I am considering an equation to explain the value of knowledge that is based on Einsteins famous e=mc2 equation.
Energy from mass and light
The equation e=mc2 basically means:
energy (a measure of power) is equal to the mass of an object, multiplied by, the speed of light squared.
The whole explanation for this is not my ball park, I understand the basics but the principle and what it teaches us is far more important because it is the reason why physicists will tell you that energy is truly abundant in the universe. It is literally every where, the only problem we face is our ability to unlock it from the objects that contain it.
This is my link to knowledge and its foundations in power and politics. The debate about knowledge and power is complex but a simple example is that humans have come to dominate this earth like no other species before and we have done it in the blink of an eye considering how long the earth and its ecosystem has existed. The reason for this rapid rise is hotly debated but my conclusion is our ability to both gain and use knowledge. Our hardware is not the best, for example we are not the best at seeing, hearing or moving yet we are the best hunters, gatherers and builders because we are perfectly adapted for discovering new ideas and putting them into action benefiting our species in the competition for survival.
That is a very brief summary because I really wanted to get into the core of this post which is that
the speed at which you can gain knowledge is quite literally the speed at which you can gain power
In Einsteins equation, where energy is an obvious form of power the speed at which you can obtain energy from an object is the speed at which you can gain power.
The power to overcome challenges
Knowledge, as I have briefly explained, is a form of power because it is key to overcoming a challenge and the industrial and now internet age is transforming us principally because it has been formed through more rapid extraction and dissemination of knowledge than was previously possible, This leads to faster learning for humans as a species, and at the same time promotes even faster speeds of learning than ever before.
It then follows that you could reinterpret Einsteins equation thus:
experience = mass of knowledge x speed of insight (insight is often considered light) squared
The funny thing is that I just discovered a very similar article I wrote in 2010 titled evolution of knowledge as e = mc2 so it shows how long this concept has been knawing at me.
The reason I think it is so important is because I believe that poverty and wealth are intimately tied to knowledge and experience. For example there are many that have little money but they know what to do with it and how to live the lives they want with what they little have, yet there are others who have plenty of money but don’t know what to do with it and so are not able to live satisfactorily with everything they do have. So it goes that you can be rich in resource yet poor in your experience of life at the same time and you can also be poor in resource yet experience and rich life.
Overcome poverty through knowledge
Knowledge and experience give you the power to overcome poverty and turn it into wealth, whether that be financial wealth or personal health or any other form of wealth is your choice. This debate is crucial to us all because it makes the internet age the best age to be in because the speed at which you can enlighten yourself is no longer down to who you know and the physical wealth you can muster. It is only limited by your ability to bend your mind in order to gain access to and understand the information you need. At the same time your ability to share what you know and enrich the world is also greater than ever before.
The net result of all this is that true power over our own lives is being devolved to us all at a rate never before seen and it is reflected in the equation Einstein postulated all those years ago. The physical laws of nature are just as applicable to energy of matter as they are to the energy of our minds.
Empowering my son
This is in essence my politics and how I want to empower my son. I want him to have the skills to obtain knowledge and experience quickly and effortlessly whenever and wherever he needs it so that he always has the power and influence that he needs.
His knowledge will become his power!!!
I find that fascinating and I hope you do too.
Thanks for listening.