Quote Originally Posted by Beskar View Post
I wish I had a spaceship like the one from Startrek. Though it is unfortunately not possible in my life-time. I would love to wonder and explore and enjoy life.

The problem is with astronomy though, the science of it is really boring. It might sound really cool at first, then you go into a class, then you get a lecture of the physics of a photon, for two hours, while looking at a boring powerpoint. In comparison to a subject like History, where you have vivid imagination out of the facts.

Sort of like, the enjoyment of History is knowing the facts, and the enjoyment of astronomy is a overview.
This is a bit of my problem.

Whenever I make an effort of understanding astronomy, all of my methods fail quite soon. For example, one can not try to understand the scale of the universe by any human measure.

The methods one does need, I do not understand. It is as is I have to learn a completely new language before being able to read a book.

What astronomy does reach me, I read more out of almost entertainment than out of any semblance of critical understanding. Wormholes, black holes, 7 or 31 dimensions? Cool! It tickles my mind, gives me all sorts of grandiose thoughts. However, if I was told there are 254 dimensions of time connected like a prairie dog tunnel system, all going at different speeds but 97% really being some dark invisible time - then I would believe that too.

I have no critical understanding of it.



I have resigned myself to being reliant on popular astronomy - Hawking, Sagan etc. But even that little, I wonder what it is I'm actually getting a grasp of: maybe only popularised 'metaphors', employed to convey mathematical or otherwise arcane concepts to the layman. By its very nature, astronomy deals in what the human does not have a reference card for.

Perhaps astronomy will remain limited to sheer entertainment and semi-philosophy for me. Not without worth though: still a subject of endless wonder and inspiration for me.