acknowledgements List of Figures and Tables Notes on Contributors Introduction: The Making of This Book and Its Roots in Creative Collaboration Jan Visser and Muriel Visser Intermezzi: Thoughts Inspired by the Thoughts of Others Jan Visser 1 The Quest to Know: Seeking Understanding and Wisdom Jan Visser Intermezzo 1: The Missing Piece Jan Visser 2 Context Is Everything and Everything Has Meaning Robert Greenberg Intermezzo 2: Life Starts Long before Its Beginning Jan Visser 3 From Preconception to Preschool: The Foundation of the Scientific Mind Emily Vargas-Barón Intermezzo 3: Touching the Encountered World Jan Visser 4 Saga of a Small Science Center Arvind Gupta Intermezzo 4: The Worthwhile Struggle to Overcome Inertia Jan Visser 5 Expanding the Dialogue: Challenging the Mental Models of Schooling through Indigenous Invention Paul E. Heckman Intermezzo 5: When the Sky Is Not the Limit, It Could Be the Beginning Jan Visser 6 The Inspiring Universe George Miley, Carolina Ödman and Pedro Russo Intermezzo 6: Never Ever without Passion Jan Visser 7 Playing the Role of Facilitator: Questioning the Curious Mind Jos van den Broek Intermezzo 7: On Dialogue Jan Visser 8 How You Talk Is How You Think; How You Think Is How You Understand Paul Webb Intermezzo 8: Facing Life’s Biggest Questions Jan Visser 9 Seeking to Know and Understand the Self Premana W. Premadi Intermezzo 9: A Sense of Beauty Jan Visser 10 Beauty in Science, Science in Beauty: The Scientific Aesthetic as an Evolving Heuristic Matthew Colless Intermezzo 10: Making the Unfamiliar Familiar Jan Visser 11 Science Popularizer Is the Most Important Job That Does Not Yet Exist: Why Modern Societies Need More Science Popularizers Lê Nguyên Hoang Intermezzo 11: It’s Not Just a Right; It’s an Obligation to the Future Jan Visser 12 Fostering Inquiry, Reasoning and Critical Thinking J. Michael Spector Intermezzo 12: How Long Can We Still Wait and Who Takes Responsibility? Jan Visser 13 The Shifting Mind of Economics Martinus Petrus de Wit Intermezzo 13: Looking Back with a View to Looking Forward Jan Visser 14 Invent the Future Federico Mayor Intermezzo 14: Culture of Differences vs. Difference of Cultures Jan Visser 15 Seeking to Find out Why Things Happen: Variations on a Theme of Diallo Sampa’s Grandfather Ralf Syring Intermezzo 15: Reverence for Life, Whatever Its Manifestations Jan Visser 16 Nontraditional Pathways to the Development of a Scientific Mind: Examples from the Domain of Psychopathology Stephen P. Hinshaw Intermezzo 16: Homo Ludens Jan Visser 17 Education in a Complex World: Nurturing Chaordic Agency through Game Design Carlo Fabricatore and Ximena López Intermezzo 17: Where Science Ends Jan Visser 18 HIV, Medical Science and the Call to Greater Humanness James Lees Index
