Daily Read 4: Essay Aeon | 100 RCs for Practice - CAT PDF Download

Essay 1

Essay Name: The ends of knowledge
By: Rachael Scarborough King, Seth Rudy (Edited by Sam Haselby)

Right now, many forms of knowledge production seem to be facing their end. The crisis of the humanities has reached a tipping point of financial and popular disinvestment, while technological advances such as new artificial intelligence programmes may outstrip human ingenuity.  

Read the full essay here: https://aeon.co/essays/should-academic-disciplines-have-both-a-purpose-and-a-finish-date

Summary and Theme

The article examines the existential question of whether academic disciplines should have a defined purpose and a potential end date. It delves into the crisis of the humanities and the challenges faced by knowledge production in the face of technological advances and political skepticism. The authors argue for a reevaluation of the goals and potential endpoints of scholarly work, drawing inspiration from the Enlightenment and the philosophies of Francis Bacon. They suggest that acknowledging the possibility of an end to a discipline can help clarify its purpose and defend it against mischaracterization. The piece also touches on the historical shifts in academic structures and the rise of interdisciplinarity, while questioning the current organization of knowledge around traditional disciplines. It proposes a thought experiment of reorganizing knowledge production not by content but by the ends that disciplines aim to achieve, thereby fostering a more ethical, informed, just, and reflective world.

Difficult Words

• Salutary: Beneficial; promoting a beneficial effect or outcome.
• Scholasticism: A medieval system of theology and philosophy based on Aristotelian logic and the writings of the early Church Fathers.
• Novum Organum: A philosophical work by Francis Bacon, which presents a new method of scientific inquiry, contrasting with the old way of Aristotelian thinking.
• Telos: An ultimate object or aim; in philosophy, it denotes the inherent purpose or objective of something.
• Terminus: An end, limit, or boundary.
• Apocalypse: A prophetic revelation, especially concerning a cataclysm in which the forces of good permanently triumph over the forces of evil.
• Dystopian: Relating to or denoting an imagined state or society where there is great suffering or injustice.
• Moratorium: A temporary prohibition of an activity.
• Utopian: Modeled on or aiming for a state in which everything is perfect; idealistic.
• Epistemological: Relating to the theory of knowledge, especially with regard to its methods, validity, and scope.

Essay 2

Essay Name: Cosmic vision
By: Claire Isabel Webb (Edited by Sam Haselby) 

Enlightenment philosophers were vexed that their expanding empirical science of the external, material world collided with long-standing religious and moral traditions premised solely on internal, a priori knowledge.

Read the full essay here: https://aeon.co/essays/jwsts-cosmic-revelations-will-change-our-interior-lives-too

Summary and Theme

The article explores the profound impact of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on our understanding of the cosmos and ourselves. It reflects on the historical journey from Galileo's telescopic discoveries to the JWST's advanced capabilities, which may reveal the origins of galaxies, the potential for extraterrestrial life, and the very nature of the universe. The piece suggests that as our cosmic sensibility deepens with new astronomical data, so too does our philosophical and moral understanding of our place in the universe. It posits that the JWST's findings will not only extend our knowledge of the cosmos but also influence our internal, reflective views on existence, potentially reshaping our moral universe.

Difficult Words

• Astrophysical: Relating to the branch of astronomy concerned with the physical nature of stars and other celestial bodies.
• Biosignatures: Indicators of life, such as specific atmospheric gases that might be produced by living organisms.
• Chiaroscuro: An art technique that uses strong contrasts between light and dark to achieve a sense of volume in modelling three-dimensional objects and figures.
• Cepheid variable star: A type of star that fluctuates in brightness and is used to measure cosmic distances.
• Geocentrism: An astronomical theory which places Earth at the center of the universe.
• Heliocentrism: The astronomical model in which the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the Solar System.
• Spectrometer: An apparatus used for recording and measuring spectra, especially as a method of analyzing the structure of materials.
• Exoplanetary: Relating to planets outside our solar system.
• Scalar: Relating to or using a scale or measurement, especially one that allows for comparisons in terms of size or magnitude.

Essay 3

Essay Name: A gospel of enjoyment
By: Charly Coleman (Edited by Sam Haselby) 

Apparently, the Carthusian monks who distil the herbal liqueur Chartreuse have been struggling to maintain a work-life balance.

Read the full essay here: https://aeon.co/essays/chartreuse-economic-theology-and-the-french-spirit-of-capitalism

Summary and Theme

The article discusses the unique blend of economic practices and spiritual beliefs that characterize French capitalism, as exemplified by the Carthusian monks who produce Chartreuse. Despite robust demand, the monks have chosen to limit supply, prioritizing their spiritual mission over profit. This decision reflects a broader French ethos that values quality of life and enjoyment over economic rationality. The piece delves into the historical and theological roots of this approach, tracing it back to 18th-century economic theology, which integrates spiritual and material wealth. It also connects these ideas to contemporary French politics, particularly the debates over pension reform and the work-life balance. The article suggests that the French spirit of capitalism, influenced by Catholic ethics, privileges enjoyment and social solidarity, challenging traditional economic models that focus solely on production and profit.

Difficult Words

• Sacramental theology: The study of Christian rites and rituals that are believed to impart divine grace.
• Transubstantiation: The Catholic doctrine that bread and wine become the actual body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist.
• Assignat: A type of paper money used during the French Revolution.
• Sans-culottes: The common people of the lower classes in late 18th-century France, many of whom became radical and militant partisans in the French Revolution.
• Enragés: A radical faction during the French Revolution that promoted the interests of the poor and extreme egalitarianism.
• Laissez-faire: An economic system in which transactions between private parties are free from government intervention such as regulation, privileges, tariffs, and subsidies.
• Sacralisation: The act of imbuing something with sacred character or significance.
• Jouissance: A French term that can mean enjoyment in terms of both rights and pleasures; it is also used in psychoanalytic theory to describe excessive physical or intellectual pleasure.
• Secularism: The principle of separation of the state from religious institutions.
• Fetish character of commodities: A concept in Marxist theory referring to the perceived mystical qualities of commodities arising from the social relations of labor embedded in them.