Just remembered to document something from several weeks before. We watched a video called “The Art of Asking Better Questions” and answered several questions during class. (video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYnGiWlwcj4)

My answers are as follows:

What ideas/phrases have stayed with you?
Childlike questions can turn into sth more concrete(within the mind of an adult) in an adult-driven world.------Jonathon Keats

We're hierarchical creatures that don't want to shame ourselves.------Tim Ferris


Which speaker made you curious to know more about their work?
Jonathon Keats. What he said about adults thinking that childlike/stupid questions are "inappropriate" really struck me, because I tend to worry about stepping over the line when I want to ask sth that is considered absurd in the adult world.


What are some "stupid" questions you have after watching these videos?
Will we get sth different if we interview kids? Or if we ask a kid(a normal one, not a child genius) to give a presentation/talk?

To me, one speaker stood out amongst others: Jonathon Keats. So I researched his work further, and found that he had an experiment in which he attempted to genetically engineer God and to determine its place on the evolutionary tree.

And I was like, woooow.

I was really interested in anything related to Mythology and Belief(it was a HUGE chunk in my Box of Uncertainties, where I quoted Puddleglum’s belief in Narnia’s existence when he was trapped in a darker world), and I’m currently searching for modes of media other than novels, audiobooks and visual images(film and television) to demonstrate fiction. This is exactly what I was looking for.

In this project, Keats aimed to explore the intersection of science and religion by attempting to create a physical being that could be considered God. This project was more of a thought experiment rather than a scientific endeavor, which excites me because I didn’t know there was such a thing called a thought experiment;)

Keats focused more on exploring the concept rather than a literal scientific experiment. He wasn’t successful in creating a God(unsurprisingly). But he did manage to spark discussions about the nature of God, the boundaries of science, and the role of art. His initial intention was to use art and philosophy to challenge assumptions and provoke conversations, not to literally create a deity.

This is somehow extremely relatable to what I’m currently doing and searching for in my own project. I’ll sort out the logic later. This entry is literally something that I remembered was important for me but forgot to document immediately at that time.

(https://www.wired.com/2004/09/engineering-god-in-a-petri-dish/)

Adding a definition of thought experiments here:

Thought experiments are mental exercises that involve creating hypothetical situations to explore a concept, theory, or question. They act like simulations in your mind, allowing you to play out scenarios that might be impossible or impractical in the real world.