Original knowing
Subtitle: how religion, science, and the human mind point to the irreducible depth of life
By: J. Bradley Wigger
Publisher: Cascade Books
Published: 2012
Place of publication: Eugene, Or
Language: eng
Number of pages: 186
ISBN-13: 9781610976084
Subjects: Religion and science; Cognitive science; Theory of Knowledge
Description: "Did Lucy know God? Could Neanderthals talk? Was Ardi self-conscious? These are the strange new breed of questions emerging as we discover more and more about our prehistoric origins--questions about knowing. While fossil digs and carbon dating tell a remarkable story about the bones and times of our ancient ancestors, we cannot help wondering what they knew, and when. Exploring such questions Original Knowing takes contemporary science as seriously as religious tradition and searches for the story behind this odd creature who senses more to the universe than meets the eye. In limestone bluffs and butterfly migrations, from Stone Age tool-making to Sumerian beer-making, clues are sought to better understand this strange mind that ponders the origins of its own existence. When do babies point, and why does it matter? What does throwing a Frisbee reveal about our distant ancestors? Is language the key to our minds as many believe? Or perhaps the heart of knowing rests in something more basic, in a smile, and the powerful social abilities at work allowing us to sense a depth to life--to our own lives--a depth that our minds help us glimpse if only through a glass darkly."--Publisher's website.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 181-186).
Table of contents: title: Part 1: Origins. The tree of knowing ; The great river of time ; Life upon life.; title: Part 2: Rocks, roots, and relationships. Etchings ; The hatchet ; Promethean moments ; A little speculation ; Monarchs and the mousterian mind.; title: Part 3: Listen carefully. A time to talk ; From screeches to speeches: How did words come about? ; Rhythm of the saints.; title: Part 4: The butterfly effect. Originality, time, and education ; Blueberry picking ; The age of religious knowing ; Primed for more ; In the beginning.; title: Part 5: Irreducible. The rivers and falls of consciousness ; Stranger perspectives ; Home.