Change is this thing, see, that happens. Regularly. In fact, some would go so far as to state that change is the natural state of mankind. The 'some' I am referring to, of course, is me. I would go so far as to state that. But the honest truth is, life is change, and maybe who we are is an extension of how we react to it.
That seems existential, and to an extent it is. But what brings this up is the fact that just recently, Stephen Hawking changed his mind. Which kinda changes a theory that he's the granddaddy of. Which changes the world.
Okay, maybe not. Maybe whether or not black holes have event horizons versus apparent horizons has nothing to do with your day-to-day life. In fact, unless you are either a theoretical physicist or a sci-fi writer, you almost certainly won't be affected by this change. But I am affected by this change. Drastically.
See, I write sci-fi (what, you actually thought I might be a physicist? No? Oh. That kinda... that kinda burns a little). And typically, I avoid black holes like the plague. There's so much that's been done with them in popular entertainment that is, catagorically, wrong. As such, there's a stigma associated with writing about them. Putting a black hole in a story is like saying "hey guys, I don't know of anything in science that would make what I'm talking about possible, so, black hole!" It's cliche. But not too long ago, I did some research into black holes (Including reading Stephen Hawkings "A Brief History Of Time"), and I realized that hey, black holes could theoretically (based on then-current scientific understanding) do this really nifty thing! Then I worked that nifty thing into a universe I'm building. I was excited.
And now the theory has changed. I'm wrapped up in two emotions in regard to this particular change. First, I'm excited. The fact that science is constantly advancing, that men like Hawking have the ability to recognize what might be flaws in their thinking, is refreshing. But at the same time, I'm not sure, due to the sensationalism of the media, if my nifty thing will work based off of the current theory. So I've got some research to do before continuing to build stories around this fictional technology.
So how do we deal with change? Well, I could get mad. I could get snarky about scientists not knowing what they're talking about. I know a few people who are doing just that. Or I could be annoyed. I could work around the issue by pretending that any change in our understanding is wrong, or I could just get rid of this thing completely. Or I could be excited. I could get all stoked to spend time learning something new, and hope that my nifty idea still works. But even if it won't, that probably means that I will find something equally as nifty that does. Maybe something even niftier. It could be completely awesome.
As with any change, I think that it really all boils down to three choices. You resist, mock and revile against the change, you grudgingly give way, or you evaluate what that change means to you and move on from there. And the point is, that's a choice, it's your choice, and no one can make it for you.
So think about how happy you want to be. Because how you choose to react to change kinda determines that. As for me, I've got a paper to read.
That seems existential, and to an extent it is. But what brings this up is the fact that just recently, Stephen Hawking changed his mind. Which kinda changes a theory that he's the granddaddy of. Which changes the world.
Okay, maybe not. Maybe whether or not black holes have event horizons versus apparent horizons has nothing to do with your day-to-day life. In fact, unless you are either a theoretical physicist or a sci-fi writer, you almost certainly won't be affected by this change. But I am affected by this change. Drastically.
See, I write sci-fi (what, you actually thought I might be a physicist? No? Oh. That kinda... that kinda burns a little). And typically, I avoid black holes like the plague. There's so much that's been done with them in popular entertainment that is, catagorically, wrong. As such, there's a stigma associated with writing about them. Putting a black hole in a story is like saying "hey guys, I don't know of anything in science that would make what I'm talking about possible, so, black hole!" It's cliche. But not too long ago, I did some research into black holes (Including reading Stephen Hawkings "A Brief History Of Time"), and I realized that hey, black holes could theoretically (based on then-current scientific understanding) do this really nifty thing! Then I worked that nifty thing into a universe I'm building. I was excited.
And now the theory has changed. I'm wrapped up in two emotions in regard to this particular change. First, I'm excited. The fact that science is constantly advancing, that men like Hawking have the ability to recognize what might be flaws in their thinking, is refreshing. But at the same time, I'm not sure, due to the sensationalism of the media, if my nifty thing will work based off of the current theory. So I've got some research to do before continuing to build stories around this fictional technology.
So how do we deal with change? Well, I could get mad. I could get snarky about scientists not knowing what they're talking about. I know a few people who are doing just that. Or I could be annoyed. I could work around the issue by pretending that any change in our understanding is wrong, or I could just get rid of this thing completely. Or I could be excited. I could get all stoked to spend time learning something new, and hope that my nifty idea still works. But even if it won't, that probably means that I will find something equally as nifty that does. Maybe something even niftier. It could be completely awesome.
As with any change, I think that it really all boils down to three choices. You resist, mock and revile against the change, you grudgingly give way, or you evaluate what that change means to you and move on from there. And the point is, that's a choice, it's your choice, and no one can make it for you.
So think about how happy you want to be. Because how you choose to react to change kinda determines that. As for me, I've got a paper to read.
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