Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/08/30
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Dan Post wrote:
> Don't sell yourself short. The great majority of the basic science which
has
> added so exponentially to the base of human knowledge has not been added
> because of 'great leaps' of insight or genius, but rather by the many
'baby
> steps' of millions of scientists who endeavor to answer a nagging question
> of 'WHY?'.
I beg to differ but Thomas Kuhn's argument is well known. To bring this
closer to "on topic" Weston, Adams, Cartier-Bresson have each added
infinitely more to the art of photography than you or I summed with the
millions of other amateur and professional photographers. Not that this
ought dissuade anyone from photography for personal or commercial reasons.
We *do* see farther standing on the shoulders of giants, but not as a pile
of people squating on eachother.
>Of ten these questions are rather mundane, and seem esoteric
> Sorta like Erwin's research!), but these baby steps or basic building
> blocks add up over time... the pyramids were not made by one person ( I
> know- a shipload of aliens did it over a holiday weekend!) nor of one
block
> of stone, but the amassed effort of many, and the sheer volume of stone
> accumulated in one place is sort of like our search for knowledge.
> I am grateful to know so many of you out there who have contributed your
> blocks of knowledge to the 'pile', so to speak!
Yes but without the design of the pyramid all this would be is a long
forgotten pile of rocks.
all the best,
Jonathan Borden