Becoming aware of one’s environment, one’s self, and others (from knowing that you are seeing the reflection of yourself in a mirror to imagining yourself as someone else in a complicated fictional work) shows a gigantic range of development in how humans view themselves and others in the world. This awareness leads to the qualities of compassion, empathy, love, and cooperation. Being able to depend on what others are likely to do in a given situation allows us to assist in common efforts and avoid situations that may be unpleasant or dangerous. Knowing that we can depend on others allows us to choose specialized occupations and know that others will provide for the necessities that we cannot provide ourselves. We will examine these issues and ask ourselves the question: “Are awareness and cooperation the sparks that make humans unique or are we simply more adaptable at this ability than other animals that show the same abilities to different degrees?”
About our presenter:
Eric Ferm was raised in the Episcopal church and has been a member of Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church for the last 34 years where he is a member of the church choir and the Stephen Ministry team. He has been involved with the LA Forum on Science and Faith from its inception. Eric has always enjoyed science, taking all of the chemistry, physics and mathematics he could in high school and college. He has always found enjoyment in studying topics on the history and philosophy of science and religion and the intersection between them. He obtained a PhD in Applied Mathematics in 1981 and worked on fluid mechanics problems and analysis of problems and experiments involving fluids and dynamic solid movements of interest to Los Alamos National Laboratory for nearly 31 years. Eric has been retired since 2012 giving him more time for traveling around the world, barbershop and chorus singing, and enjoying being a new grandfather.