Nature's Order: The Model of Concern; Response to Aaron Lester's Problem With Predictions, Harvard Gazette

The Problem With Predictions, Harvard Gazette: “People have always yearned to peer into the future to make sense of what's going to happen”, Said Mathematician-Speaker; David Orell (Aaron Lester, Harvard Correspondent reports) during a Peabody Museum Talk, April 25, 2013. Although Orell’s talk is not recent his subject seems timeless.

Turning points can be hard to make and even harder to predict, especially if we aren't looking. Taking the time to do things responsibly is more important everyday. Everybody has been rushing about for such a long time it seems we don't slow down and look. We might notice things do peer back at us. If we take the time to see them. With all the deadlines to meet, bills to pay. What notice did we miss?

If we could slow down. Follow the signs. Think about the obstacles, clean up the trip hazards and have the patience and compassion to allow things to fall into place. People may begin to see what will happen. Because of what happens when we do something to hastely, quickly without thinking.

Orrell say’s that “the Greeks believed that the Cosmos (an old way of saying the universe) was ruled by Mathematical Harmony, and followed the classical ideals of unity, stability, symmetry, elegance, and order.” Order; last but not least. He said that “their ideals were reflected by the architecture of the Pantheon in Rome with its elegant geometry.”

Although Speaker Orrell said “there is not a perfect model of prediction, he asks “what’s the common tie? how are our world views connected? How can we make predictions before and during pandemic, financial crisis and climate change?”

When we think about predictions I see things resting where they fall or where they are pushed. What if some high air pressure pushed lower air pressure or what if it didn’t. Perhaps a meteorologist would know the answer to my question.

Although the future is still harder to predict than the weather, the model of what structures it does seem to have some similarity. A symmetry and geometrical condition. The natural order of things. Trees knew how to plant themselves before we made it our job. Electricity was produced before we charged money for it. Somethings are necessary to do, and somethings are necessary to leave alone: what need be, and what need not to be. Like Shakespeare asked "to be or not to be that is the question."

What does “To be, or not to be” mean?

“To be, or not be” means Hamlet’s mind is torn between two things, “being” and “not being.” “Being” means life and action. While “not being” refers to death and inaction.