by Annette
9. July 2007
It's a widely held belief in the scientific community that one of the enduring characteristics of human life is our ability to predict. Throughout history we've been quite adept as a species at creating scenarios of what the future may hold and anticipating possible outcomes.
Enter the 21st century. As the pace of change itself increases and more access to the innovations that change brings, human capabilities of prediction are less and less accurate. Who could have predicted that a defunct presidential candidate would produce a powerpoint presentation that would revolutionize American consciousness about global warming? Or that humans would be spending 7 billion hours a year playing solitare on the computer? (More about that in another blog). The point is that as our ability to anticipate the future declines, our anxiety about the future increases. We wonder how to manage change and maintain a sense of control in our daily life.
Some advocate giving up trying to control as a way to deal with the future. And certainly there is some sense to that argument on a spiritual level. But practically, our evolutionary brain won't allow us to give up control. Humanity will always find a way to try to shape the change and survive it.
Fortunately in addition to our ability to predict, another characteristic that is uniquely human is our ability to create. We are wired to shape our experience and that around us in new and different ways. Because participating in creation - whether it's writing a computer program, raising children or painting a canvas - is finally one of the most satisfying parts of being human. And as Virgil noted, hanging stars in the sky might be God's job, but it's the human trajectory as well.
