Bronowski's Warning

A Clip from the Ascent of Man, Episode 13.

The warning is about the retreat from knowledge.  He says Western Civilization is giving up.  But this series was first aired over 40 years ago- just before his death.  How has that played out in the intervening time since his death?

Knowledge seems to continue in certain areas and decline in others.  One example of advancement is the internet and computers.

But the decline is seen elsewhere in space exploration and nuclear energy.  There are those who may argue if this is really a decline.  It may not be, if aneutronic fusion is perfected.  But that is a gamble.  If that gamble doesn't pay off, the West will have put all of its eggs in a barren basket.  If fusion cannot be perfected, what about fission energy?  It looks like this has definitely fallen out of favor, but what if that judgment has been premature?  If so, this is a retreat, which is not based upon scientific evidence.  It will have been a self inflicted injury.

The other sign of decline is in the slow advancement, if not outright abandonment of the exploration of space.  This too could be a premature judgment.  For the value of space exploration could be in finding those things that are claimed to be in short supply on Earth- unlimited resources.  It will have been a self imposed limitation, which is supposedly based upon the notion of limits to growth.  But what if that is incorrect?  What if the limits are only those that we impose upon ourselves?  What if you could settle space, which according to some claims, could hold orders of magnitude more people, with a civilization comparable to what exists now in only advanced nations of the world?

So the decline of the West may occur because of premature judgments.  The judgments in turn, are not necessarily based upon knowledge, but a belief in something that is not knowledge.  It could be a belief that science is the cause of trouble, not a solution for the troubles of humanity.  Is science the problem or the solution?  The answer to that depends upon a vision for humanity.  If humanity is to be remain locked upon this Earth, then limitations will be imposed that will avoid the solutions that science can provide.  The decline will continue.  As Bronowski says, the advance of man will continue, but by others instead.  As for myself, I'm not so sure.  If the West doesn't do it, it may never be done at all.