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| Two world wars came and went while Einstein figured the real shit out. |
Watched a Nova show I'd recorded a while back, and though still meditating on the significance of Barack Obama's final SOTU address, I'm reminded that our political discourse is an out-sized part of our cultural space. It's important -- politics often determines how we live and die -- but it's not the whole of life by any stretch of the imagination.
Albert Einstein dodged two world wars and before he was 36 had revolutionized our understanding of the physical world. I'm sure, from time to time, he and a friend or two opined about the outcomes of the upheavals in Europe. But between the ears, his view spanned light years, not countries, and we're the better for it.
His General Theory of Relativity remains unchallenged right up to today, yet it's only a portion of what a complete understanding might encompass. I recently watched Particle Fever -- streaming on Netflix -- that followed the unveiling of the Large Hadron Collider at Cern up to the verification of the existence of the Higgs boson, a magical moment in particle physics to be sure. I recommend it.
A thoughtful Barack Obama reminded me to take my spirit out for a spin from time to time. I don't grock enough physics and math as it is, and I'm not getting any younger. I love music but play it less than I should. I promised to fix the strings on the ole dulcimer and get my chops back on the string bass.
When should I do that, now, or a week or two after I die? Think it had better be now.
Peace.
(Oh, and fuck the GOP.)
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