Multidisciplinarianism

Originally posted: Sat, 23 Jun 2018 11:53:00 +0000

Nice, long, big word there as a title. I'll shorten it for you: polymath. A person of wide knowledge or expertise. The desired human state.

I have long been an advocate for something I call wide-spectrum literacy: competence in reading, writing, arithmetic, science, technology, politics, philosophy, economics, to say the least. I have what you could mildly call a vehement dislike of ignorance, particularly wilful ignorance: I find little to no excuse for it, especially in developed nations where access to technological marvels which act as gateways to endless learning and knowledge, most of it free, is commonplace to the point of being carried around in pockets.

You can imagine, then, my sickening disgust at the state of the world, and the horror of facing an international society in which ignorance, bigotry, and mendacity don't just roam freely, but are actively pursued as if they were the highest virtues.

Now, I'm not going to lay the blame entirely at the feet of poor education, because that simply isn't true. How can it be, when I came through the same academic system as some of my peers who struggle to recall basic biology? That isn't to say the education system isn't flawed, far from it, however it does suggest that there must be other factors involved. Familial biases perhaps? I know it's no longer the done thing to blame the parents, but surely if they seek to take some of the glory of their offspring's achievements, then they should also should some of the responsibility for their failings, too?

We must also consider social pressures, as they have just as much power in the shaping of a mind as a parent or a school. While the lunacy of religion does seem to be waning, it seems other cult-like groups are springing up like weeds, and at much the same rate: pro-diseasers (I refuse to call them by any other moniker, call them what they are), flat earthers (we've got proof the other planets are round, but all evidence that Earth follows suit is bogus, or has been tampered with, or otherwise doesn't fit my narrow bias), naturo-/homeopaths (Avocados are great for making guacamole, so why hasn't David Wolfe been squashed yet?) and a whole host of pseudo-scientific/quasi-religious/kinda-spiritual bullshit. And with these lowest common denominator groups come the wide-smiled snake-oil selling celebrities, conning more and more people (who really, really should know better) into hanging on their every word and following each instruction as if given by a god.

Perhaps it's also political and economic: I'm sure we can easily point to elements within the executive and legislature who have overtly/covertly hinted that everything is worse because of that political party/that colour skin/those from country x rather that admit to screwing you over, knowing full well that they've spent enough money on media, and removed enough funding from everywhere else, to make you believe it. And that's without accounting for the political/economic theory dedicants, those who worship at the temple of Friedman, Rand, Buchanan and Hayek. The truly insidious ones who think money is all that matters, and unless you have it, you shouldn't have anything else.

These are just the obvious, flag-waving culprits of a dumbed-down, ignorant society. These, if anything can be called such, are the enemy.

Homo Sapiens Sapiens (that's us, by the way) are natural polymaths: we are born capable of having wide knowledge across many domains. It is crucial for own our development and survival that we exploit this fact about ourselves. Not only might it help us achieve our fullest professional potential, but also contribute to our personal happiness too. Stifling our own abilities starves ourselves of our need to freely be who we are but could also starve the rest of the world from new scientific discoveries, technological marvels, artistic wonders and more.

It's also more than that: we are living healthier and longer. The implications for this are worrying, with unemployment being chief among them. There is a solution (it's not a perfect one, and perhaps not the most desirable one either): either we have a much longer one-track career, or we re-skill and have 2 full work experiences. (Not that I am advocating that work should be a necessity here, but realistically work isn't something that we can just get rid of overnight [unless we perfect AGI and robotics and nothing goes wrong]).

There is invariably more to this than I can fit in this post, but I do think that this is the future. Exploit the polymath potential and begin a whole new journey!