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Symbol Definitions (Enhancing and Conserving the potential of our most vital symbols.)) | ||||||||||||||||
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Definition The energy symbol Energy is the potential of the universe(s). Humans are mortal forms and cannot know the full potential. However indications are we are intimately involved with how that potential is manifest (The Uncertainty Principle of Energy). Also this far no human in recorded history has ever in any practical way found flaws in the Conservation Principal of Energy which states that energy is so bounteous it can be considered a constant and that it is subject to constant transformations. Energy is manifest in every aspect of existence and no aspect or form of existence can be called energy. They may be categorized as forms or sources or manifestations or types of energy with each having its own symbol. Give each its own symbol so it can be talked of by its own name. Do this and our children can better know the bounteous nature of energy and enjoy the vitality of its transformations.
Definition The power symbol Power is the rate at which energy is manifest. In as much as energy is manifest in every aspect of existence then every aspect of existence is powered. No form or aspect of existence can be called power but power can be categorized in terms of forms or sources or manifestations. For instance we can talk of: * Manpower (7.46
Watts), An indication of the range of ways of measuring power can be seen at the conversion sites Give a symbol to every manifestation of power and our children will enjoy greater harmony with the changing balances and flows of our universe(s).
Definition The love symbol Love is a state of being. It is associated with compassion and the unconditional acceptance of oneself, of other human beings and of all other life. In this state of acceptance of one and all we experience connection with the universal. This connection promotes a sense of bounteousnous, strength and fearlessness. The bounteousness enhances our sense of awe, gratitude and our ability to know energy. The strength enables us to confront and accept our aloneness and limitations, our mortality and roles as stewards. The fearlessness enables us to learn from our perceived errors. In this state we know truth without fear. Love is associated with warmth and ease and a sense of freedom. The warmth reminds us of the energy of the universe(s). The ease enhances all our senses so we are more receptive of the universe(s) and can better reflect the totality of change and live with greater harmony. The sense of freedom opens us to giving so that all may come to us and the spirit of inquiry thrives in us. Knowledge is enhanced in the spirit of sharing and science thrives, thus enabling language, art, meaning, civics and all that we know as civilisation Anything less than this is not love. Just as energy is, love is. Just as there is no such thing as “renewable/sustainable energy” or “dirty/clean energy” there is not such thing as “bad/good love” or “tough/soft love” or “cheap/expensive love”. These are states or ways that lack love or what love is not and as such each has its own symbol. So know the love symbol expresses the universal in us and thus our children will be more able to enjoy greater meaning and harmony.
Khalil Gibran, The Prophet Definition The science symbol Science is a state of being founded in compassion that enables us to better reflect and enjoy harmony with our constantly changing universe. Compassion provides the requisites (inclusiveness, collegiality openness and sharing; inquiry; honesty and trust; time and reflection) for science to exist. When all these requisites exist in our use of symbols, knowledge and technology then civilisation tends to thrive. In the absence of compassion there is no science. Thus science is more than a way of thinking or a body of knowledge. It is a state of being that transcends thinking and knowledge and is a state that all conscious humans are born into. We are all scientists to some degree and so it is non-science to call a select group of some people scientists or to talk of a scientific community. Know this and our children will enjoy the fuller potential of the science within them and art, language, civics and all that enables civilisation will thrive.
Definition
The energy efficiency symbol The
universe is subject to constant transformation and its flows and balances
are continually changing. Energy efficiency is the wise use of resources
so that the balances that sustain us are conserved as fully as possible.
Because we live in a flux of change the efficiency of every act we make
alters with the moment. What can be considered a wise use of resources in
one moment can be considered unwise in the next as our general environment
changes, new technology evolves and our awareness of the impact of our
activities changes. Energy efficiency is a state of being in which we are
mindful of our every act. Most
definitions of energy efficiency define it as the use of less
energy without reducing the end-use benefits. This is a denial of the
fundamental nature of energy and it promotes the politics of deprivation
and fear. It obscures the fact that energy is as bounteous as the
universe(s) and comes in many forms. It is possible to increase the amount of energy we use and become more energy efficient in the process. For instance by designing our dwellings to optimize their solar potential and thus reducing demand for Bulk-generated electricity we can use more energy while being in greater harmony with the balances and flows that sustain us. Similarly we might increase the food available without negatively impacting on balances by employing the unused potential of our backyards. Energy
efficiency is about reflecting and being in harmony with reality i.e. the
constant transformation, which is our universe(s). Click here for more discussion of sustainable uses of the energy efficiency symbol.
Definition The atmosphere symbol “Atmosphere is a
layer of gases that may surround a body of sufficient mass.”
Planet Earth has an
atmosphere with bounteous potential in that it enables a wide range of
life forms to exist here. When using the atmosphere symbol it is helpful
that we remain mindful of the fullest potential so that we can understand
its impacts are manifest. We can apply general uses of the
atmospheric symbol to Earth thus: The atmospheric thermal effect (the capacity of the atmosphere to retain thermal energy) The atmospheric convective effect (Air molecules move relatively freely. Hence our atmosphere is characterized by a large capacity for thermal convection and thus works to moderate temperature extremes around the planet.) The atmospheric insulating effect (Air has a relatively low capacity to conduct thermal energy and thus can be used as a thermal insulator if convection is suppressed.) The atmospheric ozone effect (Ozone molecules in the stratosphere interact with harmful solar waves (ultraviolet rays), transforming them into waves that are less harmful to life on Earth. The ozone molecules are destroyed in the process and are constantly replaced by the atmosphere. Atmospheric pressure (This is a measure of Earth’s gravitational force in combination with the total mass of a column of air above a location. Atmospheric weather (The set of all extant phenomena in our atmosphere at a given time. We are most familiar with weather in the troposphere where almost all the Earth’s water vapour resides. We experience it as wind cloud rain snow, fog and dust storms. Conserve the
atmosphere symbol thus and our children will know the fuller
potential of their Atmospheric Beings and so enjoy greater harmony with
and be sustained by the dynamic system, which is Earth’s atmosphere.
Definition The greenhouse symbol A greenhouse is a closed structure designed to suppress air convection while remaining transparent to natural sources of light so that plants within can do photosynthesis. Traditionally the cladding was glass (hence glasshouse) but transparent plastic is now often used. The suppression of air convection means heat from the sun and internal furnaces can be better retained, thus enabling plants to be grown out of season and in hostile colder regions. Greenhouses exploit the fact that air has a great capacity for thermal convection - the movement of masses of warmer molecules to cooler regions. It has a small capacity for thermal conduction – the direct movement of heat between atoms. Hence stilled air is a good thermal insulator. In the 1820s Joseph Fourier used the greenhouse symbol to describe how Earth’s atmosphere enhances and moderates surface temperatures of our planet. Already at that time greenhouses were a symbol of great social and industrial power. The Great Exhibition of 1851 which housed examples of Britain’s industrial might in a huge greenhouse (The Crystal Palace), was designed reinforce the image of humans (Britons) fulfilling ancient Biblical and other incantations that Man is ordained by God to live in dominion over all other creatures on Earth. The greenhouse symbol soon became the ultimate expression of the religions that enabled the Industrial Revolution with its fundamental belief that humans can engineer all elements of our planet at will. Thus it is now very common for climate experts, teachers and the media to evoke images of Earth encased in a greenhouse and preach of greenhouse gases and effects in a greenhouse world. This, of course is a great denial of change. Our atmosphere is very dynamic and organic structure, characterized by a powerful capacity to transfer thermal energy by convection. Greenhouses are inorganic structures, characterized by a suppressed capacity for thermal convection. It is also a great denial of stewardship for it replaces the image of humans as part of a dynamic structure with an image of humans transcending atmospheric processes and being able to control them. If the Sustainability Principle of Energy holds, then these denials put humanity at great risk. Using the greenhouse symbol to evoke images of humans living in harmony with atmospheric balances better conserves the potential of the symbol. By using it to communicate how humans can employ all manner of materials to create thermal transformers and to suppress air convection, then our children will be be able to use buildings, clothing, appliances etc as insulators and thus minimise their negative impact on the resources and balances that sustain us. Definition The carbon symbol. “Carbon is the
4th
most abundant element in the universe by mass after hydrogen, helium and oxygen. It is ubiquitous in
all known lifeforms, and in the human
body it is the second most abundant element by mass (about 18.5%) after
oxygen.[5] Carbon is the
sixth most abundant
element by weight in the Earth's crust. This
abundance, together with the unique diversity of organic
compounds and their unusual polymer-forming ability at the
temperatures commonly encountered on Earth, make this element the
chemical basis of all known life.” We can be seen as Carbon Beings as carbon molecules flow through us constantly and we need live in balance with the greater flow of carbon atoms on our planet and beyond. The carbon nitrogen cycle provides some of the energy produced by the Sun and other stars. Thus there can be no such thing as carbon neutrality. Our every use of carbon alters the balance and flow of carbon and we cannot trade away or offset our impacts. Such beliefs are a denial of change/stewardship. For instance, our action of extracting and burning a fossil fuel can never be considered neutral as the carbon options and impacts our children experience are altered so they can never use that resource again. Similarly the concept of the Post Carbon Age is unhelpful. Certainly we may not be able to burn fossil fuels as we have this last thirty years. However there are countless ways we need carbon and can use it sustainably. Talk of all carbon
forms and our children can know the fuller potential of their Carbon
Beings.
Definition
The electricity symbol It is impossible to define electricity if we are to retain its fullest potential. That is because the wide range of electrical phenomena that we know of exhibits such a differing and contradictory qualities. We are Electrical Beings and we live in electrical universe(s). Electrical charges are found throughout the universe(s), even in the vast regions previously thought to be empty space. In fact 99% of the universe(s) is electrical plasma. Electricity reflects the paradoxical state of existence and is at once visible and invisible; slow to near stationary and fast as the speed of light; totally weightless and has a small weight; a class of phenomena and thus cannot be measured and we can measure it; and it is unchanged even as it is changed. To conserve the maximal potential of the electricity symbol it is helpful to treat it as we do the energy and power symbols: know it is manifest as a multitude of phenomena and take care not to call any of those phenomena “electricity”. Instead give each phenomena its own symbol, for instance, speak of electric charges, electrical energy, electrons, electric currents, imbalances of charge, electric fields, voltage, electric power, electromagnetism, electrical science or studies and electrical phenomena etc. Similarly talk of bioelectricity, piezoelectricity, tribolectricity, thermoelectricity atmospheric electricity etc. Similarly avoid
becoming a pawn in the malicious play of greedy bankers etc who callously
exploit the electricity, energy and power symbols and define
them as their product, Bulk-generated electricity. Do this and our children can enjoy the fuller potential of their Electrical Beings and, especially in this time of high risk to humanity for we exist the Cheap Oil/Gas Age, they will be better able to thrive. With special thanks to William J Beatty re understanding the nature of electricity.
The
existence of the universe(s) is associated with the constant flow of
thermal energy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_energy It is not easy to define the thermal energy symbol, as it is associated with wonderfully complex phenomena. For instance, it can be seen as the sum of kinetic and potential energies of the molecules. We experience thermal energy as the oscillation, vibration and random activity of atoms and their constituent particles or, if you like, as matter, heat, warmth, life… It
is also helpful to know that thermal energy always moves from warmer areas
to cooler areas. Every motion of every element of the universe is
associated with this transfer. The movement of thermal energy is also
associated with the transformation of the elements from one state to
another. For instant gas becomes liquid becomes solid and variations of
this. By
use of combustion (eating and breathing) you and I moderate the flow of
thermal energy through us so our temperature remains relatively constant
at about
98.2ºF (37ºC). Thus we sustain our human form. Always warming. Always cooling. All that exists is subject to constant warming and cooling. That is the nature of existence. To put it simply, for an object to remain in a steady state in which there is no net change of temperature then warming = cooling, as in Incoming thermal energy = outgoing thermal energy When
warming does not equal cooling then there is a change of net temperature
of object and the object tends to change its state. It can warm up, as in Incoming
thermal energy > outgoing thermal energy = a rise in temperature Or it can cool down, as in Incoming
thermal energy < outgoing thermal energy = a lowering in temperature. Simply
put: without thermal energy matter ceases to be manifest. We are each
Thermal Beings. As such, we are part of the universal flux of thermal
energy and we are sustained in this human form by the vast flows and
exquisite balances of the thermal movement. Conserve the awesome potential of our warming & cooling symbols so our children can sense the vitality of their Thermal Beings and enjoy greater harmony with the universe.
Definition The global
warming & global cooling symbol(s) Before
reading this definition please read how to conserve the potential of our warming
& cooling symbols. As
with any other element of the universe(s), planet Earth is subject to
constant warming and cooling. The planet is a manifestation of a
relatively constant state in that its surface temperature remains
relatively constant 15ºC, thus enabling the existence of organisms. Earth is constantly cooling as the planet resides in what amounts to near space or a region of the universes(s) where matter barely exists. The region surrounding the planet is thus extremely cold. However even as the planet is subject to cooling it is subject to warming. Some of the warming is from gravitational forces within the planet but this is insufficient to sustain life, as we know it. The life sustaining warmth is generated by the impact of solar energy on Earth’s surface. The resultant constant state, in which global warming equals global cooling, enables cellular structures such as we human beings to exist. We
are sustained by global warming equally as we are sustained by global
cooling. Conserve
the global warming-global cooling symbols thus for they communicate
the vitality of Earth’s existence to our children. Note
it is common for our media (including internet search engines), teachers
and climate scientists to make contrary uses of these symbols of
temperature constancy and associate them with temperature changes. For
instance they describe a warming-up of Earth’s surface as Global Warming
rather than a Global Warming-Up or Thermal Build-up. The inability to use
the up symbol is part of a wider syndrome. In
order to understand this contrary behaviour it is helpful to acknowledge
that all humans have a capacity to deny the nature of change (our
mortality) and our roles as stewards. The
up and down symbols are very potent and when used in
conjunction with the warming and cooling they form a
powerful reminder of the trace nature of our existence. They work to
remind us that we are Trace Beings and that our existence depends on brief
thermal balances amidst the greater flow of thermal energy. We
may find it difficult to face the inconvenient truth that this change is
happening – especially if the distinct possibly exists that our own
activities are generating the change and putting us at increased risk. As
part of our capacity for denial of change and our roles as stewards we
attempt to associate the global warming symbol with the change of
state/temperature change, for we know at our cellular (primal) level that
global warming/cooling is a welcome and sustaining process. This flawed
use of the global warming symbol is an attempt to resolve the
dissonance created by our desire to continue with behaviour that we know
is unsustainable i.e. the dissonance created by our innate knowledge that
our walk is contrary to our talk. The
denial of change and stewardship generates and reflects profound confusion
for even as we attempt to convince ourselves at a primal level that the
risky global temperature change is OK (i.e. a sustaining/healthy process)
we articulate an association of malevolence with the Global Warming symbol
as in Global Warming = Bad (i.e. the life sustaining thermal balance at
Earth’s surface is malevolent). Worse,
the equation of the warming and warming up symbols (i.e.
warming= warming up) reveals an active rejection of life itself. It
represents a denial of the underlying thermal balances and flows that
enable any form to be manifest. We each have a capacity for hatred,
self-destruction and denial of our mortality. The association of global
warming with malevolence is a manifestation of this capacity and this use
of the symbol is part of a wider phenomenon in which many of our most
vital and sustaining symbols are associated with evil in our current
culture. In short the equation warming = warming up is a recipe for
misery. It requires an active decision to conserve the global warming & cooling symbol(s) and ensure any personal dissonance we experience is not projected onto our children. Let them embrace and celebrate with the unique thermal balance, which is our planet. Let them enjoy harmony with global warming/cooling.
Definition The Biofuels
symbol The
biofuels symbol is a new symbol and does not exist in
dictionaries before the 1970s. Its genesis lay, in part, in the need to
distinguish between fossil fuels (mineral oil, gas and coal) and (bio)fuels
derived from biological matter or biomass
(plants, animals, fish, microbes, etc). While our remaining
fossil fuels resource has great power potential at the moment it is
limited in that it cannot be replaced because it took eons to form. The
biofuels resource of our planet has much less power potential at any time
than our current fossil fuel resource. However biomass is constantly
renewed and if used wisely it can form a relatively renewable resource. Bio
is from Greek bios which means life. Fuel is from Old French
fouaille < Latin focalier < focus which means hearth. Every symbol use
reflects the ethos of the user. Once the hearth was central in people’s
awareness. Cars and jets are central to rich people’s awareness now and
current use of the biofuels symbol is dominated by the automobile
and air travel industry supporters. Hence numerous dictionary and
legislative definitions revolve around this central assumption: " Biofuels -- Liquid fuels and blending
components produced from biomass (plant) feedstocks, used primarily for
transportation" This reveals a
denial of change and stewardship in that biomass provides the fundamental
fuel used to sustain all human bodies and billions of people rely on fuel
from biomass for heating – especially for heating food stocks to make
them digestible. The symbol use works to deny the fact that it is often
food stocks that are fuel for cars and jets. This use of the biofuels
symbol also denies other vital elements of the flux which is Earth’s
carbon system. Forests play an essential role cleansing water and
moderating its flows, retaining soil, acting as a food reservoir and
providing shelter for humans. The symbol use works to deny the fact that
it is often forests that are fuel for cars and jets. Biofuels are
sometimes called
bioenergy. This reveals a denial of change and stewardship
in that, in general, the fuels are only transformed into useful forms with
combustion. It is a denial of the essential role that the atmosphere plays
in the energy equation: Combustion = fuel plus
atmosphere. Conserve the potential of the biofuels symbol by ensuring your use of the symbol remains inclusive of our need for forests, food, shelter and heating. Be mindful that a symbol use is the message and the fuel use is the infrastructure. If a biofuel use involves transforming food stocks into car fuel then call it “Food stock for cars/jets”. If a biofuel use involves transforming forests in plantations for car fuel then call it “forests for cars/jets”. This acceptance of stewardship enhances the possibility that all our children can enjoy the fuller potential of biofuels.
Note: A separate page is devoted to the exponential function symbol Other key symbols
to be discussed include Oceans Return to Education Discussion
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