The Urgent Need to Bring About a Revolution in Academia: Nicholas Maxwell at TEDxUCL

We face grave global problems - climate change, population growth, habitat destruction and extinction of species, lethal modern war, vast inequalities of wealth and power around the world. If we are to tackle these problems effectively and wisely, thus making progress towards as good a world as possible, we need to learn how to do it. That in turn requires that our institutions of learning, our schools and universities, are rationally organized for, and devoted to, the task. At present, devoted as they are to the pursuit of knowledge, they are not. Priority needs to be given to tackling problems of living, above all our grave global problems. The basic intellectual aim needs to be to help people realize what is of value in their lives, the scientific pursuit of knowledge and understanding being undertaken as an aspect of that endeavour. A basic task needs to be to help people around the world acquire a good understanding of what our global problem are and what we need to do about them. It needs to be recognized much more widely that the kind of academic inquiry we have inherited from the past, devoted primarily to the pursuit of knowledge, is damagingly irrational, in a wholesale, structural way, when judged from this standpoint. The long-standing, successful pursuit of scientific knowledge and technological know-how dissociated from a more fundamental concern with problems of living is a key factor in the creation of our current global problems, and our current incapacity to resolve them.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)

[facfortiaetpatere]

Reminds me of the quote in the book "Flowers for Algernon" when the protagonist confronts his university professors : "But I've learned that intelligence alone doesn't mean a damned thing. Here in your university, intelligence, education, knowledge, have all become great idols. But I know now there's one thing you've all overlooked: intelligence and education that hasn't been tempered by human affection isn't worth a damn...Intelligence is one of the greatest human gifts. But all too often a search for knowledge drives out the search for love...Intelligence without the ability to give and receive affection leads to mental and moral breakdown, to neurosis, psychosis and possibly even psychopathy.”

[akanippy]

My definition of ' wisdom ' is "the capacity to make good decisions" i.e. those that lead to greater well-being. Thank you for the lecture I hope it has some impact

[rgaleny]

All things are a process !! We make them static in the mind.

[tomerben-scientificphiloso]

Clearly and enlighten person, but unfortunately not the clearest communicator, shame that many "knowledgeable" people (but not wise) get all the fame and fortune. Maxwell practically says: Let's teach our children HOW to fix the world - not merely learn how it works - and I concur, we must fix our problems together as a species

[robertarmitage]

I found Nicolas Maxwell's book, "From Knowledge to Wisdom, " appealing and an anti-dote to some of the philosophy I was studying at university. Now, I am wondering whether there might be some parallels between his aims and those put forward by Dr Karim (also on YouTube) when he talks of science having a quantitative and qualitative aspect and the need to bring in the latter to make humanities' needs central. When that is only secondary both science and philosophy, albeit with good intentions, can become intellectual and cold, wrapped in specializations that can forget or even cause more problems, because of unconsidered outcomes. I hope there is, as both see the dangers of knowledge without wisdom.

[rgaleny]

Voltaire's Candide is an audio book on YouTube. For Social criticism it is funny about serious things. The Punch line is "So, let us then tend to our garden" -

[akanippy]

One definition of philosophy is "a love of wisdom" academic philosophers show little interest in wisdom they discuss their own small, topics that are irrelevant to the problems of living today. Perhaps you can re-engage philosophers in this most critical of subject areas