The Void

A summary of:
Wertheim, M. (1999). The Pearly Gates of Cyberspace: Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 History of Space from Dante to the Internet. Virago Press: London.
Chapter ii - Physical Space (part 2)

The chapter continues past times explaining that piece it mightiness last a chip grand to advise that fine art is exclusively responsible for the modern scientific innovation of space, "'scientific advances' lonely produce not describe concern human relationship for the huge psychological shift that had to convey house earlier Western minds could convey this conception" (115). She continues, "To explicate that shift I believe Edgerton is correct when he says that without the revolution inwards seeing space wrought past times the painters of the fourteenth through sixteenth centuries, nosotros would non receive got had the revolution inwards thinking virtually space wrought past times the physicists of the seventeenth" (115).

The item alter inwards thinking she goes on to depict is the defeat of Aristotelian vision past times Galileo's innovation of the void. This inwards plow had its ain profound implications. "For him [Galileo], 'the existent world [was] a footing of bodies moving inwards infinite together with time.' Everything else - all the rich sensual qualities such every bit colors, smells, tastes, together with sounds - were similar a shot to last regarded every bit simply secondary, by-products of the 'true' reality which was thing inwards motion inwards empty space" (116). Furthermore, where does God agree inwards this vision of reality?

If the underlying substrate of reality is simply an empty physical void, what house is at that topographic point for the Christian soul? How indeed could humans, amongst our emotions together with feelings together with our longings for love, last accommodated inwards such an inherently sterile infinite (117)?

We should recognize this every bit to a greater extent than or less other fork inwards the road, though I acknowledge I regard no agency of going dorsum together with taking a dissimilar path. The path dorsum has overgrown; at that topographic point is no returning to a footing without the agreement of the importance of the void.

I am reminded of a mass a read final yr called Non-places: Introduction to an Anthropology of Supermodernity. In this book, Auge describes the abundance of places that nosotros physically run across amongst increasing regularity which are characterised past times the agency inwards which they eschew all creative social life, all meaningful organization. Auge argues that no organic social life is possible inwards these spaces, just because they lack place-ness. It mightiness last necessary to eventually unpackage the damage "space" together with "place" earlier beingness able to brand a meaningful comparing betwixt Auge's anthropology together with Wertheim's scientific history; but I am struck past times the persuasion that the void has extended into our physical reality such that nosotros are similar a shot actively designing voids.