vol 3: Development
chapter 14: Work
Introduction
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Introduction
Work is the realisation of a new physical entity, such as a washing machine, a computer, a text or even a religion. It is the embodimnt of ideas. Work is concerned with every little detail that it necessary to bring something into existence.
To exist, an object must fit in with the nature of the world and tap a source of energy.
A designer might be somewhat vague about how exactly part a is to be mated to part b, but a worker must find a way to do it, or go back to the designer and point out that the design does not work. We gather from the Bible that self awareness and awareness of the need to work arose together in human history (Genesis, 3)
It seems that all elements of the universe must work to maintain their existence. Ultimately their fitness is judged by the quality of their work, whether it be in finding food, reproducing or, in the modern world, selling ones abilities to a corporate entity. We must work to live. We must fit in and contribute some mite to the functioning of the whole.
In general, the better we suit the prevailing conditions, the better we will be rewarded. A corollary of this (at least in a just society) is that the standard of our lives is related to the quality of our work.
Work brings order out of chaos, and it brings freedom out of restraint. In other words, it gets us closer to heaven. In this part we study the role of work in human life, and the guidance of work by religion, culture, politics, economics, and design.
(revised 4 December 2007)
Further reading
Books
| Davis, Philip J, and David Park (editors), No Way: The Nature of the Impossible, W H Freeman 1987 Introduction: 'Think about the miracles of religion: a virgin gives birth, a man raises the dead and walks on water. Are these possible or are they impossible? Decide. ... what really counts as impossible? ... You can prove logical impossibilities, but do they say anything about the real world? You can assert practical impossibilities, but are they really impossible? Why bother about the question? Because mankind is inspired by the challenge of the impossible ...' [pp xiv, xvi] Amazon back |
| Dawson, Jr, John W, Logical Dilemmas: The Life and Work of Kurt Goedel, A K Peters 1987 Jacket: 'This definitive biography of the logician and philosopher Kurt Goedel is the first in-depth account to integrate details of his personal life with his work, and is based on the author's intensive study of Goedel's papers and surviving correspondence. ...' Amazon back |
| Fermi , Enrico, Thermodynamics, Dover 1956 Jacket: 'Indisputably, this is a modern classic of science. Based on a course of lectures delivered by the auithor at Columbia University, the text is elementary in treatment and remarkable for its clarity and organisation.' Amazon back |
| Genesis, and Alexander Jones (editor), in The Jerusalem Bible, Darton Longman and Todd 1966 'In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was a formless void, there was darkness over the deep, and God's spirit hovered over the water.' (I, 1-2) Amazon back |
| Gordon, James Edward, Structures: or Why Things Don't Fall down, Penguin Books 1978 Jacket: 'Engineers will of course understand why the Greeks took the wheels off their chariots at night, or why we get lumbago, why birds have feathers and how much science is involved in dressmaking as well as the strength of bridges, boats and aeroplanes. Professor Gordon explains all these things, showing how the need to be strong and to support various loads has influenced the development of all sorts of creatures and devices - including man. For this is a book about modern views on the structural element in nature, technology and everyday life. It is up to date, enthralling and entertaining into the bargain.' Amazon back |
| Jaynes, Julian, The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind, Haughton Mifflin 1990 Jacket: 'At the heart of this book is the revolutionary idea that human consciousness did not begin far back in animal evolution but is a learned process brought into being out of an earlier hallucinatory mentality by cataclysm and catastrophe only 3000 years ago and still developing.' Amazon back |
| Mazria, Edward, The Passive Solar Energy Book: A complete guide to passive solar home, greenhouse and building design, Rodale Press 1979 Jacket: Passive solar energy systems collect and transport heat by natural means. In essence the building structure or some element of it is the system. There are no separate collectors, storage units of mechanical equipment. ... The most striking difference between passive and active systems is that one operates on the energy available in its immediate environment and the other imports energy to make the system work." http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0878572384/tnrp">Amazon back |
| Monk, Ray, Wittgenstein: The Duty of Genius, Vintage ex Jonathan Cape 1990 1990 Review: 'With a subject who demands passionate partisanship, whose words are so powerful but whose actions speak louder, it must have been hard to write this definitive, perceptive and lucid biography. Out goes Norman Malcolm's saintly Wittgenstein, Bartley's tortured, impossibly promiscuous Wittgenstein, and Brian McGuinness's bloodless, almost bodiless Wittgenstein. This Wittgenstein is the real human being: wholly balanced and happily eccentric ... ' The Times Amazon back |
| Noble, David F, The Religion of Technology: The Divinity of Man and the Spirit of Invention, Penguin Books 1999 Introduction: 'It is the aim of this book to demonstrate that the present enchantment with things technological ... is rooted in religious myths and ancient imaginings. Althought today's technologists, in their sober pursuit of utility, power and profit, seem to set society's standard for rationality ... their true inspiration lies elsewhere, in an enduring, other-worldly quest for transcendence and salvation.' Amazon back |
| Prigogine, Ilya , From Being to Becoming: Time and Complexity in the Physical Sciences, Freeman 1980 Jacket: 'How has order emerged from chaos? In this book, intended for the general reader with some background in physical chemistry and thermodynamics, Ilya Prigogine shows how systems far from equilibrium evolve elaborate structures: patterns of circulation in the atmosphere, formation and propagation of chemical waves, the aggregation of single-celled animals. In an effort to understand these phenomena, he explores the philosophical implications of the work that won him the 1977 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.' Amazon back |
Links
| API The American Petroleum Institute Home Page back |
| Bureau of Meteorology, Australia Bureau of Meteorology, Australia back |
| Department of Social Security (Australia) Centrelink Home Page back |
| IPCC IPCC WGI - Activities (Workshop) back |
| Mathematical MacTutor Sadi Carnot ' ... worked on the mathematical theory of heat and helped start the modern theory of thermodynamics.' back |
| Monster.com Monsterboard "Monster.com.au is the leading global online network for careers" back |
| NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology 'working with industry to develop apply technology, measurements, and standards' back |
| Queensland University of Technology Research Centre for the Study of Ethics in the Market, Government and Professions back |
| The Institution of Engineers Australia The Engineering Centre back |
Click on an "Amazon" link in the booklist at the foot of the page to buy the book, see more details or search for similar items
Related sites:
Concordat Watch
Revealing Vatican attempts to propagate its religion by international treaty
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