Canoeing and fishing the many rivers of New Brunswick has led me to ponder the intricate web of nature. Why does a salmon take a fly that looks like a huge unnatural monstrosity when it it not feeding that whole time it is in the river? Why does a brook trout have beautiful coloured spots all over it? How can the Moon affect fishing success?
These questions have baffled many but I can put them to rest. A salmon takes a fly because it does, a trout just has nice spots and the Moon does something to fish. It doesn't matter why - it simply matters that we take the time to notice and revel in the mysteries. There are so many things in nature that are truly amazing yet the majority of the population are too busy to notice. We need to slow down, consume less and observe more. We are only here for a short time.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Are we alone?
Billions of galaxies, billions of stars in each, billions of billions of planets, are we the only intelligent life out there? As a science teacher, I have to think in numbers. The probability that intelligent life evolved on only one of these planets is as close to zero as you can get.
Are we so naive and ignorant to think that we are it? We once thought that the Earth was flat and it was the center of the universe-an absurd notion today-but science finally convinced the authorities (mainly the church) that we are a mere speck in the vast universe. We had proof for this but we have not proved life outside Earth. In my opinion, it is only a matter of time and it will be an amazing and exciting moment when we first contact other intelligent life.
What do you think? I hope I live to see it!
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