USING SCIENTIFIC METHODS TO OUR ADVANTAGE
By Angel Alcala
Philippine Headline News
Jan. 25, 2003
Our people lived in harmony with nature in the past by invoking the help of spirits in all of their activities or in all major events in their lives from birth to death. Rituals are performed when a child is born, when a new house is built, when rice is planted and harvested, when clearing a forest, when fishing etc. Remnants of this animistic practice still survive to our modern days mostly in rural Philippines. In animism, there is an explanation for every event or activity. The main purpose of these rituals was to appease the spirits, and it seemed that the system of beliefs and corresponding actions worked well in the business of living in those days.
With education and the progress of science, many of these animistic practices gave way to rational, scientific explanations of the phenomena of nature. Animism became synonymous to superstition. The eradication of this superstition is equated to progress. The basis for rational explanations of various phenomena of nature is the cause and effect relationship. At a glance, it seems easy to invoke cause and effect as a logical construction. But in reality it is sometimes difficult to pinpoint the cause and the effect, especially in the behavioral sciences. For example, in the relation between poverty and blast fishing, which is the cause and which is the effect?
In the natural sciences, such as Biology, the cause is usually couched in terms of the basic particles or chemicals (molecules) and their reactions that give rise to abnormal structure or function. The abnormal or altered structure or function is the effect.
Our ideas on conservation and protection of the environment are often influenced by ideas held by our ancestors, dating back to the days of animism. For example, many fishers believe in the inexhaustibility of fish species they exploit. They argue that their forefathers in past generations have been fishing all their lives, and as long as they do certain rituals they will always have fish to catch. Fishing with dynamite will not harm fish stocks because many still exist in deeper water waiting to be exploited. Much time and many arguments are needed to try to convince them otherwise.
The hold of the past in our minds can give rise to ridiculous situations. I remember the reports of an alien underwater vehicle or submarine with bright flashing lights roaming the deep waters of Tanon Strait in northern Negros Oriental a few years ago. This phenomenon fueled all kinds of speculations and explanations that saw publication in both local and national newspapers for a few weeks (to the delight of news reporters). At that time some areas in northern Negros Oriental became a visitors' attraction, much like a fiesta event, drawing many people from many parts of the province. Surprisingly, the event happened in a province known for its high level of education!
When I read the news stories about the phenomenon and the explanations given by many Negros Oriental residents, who should know better, I was disappointed because I did not doubt that the observed light was a well-known natural phenomenon of bioluminescence. The only question was what produced the underwater light. I am glad that marine biologists at Silliman University finally put the controversial claim to rest by explaining that the production of light at night was indeed bioluminescence due to bacteria on the bodies of fish belonging to a certain fish family. This is the rational and scientific explanation of the phenomenon.
If we have to make progress, we should use scientific methods in obtaining available information and use it to advantage in our development projects, including those dealing with the protection and management of our natural resources.
By Angel Alcala
Philippine Headline News
Jan. 25, 2003
Our people lived in harmony with nature in the past by invoking the help of spirits in all of their activities or in all major events in their lives from birth to death. Rituals are performed when a child is born, when a new house is built, when rice is planted and harvested, when clearing a forest, when fishing etc. Remnants of this animistic practice still survive to our modern days mostly in rural Philippines. In animism, there is an explanation for every event or activity. The main purpose of these rituals was to appease the spirits, and it seemed that the system of beliefs and corresponding actions worked well in the business of living in those days.
With education and the progress of science, many of these animistic practices gave way to rational, scientific explanations of the phenomena of nature. Animism became synonymous to superstition. The eradication of this superstition is equated to progress. The basis for rational explanations of various phenomena of nature is the cause and effect relationship. At a glance, it seems easy to invoke cause and effect as a logical construction. But in reality it is sometimes difficult to pinpoint the cause and the effect, especially in the behavioral sciences. For example, in the relation between poverty and blast fishing, which is the cause and which is the effect?
In the natural sciences, such as Biology, the cause is usually couched in terms of the basic particles or chemicals (molecules) and their reactions that give rise to abnormal structure or function. The abnormal or altered structure or function is the effect.
Our ideas on conservation and protection of the environment are often influenced by ideas held by our ancestors, dating back to the days of animism. For example, many fishers believe in the inexhaustibility of fish species they exploit. They argue that their forefathers in past generations have been fishing all their lives, and as long as they do certain rituals they will always have fish to catch. Fishing with dynamite will not harm fish stocks because many still exist in deeper water waiting to be exploited. Much time and many arguments are needed to try to convince them otherwise.
The hold of the past in our minds can give rise to ridiculous situations. I remember the reports of an alien underwater vehicle or submarine with bright flashing lights roaming the deep waters of Tanon Strait in northern Negros Oriental a few years ago. This phenomenon fueled all kinds of speculations and explanations that saw publication in both local and national newspapers for a few weeks (to the delight of news reporters). At that time some areas in northern Negros Oriental became a visitors' attraction, much like a fiesta event, drawing many people from many parts of the province. Surprisingly, the event happened in a province known for its high level of education!
When I read the news stories about the phenomenon and the explanations given by many Negros Oriental residents, who should know better, I was disappointed because I did not doubt that the observed light was a well-known natural phenomenon of bioluminescence. The only question was what produced the underwater light. I am glad that marine biologists at Silliman University finally put the controversial claim to rest by explaining that the production of light at night was indeed bioluminescence due to bacteria on the bodies of fish belonging to a certain fish family. This is the rational and scientific explanation of the phenomenon.
If we have to make progress, we should use scientific methods in obtaining available information and use it to advantage in our development projects, including those dealing with the protection and management of our natural resources.
