ARCH 357 Chapter Notes - Chapter Part: Paul Gauguin, Homo Erectus, Progress Trap
Document Summary
Gaugin was a french painter who asked 3 crucial questions after his favorite daughter died. What is being focused on in the book. Progress is a myth in the anthropological sense (they reinforce cultures values) Pg 5 progress has an internal logic that can lead beyond reason to catastrophe ie weapons, first and was gunpowder then was the atom bomb the latter can blow up our world and is thus dangerous. Cybernetics, biotechnology, and nanotechnology are types of technology that we can hope will do good but we cannot for sure say the outcome will be worth it. Humans balance between cleverness and recklessness , between need and greed. All cultures are dynamic and we should be learning from our past falls due to the same reason progress. If we want to live on paradise, we have to take care of it. 1600 witches and priests were far more alarming than natural philosophers.
