I remember therefore I am

There is a famous philosophical phrase which you may have heard of by the French philosopher Rene Descartes. I think therefore I am. I have never been able to fully appreciate this phrase, because I have never been able to understand it. I thought it was just a confusing idea which apparently was very profound to its creator, Descartes but it was not profound to me. I think therefore I am. Recently however I chanced to discover it’s true meaning, all these years after I first heard it in some random college philosophy course which I had taken while I was trying to decide on a major. The way that I learned the meaning of this phrase is by accident, when I came up with an idea of my own, which wound up discerning for me the meaning of Descartes famous saying.

My saying has to do with the importance of memory. Memory is the evidence of life itself. Could we prove that we have ever lived if we did not have our memories? No, there would be no way to prove it. The very young cannot prove they live because they do not have memories. Memory starts to develop a bit later than the first few years of life. Memory is an essential component to the human mind, so important that we cannot say that we exist without a memory. In other words our very existence is hinged on our capacity to remember. Not facts, like one plus one, but rather the experiences of life we have had. When I came upon this realization, I was immediately struck by Descartes’s famous philosophical saying and I knew that I had finally, unintentionally understood it. Descartes’s saying values thought above all else. According to him the greatest form of human consciousness is thought. Our very existence, says Descartes, is hinged upon our capacity for thought. He says, we cannot prove exist if we do not think. I agree with that argument.

However I would add memory is just as significant two human life as is thought. It is a vital sign of life. Thus I would say, I remember therefore I am. Yet there is another aspect of consciousness of the human mind that is just as important as the intellect and memory: emotions. Not all emotions, but rather positive emotions. Without positive feelings, we cannot say cannot say we are wholly alive. Happiness, excitement, and joy, enliven the soul, and prove life. Thus I say, I feel therefore I am. Negative feelings, depression, sadness, pessimism, have the opposite effect and deaden the soul. Thus they are to be avoided.

The intellect, positive feelings and memory; they constitute identity, the “I am”. To Descartes thought was paramount to identity. I argue all three are equally important. A reduction in the power of positive feelings reduces one’s identity. A reduction in the power of memory also reduces one’s identity. The same is true for the capacity to think. In the weakening of each faculty, one would be left to wonder “Who am I? Do I exist?” Identity, it seems, is divided within three parts. However, Descartes was not talking about the human mind. He was talking about the philosopher. He defined the philosopher as one whose whole existence, whose very reason to be, is anchored in profound thought and reflection.

Kujtoj prandaj jam (Albanian)

Ekziston një frazë e famshme filozofike për të cilën mund të keni dëgjuar nga filozofi francez Rene Descartes. Mendoj prandaj jam. Unë kurrë nuk kam mundur ta vlerësoj plotësisht këtë frazë, sepse kurrë nuk kam mundur ta kuptoj. Mendova se ishte thjesht një ide konfuze e cila me sa duket ishte shumë e thellë për krijuesin e saj, Dekartin, por nuk ishte e thellë për mua. Mendoj prandaj jam. Megjithatë, kohët e fundit pata rastin të zbuloja kuptimin e vërtetë të tij, gjatë gjithë këtyre viteve pasi e dëgjova për herë të parë në një kurs të rastësishëm filozofie të kolegjit që kisha ndjekur ndërsa po përpiqesha të vendosja për një drejtim studimi. Mënyra se si e mësova kuptimin e kësaj fraze është rastësisht, kur erdha me një ide timen, e cila përfundoi duke dalluar për mua kuptimin e thënies së famshme të Dekartit.

Thënia ime ka të bëjë me rëndësinë e kujtesës. Kujtesa është dëshmi e vetë jetës. A mund të vërtetojmë se kemi jetuar ndonjëherë nëse nuk do të kishim kujtimet tona? Jo, nuk do të kishte asnjë mënyrë për ta provuar atë. Foshnjat nuk mund të dëshmojnë se jetojnë sepse nuk kanë kujtime. Kujtesa fillon të zhvillohet pak më vonë se vitet e para të jetës. Kujtesa është një komponent thelbësor i mendjes njerëzore, aq i rëndësishëm sa nuk mund të themi se ekzistojmë pa kujtesë. Vetë ekzistenca jonë varet nga aftësia jonë për të kujtuar. Jo fakte, si një plus një, por më tepër përvojat e jetës që kemi pasur. Kur e kuptova këtë, u godita menjëherë nga thënia e famshme filozofike e Dekartit dhe e dija që më në fund, pa dashje e kisha kuptuar. Thënia e Dekartit vlerëson mendimin mbi gjithçka tjetër. Sipas tij forma më e madhe e ndërgjegjes njerëzore është mendimi. Vetë ekzistenca jonë, thotë Dekarti, varet nga aftësia jonë për të menduar. Ai thotë, ne nuk mund të provojmë ekzistimin nëse nuk mendojmë. Jam dakord me këtë argument.

Megjithatë unë do të shtoja kujtesa është po aq e rëndësishme. Është një shenjë jetike e jetës. Kështu do të thosha, mbaj mend, pra jam. Megjithatë, ekziston një aspekt tjetër i ndërgjegjes njerëzore që është po aq i rëndësishëm sa intelekti dhe kujtesa: emocionet. Jo të gjitha emocionet, por emocionet pozitive. Pa ndjenja pozitive, pa ate, nuk mund të themi se jemi plotësisht të gjallë. Lumturia, eksitimi dhe gëzimi, gjallërojnë shpirtin. Kështu them, ndiej pra jam. Ndjenjat negative, si depresioni, trishtimi, pesimizmi, kanë efekt të kundërt dhe e vdesin shpirtin. Kështu ato duhen shmangur.

Intelekti, ndjenjat pozitive dhe kujtesa; ato përbëjnë identitetin, “Unë jam”. Për Dekartin, mendimi ishte parësor për identitetin. Unë argumentoj se të tre janë po aq të rëndësishëm. Reduktimi i fuqisë së ndjenjave pozitive zvogëlon identitetin e dikujt. Një reduktim në fuqinë e kujtesës redukton gjithashtu identitetin e dikujt. E njëjta gjë vlen edhe për aftësinë për të menduar. Në dobësimin e çdo fakulteti, do të lihej të pyeste veten “Kush jam unë? A ekzistoj?” Identiteti, me sa duket, është i ndarë në tre pjesë. Megjithatë, Dekarti nuk po fliste për mendjen njerëzore. Ai po fliste për filozofin. Ai e përkufizoi filozofin si një njeri, e gjithë ekzistenca e të cilit, vetë arsyeja për të qenë, është e ankoruar në mendimin dhe reflektimin e thellë.

Space, the ocean of the universe

Space is not material in the traditional sense. Unlike matter space is not tangible. Yet, like matter, space has structure, which suggests it is real, if only to some extent. While the structure of matter is atomic, the structure of space is most likely string.  The strings of space crisscross each other in an orderly fashion to form a lattice or grid. 

Space probably cannot be sucked by a vacuum or blown by a fan. Space can however be heated and cooled. This can be proved by the fact that the sun’s heat travels through space. Heat is motion. This means that space strings are set in motion by the sun’s heat. In fact, like atoms, which are always moving, space strings are probably always in some degree of motion.

While matter is composed of many elements-92 known naturally occurring elements-space probably has only one type of string. Space strings are so small and light that alone they have very little, infinitesimal mass. However, since the universe is so large, most of the mass in the universe is dispersed as space. While space has loose and dispersed mass, matter has a strong concentration of mass. This is what makes it matter. Although space has mass, it has no gravity.  As we shall argue, gravity is not an innate property of mass. It is produced by the relationship of matter to space. Space is instrumental to the creation of gravity, but it by itself has none.

Space does not transmit sound waves, yet it transmits light waves. Because space strings are much lighter than the atoms of matter, they can be waved back and forth by light energy much faster. Thus light travels much faster than sound, which travels through matter.  Moreover the speed of sound varies by the element that is being waved. Light elements mean faster speed, and higher pitch. Because space only has one type of string, the speed of light is constant. Also, since we know the speed of light to be: 299 792 458 meters / second, we can deduce the speed of a string of space to be: 299 792 458 meters / second.

A string of space is the lightest thing in the universe, much lighter than even the lightest element of matter, hydrogen, and even lighter than all sub-atomic particles. Photons, gluons and gravitons are said to be the lightest of all elementary particles. In fact they are said to be massless because their motion is unencumbered through space. However, it can be argued they are not massless bur rather simply are mass-equivalent to a string of space. Theoretically, everything that exists must have mass, if only a little bit. Thus, it is strange to call these particles massless; perhaps a better name is near-massless, meaning they have enough mass to exist, but not enough mass to be measurable.

Just like everything in the universe, which has a lifespan-a beginning, middle, and end-the strings of space also have a lifespan. Since they are so small, it’s possible their lifespan is very extreme in either direction, very short or very long. They may have the shortest lifespan in the universe. However, atoms, which are very small, have a very long lifespan; billions of years. This could mean space strings have a long atomic-like life span. Whatever the case, one thing is true: Space will outlast matter. The universe began with empty space, and it will end with empty space… then it perhaps will shrink back into a void. For now, just like life, space strings are always replaced by new strings.

 In fact, since the universe is growing, this can only mean that “the population” of space strings is always increasing. Physicists call this phenomenon expansion. Space has been expanding since the moment it burst out of the infinitely small dot, at the universe’s birth. As space expands, it carries matter with it: all galaxies are carried further out into the periphery of the universe.

Currently, scientists have not physically seen or identified space or its tiny strings, but they have found something called dark matter, a mysterious entity that does not reflect light. 94 percent of the universe is dark matter; since space is just as abundant, dark matter, is quite likely space itself. Moreover, as stated earlier, light and other forms of electro-magnetic radiation travel via waves composed of very small, sub-microscopic discrete dashes called quanta. This suggests that scientists already have an idea of the strings of space. Photons, the discrete dashes of light, are seemingly dashes of space. The assumption that space has never been seen is not true; in fact, quite the opposite; we see everything through space, the sub-material substance whose particles, called photons, light up physical reality.

In string theory, scientists believe matter at its most basic level is composed of strings, which are also discrete. This suggests that space is the foundation of matter. The first subatomic particles in the universe (electrons, neutrons, photons, gluons etc.) likely were created out of the fusion of loose space, due to extreme heat at the Big Bang. In fact, even today, scientists claim small sub-atomic particles are constantly being created in the vacuum of empty space. This suggests the vacuum is not empty. It is full of space, the raw material for matter.

The strings of space are the most fundamental structure in the whole universe. The atom is made up of subatomic particles such as protons, electrons, photons and quarks. These components however resemble space more than matter: like space, they have no internal parts, and some of them-photons and gluons-have no real mass. They are tiny strings of space, the universe’s most fundamental structure.

Matter is built from a dense concentration of space. It has so many strings of space, that it has real, measurable mass. Einstein’s famous equation E=MC^2 asserts that energy is found within matter. Let us imagine two strings of space colliding at the speed of light, as the equation states. When the two separate fibers of space are fused their overall mass contains the motion, kinetic energy, of light speed plus the infinitesimal mass they individually possess. In other words, the addition is greater than the two separate units. This suggests that by fusing countless fibers of space in a chain reaction, real mass can be created.

It is possible that at the big bang, the major growth spurt of the newborn universe, the population of space strings expanded drastically. These fibers collided with each other with extreme heat energy “and stuck together,” leading to the first sub-atomic particles. These collided to form hydrogen. Then gravity formed stars with hydrogen. Then, as scientists state, due to extreme heat within stars, the other elements of matter were fused together in their core; hydrogen, the first and lightest element, is fused into helium, helium into deuterium, etc. The elements are expelled when those stars explode in a supernova if they are large enough to do so.

further reading: The Goldilocks Enigma by Paul Davies The Cosmic Landscape by Leonard Susskind

Jorgo: the lost Socratic dialogue

I was walking to my car after visiting a diner in the Short North, an artsy old fashioned neighborhood near downtown Columbus. I had ordered a slice of pie. It was pecan and overwhelmingly sweet, thus immoderately good. But it was overheated and I burned my mouth at first, about which the waitress apologized. She was a friendly woman, about my age and tried to make me feel at home. And then she brought me my bill: Four dollars and forty cents. I was shocked, how can you charge four dollars and forty cents for a slice of pie! Nevertheless I made not a peep about it, rounded the total up to five, and left on foot. All the way back to my car, I kept indignantly repeating to myself: “How can you charge four dollars and thirty cents for a slice of pie. How can you possibly charge four dollars and thirty cents for a slice of pie.”

Instead of going to my car, I decided to take a walk through the park. This park was large and though not ever busy, on nice days, like this warm and sunny Spring morning, had a sparse amount of pedestrians. In the end I sat on a park bench to gather myself. While meditating, as I stared at the small pond ahead of me with ducks in the corner and the small fountain at its center, I couldn’t help but fall asleep. And I dreamt as if I had somehow travelled in time and found myself in the midst of a Socratic dialogue in an open air amphitheater of ancient Greece. Upon seeing me, Socrates, interrupted his talk, and called me down to center stage.

Socrates: Who are you and whence come you?

Me: My name is George and I come from the future.

Socrates: Have you lost your wits?

Me: No, sir, I come from the year 2021.

Socrates : Your name is foreign. What country is it from?

Me: America.

Socrates : Never heard of it. I shall call you Jorgo. How is life in the year 2021?

Me: Terrible, currently a huge pandemic has plagued our world.

Socrates: You are given to dreaming my son.

Me: I am not lying.

Socrates: And what is it that you are wearing?

Me: Jeans and a T-Shirt.

Socrates: You look terrible. Is this the fashion of the day or are you the only one without any sense of taste?

Me: Everyone dresses like this in the future.

Socrates: Tell me something else about the future.

Me: Greece is not the best country anymore.

Socrates: Shame on you, you lack wisdom! Greece will last forever. And what else is new?

Me: There is a lot of technology now.

Socrates: Such as?

Me: Computers.

Socrates: What do they do?

Me: They can be used to type, surf the internet, videochat, or hang out on social media.

Socrates: Hold on there, just a minute, you really have lost me. Is there no philosophy in the future?

Me: Not a single word.

Socrates: Really, is there no cultivation of virtue in youth?

Me: Not really.

Socrates : Is there no study of logic?

Me: Not really.

Socrates: What do you mean? Is there no philosophers in the future?

Me: There are some… but not like you and Plato.

Socrates : How so, how do they differ?

Me: In many ways.

Socrates : In dress?

Me: Yes.

Socrates : In hair style?

Me: Yes.

Socrates : In shoe style?

Me: Yes.

Socrates : In outward appearance, you mean to say?

Me: Yes

Socrates : Well, what about their thoughts? Are they sound? Or do they go on ringing in a long harangue like brazen pots which when they are struck continue to sound unless someone puts his hand upon them?

Me: The philosophers of the future are eminent professors in universities, but perhaps, now that you mention it, they do go on ringing in a long harangue like brazen pots…

Socrates : Young man, all of this talk of the future is empty and hollow. The technology you have mentioned is hogwash, your clothes lack style, the philosophy of the future is a non-starter, and the idea that Greece is to fall is a big goose egg. If this is our future, I weep for it, and am so very glad I shall never see it!

I then woke up, as a baby in a stroller, being pushed by a mom was crying aloud. I gathered my wits, wiped the slobber off my face, and became well aware of my hapless situation. It was a strange dream indeed, thought I. I looked around the pond, saw a few people walking, including office workers on lunch break, a young couple, and the same ducks by the water fountain. The sky was blue and the sun was shining. I got up and walked to my car, meditating on my dream. I got to my car, opened the door, and drove off. So charming left Socrates’ voice, that I the while, thought him still speaking.

The End

(Contains phrases from Plato)

Motivational Quotes 12/18/20

Good decisions are made in good times; bad decisions are made in bad times

Timing is the source of luck; both of the good and the bad

Luck is another word for fate; they’re opposite sides of the same coin

Every face is a mirror and reflects you your own, in a way no other can

The eyes like a familiar face since long absent

Beauty eases pain

Some rise by sin and some by virtue fall -Shakespeare

How often have the good suffered only because they were within the scope of influence of the bad…

We often dislike those we’ve hurt -Gretchen Rubin

To be good is to be happy; he who is good is happy, and he who is happy is good

Motivational Quotes 9/25/20

After a certain age, the race feels over and every year is a victory lap!

Those at the beginning long to be at the end; those at the end long to be at the beginning

To allow the current to take control, instead of resisting its waves, is to relinquish your destiny; to assert your will is to find your way back home.

What is, is meant to be; what never was, was never meant to be

Carry life on happily

Turn your weakness into your strength.

If you can’t beat the fear, do it while scared! -Will Smith

The self is perceived in meditation; but it is seen more clearly when reflected from another.

Life itself is always one’s greatest accomplishment.

Just as every story needs a happy ending, life must end in heaven.