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Quanta, v. 1, issue 3, August 1949
Page 7
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7. 6) The evidence at this time seems to indicate that no person or group of persons can formulate plans for World Peace, World Prosperity, etc., and force the peoples of the world to accept and act upon these plans. Even if perfect plans could be formulated they would not be accepted and acted upon so long as the great masses of the people are unfamiliar with scientific methods and can be swayed by appeals to their emotions and prejudices. We postulate that attempts of this nature reverse the natural order of human progress and will probably continue to fail in the future as they have in the past. 7) We think a more appropriate course of action would be to teach adults who are willing to learn and children basic scientific principles, scientific methods, and the application of these to the solution of their everyday problems. 8) We postulate that if a new generation could be taught the fundamentals of science, the fundamentals of scientific methods, and the application of these to the solution of their everyday problems it would be possible to build, in the near future, a saner, a safer, and a better world. Scientist, educators, and other familiar with the essence of scientific methods are urged to devote less time and energy to the sciences of inert matter and to turn their talents to the extremely important issues of the relationships between mind and body, of man to man, and of man to the world in which he lives. They are urged not to abandon the scientific method of thinking as soon as they are outside their laboratories, and to devise procedures which would enable the great mass of humanity to apply the discoveries of science and scientific methods to the problems of everyday life. ---- I would like to add at this point that Captain Saunders in one of a relatively small group of people who are earnestly trying to bring about a set-up such as was given in the above outline. These people devoted much of their time and energy (without any great amount of monetary compensation) to teaching, writing, and lecturing upon the principles of General Semantics. Captain Saunders has not only expounded the teachings of Korzybski but in some respects improved upon them, as have many others working in the field. In my opinion it is the duty of everyone (science-fiction fans in particular) to learn all that they possibly can about the subject and then try the best of his ability to spread this knowledge and help allay the misunderstandings which still obstruct its advancement. It is beyond my abilities to attempt any exposition of General Semantics at this point; I can only urge you readers to take a course or at least attend a lecture of G. S. if any are given in your territory. If this is impossible, there are quite a few books on the subject, the reading of ehich will prove helpful. Information on these books can be obtained by writing to: The Institute of General Semantics, Lakeville, Conn. (F. K.)
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7. 6) The evidence at this time seems to indicate that no person or group of persons can formulate plans for World Peace, World Prosperity, etc., and force the peoples of the world to accept and act upon these plans. Even if perfect plans could be formulated they would not be accepted and acted upon so long as the great masses of the people are unfamiliar with scientific methods and can be swayed by appeals to their emotions and prejudices. We postulate that attempts of this nature reverse the natural order of human progress and will probably continue to fail in the future as they have in the past. 7) We think a more appropriate course of action would be to teach adults who are willing to learn and children basic scientific principles, scientific methods, and the application of these to the solution of their everyday problems. 8) We postulate that if a new generation could be taught the fundamentals of science, the fundamentals of scientific methods, and the application of these to the solution of their everyday problems it would be possible to build, in the near future, a saner, a safer, and a better world. Scientist, educators, and other familiar with the essence of scientific methods are urged to devote less time and energy to the sciences of inert matter and to turn their talents to the extremely important issues of the relationships between mind and body, of man to man, and of man to the world in which he lives. They are urged not to abandon the scientific method of thinking as soon as they are outside their laboratories, and to devise procedures which would enable the great mass of humanity to apply the discoveries of science and scientific methods to the problems of everyday life. ---- I would like to add at this point that Captain Saunders in one of a relatively small group of people who are earnestly trying to bring about a set-up such as was given in the above outline. These people devoted much of their time and energy (without any great amount of monetary compensation) to teaching, writing, and lecturing upon the principles of General Semantics. Captain Saunders has not only expounded the teachings of Korzybski but in some respects improved upon them, as have many others working in the field. In my opinion it is the duty of everyone (science-fiction fans in particular) to learn all that they possibly can about the subject and then try the best of his ability to spread this knowledge and help allay the misunderstandings which still obstruct its advancement. It is beyond my abilities to attempt any exposition of General Semantics at this point; I can only urge you readers to take a course or at least attend a lecture of G. S. if any are given in your territory. If this is impossible, there are quite a few books on the subject, the reading of ehich will prove helpful. Information on these books can be obtained by writing to: The Institute of General Semantics, Lakeville, Conn. (F. K.)
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