The Big Picture… The Plant in Front of Your Nose

I take a minute to reflect on something other than the plant in front of our nose.

July saw the death of two of America’s most distinguished scientists, Richard Lewontin and Steven Weinberg.

I was fortunate enough to know them.

In my publishing career we developed books with both of them for Scientific American Library.

They were deep and large thinkers - and very much approached science as a material study.

Dr. Weinberg had the amazing notion (he would not like I call it a ‘notion’…and would grumble at my simplification) that the first three minutes of forming the Universe created everything meaningful….

after that has been mere existence.

The influence of their thought has been extremely significant and reinforced by empirical observation and numerous other scientists.

They also are exemplary characters in our human evolution demonstrating the influence/power of thinking and knowledge creation.

Perhaps we do a bit of farm work this week in their memory….although Weinberg might consider it meaningless!

Photograph by Jesse Coker

Night Sky

Narragansett, Rhode Island