Changes

H3 – The construction of the pyramids by the Egyptians is one of the most confusing aspects of World History. How could an ancient civilization, without access even to the wheel until later in its lifespan, manage to construct such large structures with unparalleled precision and skill? I think it is important to understand that without modern distractions and the like the ancients (including the Egyptians) probably devoted far more time and energy in mastering the various arts to which they had access. That being said, time and energy, regardless of how ample, can never sufficiently account for genius, pure and simple. Literal explanations, naturally, are more complicated. The sadly flawed theory that the Egyptians used logs to build the Great Pyramid is incorrect for several simple reasons: a) the use of the logs is too close of a leap to the wheel for someone to use without making the connection, b) Egypt simply did not have the resources to muster such a supply of logs, and c) the logs would have snapped like twigs under the weight of multi-ton pieces of rock. If I had to guess how they managed to construct the pyramids I would assert that perhaps they used a series of planks and boards somehow slickened by oil, mud, water, or some thereof combination in addition with sledges to drag the pieces into place. In any event, even such an explanation cannot account for how precisely the measurements of the stones are, in addition to how spectacularly precisely the pyramid is aligned with the celestial heavens.

H3 – The construction of the pyramids by the Egyptians is one of the most confusing aspects of World History. How could an ancient civilization, without access even to the wheel until later in its lifespan, manage to construct such large structures with unparalleled precision and skill? I think it is important to understand that without modern distractions and the like the ancients (including the Egyptians) probably devoted far more time and energy in mastering the various arts to which they had access. That being said, time and energy, regardless of how ample, can never sufficiently account for genius, pure and simple. Literal explanations, naturally, are more complicated. The sadly flawed theory that the Egyptians used logs to build the Great Pyramid is incorrect for several simple reasons: a) the use of the logs is too close of a leap to the wheel for someone to use without making the connection, b) Egypt simply did not have the resources to muster such a supply of logs, and c) the logs would have snapped like twigs under the weight of multi-ton pieces of rock. If I had to guess how they managed to construct the pyramids I would assert that perhaps they used a series of planks and boards somehow slickened by oil, mud, water, or some thereof combination in addition with sledges to drag the pieces into place. In any event, even such an explanation cannot account for how precisely the measurements of the stones are, in addition to how spectacularly precisely the pyramid is aligned with the celestial heavens.

H4 – The one thing from the lecture which caught my eye was the debate on laws versus language. Though I previously would have chosen laws, claiming that the same ideas for governance must hold true in all languages, I have since changed my position. Though law is indeed an integral portion of society, law could not exist at all without language. Therefore, language is more important by default because without it laws would not and could not exist. However, the significance of language is far more profound than mere concrete manifestations thereof can illustrate. Language shapes the human mind more so than any other single thing in the history of human civilization. When people think they do so almost exclusively in terms of words, whether they are the words they believe, the words they hear, or the words they are accustomed to using. Think about it this way: the laws of ancient Athens allowed it to thrive; however, would it have thrived nearly so much without having had arguably the most powerful language in the history of the world, Greek, as its base? Or better yet: would Athens have achieved the same environment and laws to accommodate great thinking had it been based in a different, less powerful, language? More simply, one must possess the terms of language within which to think and ultimately convey the things of which he has thought.

H4 – The one thing from the lecture which caught my eye was the debate on laws versus language. Though I previously would have chosen laws, claiming that the same ideas for governance must hold true in all languages, I have since changed my position. Though law is indeed an integral portion of society, law could not exist at all without language. Therefore, language is more important by default because without it laws would not and could not exist. However, the significance of language is far more profound than mere concrete manifestations thereof can illustrate. Language shapes the human mind more so than any other single thing in the history of human civilization. When people think they do so almost exclusively in terms of words, whether they are the words they believe, the words they hear, or the words they are accustomed to using. Think about it this way: the laws of ancient Athens allowed it to thrive; however, would it have thrived nearly so much without having had arguably the most powerful language in the history of the world, Greek, as its base? Or better yet: would Athens have achieved the same environment and laws to accommodate great thinking had it been based in a different, less powerful, language? More simply, one must possess the terms of language within which to think and ultimately convey the things of which he has thought.