Philosophy scientists can use: Introduction

Philosophy – the stuff of ancient scholars and enlightened monks? That’s how most people might see it today. But does philosophy have to be discarded to the tombs of history or is some wisdom timeless? Obviously that is a loaded question; if the answer was no I would probably stop writing right now…

Instead we want to shed light on some age old wisdom that is applicable today; let’s be honest the way the world stands right now we could all use a little more wisdom in our lives. That is why we want to talk about aphorisms. If you haven’t come across the term before an aphorisms is a pithy statement designed to provide some insight about some aspect of life, they are also known as idioms. You have probably come across one or two already in your life and they have a habit of sounding more like clichés, for example “still waters run deep” or “a chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” Aphorisms are usually passed down from generation to generation and the good ones have been around for centuries, with some so old we don’t know where or when they originated.

In particular, we want to discuss aphorisms which are not only good for everyday life but also contain some wisdom that any scientist, or aspiring scientist, could apply to their life. For the next seven weeks we’re going to pick one aphorism a week and give some context about its history, meaning and how that knowledge can be applied in a lab/research environment. Hopefully you’ll stick with us on this journey, or at the very least dip in to those which you find interesting or think you can learn something from.

Later this week we will be discussing the aphorism “A Place for everything and everything in its place.”

Disclaimer: This article was inspired by an Art of Manliness series which I highly recommend you check out.