I choose to do science because I believe that of all endeavors Man can undertake, there is none as noble and worthy as seeking the truth. I believe this spirit was manifested in me when I learned to appreciate and understand geometry in middle school. Geometry allowed one to merge mathematics with visual shapes and objects, in the sense that one could prove, given a regular hexagon, the interior angle must be 120 degrees! We could certainly measure the angle and find an agreement, but the proof is exactly what the word says, additional proof that what we perceive from our senses must be true. One could argue that it is what we sense and experience that provides legitimacy to our thought, and not the other way, but I think that's the beauty of the whole catch-22 situation---neither really provides legitimacy for the other. Rather, it's the result, the truth, when I measure 120 degrees or conclude from proof its 120 degrees, that gives our measurement and logic credibility. The uncertainty in our senses and uncertainty in our thought are dispelled when the result of both processes agree. When we have struck upon such a truth, we are certain of it! Thus, I am lead to believe more and more in seeking for truth, because it is the only thing that is certain.
These past four days have been a trip down memory lane. I'm going to try to organize some of the memories for blogging, though not all in this post. My parents, M and I took a road trip to Hualien, partly as a family get-away, and also to introduce our Taiwanese hometown to a group of my brother's ( Albert Wu see here and here ) students from France. Albert and his wife are jointly teaching a course in history in Paris, and over the last few weeks they have been taking their students on an abroad research-coursework-fun tour of Taiwan. If you know my father, he tends to try to get involved in some way with any of his sons' projects, and from our perspectives, it's great to get his help and/or just advice (from time to time). My brother and his wife planned a historical, social justice introduction to Taiwan (I wrote about a visit to Dadaocheng ). Important components to understand the complex identities and mindsets of Taiwanese today involves understanding the Ea
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