The Humanizing and Democratizing Powers of Science: Insights from Carl Sagan, George Sarton, and Others

 Insights from Carl Sagan and Maria Popova

     Several important minds of the past recognized the humanizing and democratizing effects of science. Bertrand Russell wrote in 1926: “Without science, democracy is impossible.” Carl Sagan, in his last book in 1996, ‘The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark,’ wrote about the humanizing powers of science and its importance to democracy. According to Maria Popova, in a 2015 article in The Marginalian, this book also discussed “how applying the scientific way of thinking to everyday life refines our intellectual and moral integrity.” I read Sagan’s 1977 thought-provoking book on the evolution of intelligence, ‘The Dragons of Eden,’ in the 80s before I decided on a science major in college.

     Humans are faced with questions we can’t answer, and uncertainty is always present. Popova quotes Sagan from the Demon-Haunted World:

“Avoidable human misery is more often caused not so much by stupidity as by ignorance, particularly our ignorance about ourselves… Whenever our ethnic or national prejudices are aroused, in times of scarcity, during challenges to national self-esteem or nerve, when we agonize about our diminished cosmic place and purpose, or when fanaticism is bubbling up around us — then, habits of thought familiar from ages past reach for the controls.”

     The implications are simply that science, however imperfect, is the best tool we have to make sincere attempts to address those difficult and impossible questions. In that sense, says Sagan, science is like democracy, which is also imperfect, but also the best tool we have. Thus, one could say that science and democracy are the best tools we have for bettering ourselves, but they are not without some flaws. They are tools that lead us to decisions.

     Sagan from the Demon-Haunted World:

“The scientific way of thinking is at once imaginative and disciplined. This is central to its success. Science invites us to let the facts in, even when they don’t conform to our preconceptions. It counsels us to carry alternative hypotheses in our heads and see which best fit the facts. It urges on us a delicate balance between no-holds-barred openness to new ideas, however heretical, and the most rigorous skeptical scrutiny of everything — new ideas and established wisdom. This kind of thinking is also an essential tool for a democracy in an age of change.”

     Sagan asserted that absolute certainty is elusive, so we must settle instead for small, incremental improvements in our understanding of many subjects. He called this “an asymptotic approach to the Universe.” He opined that uncertainty could only be reduced, not eliminated, noting:  

“The error bar is a pervasive, visible self-assessment of the reliability of our knowledge.”

     He emphasized that science was self-correcting, which makes it more or less immune to the influence of most dogmas, as adherence to the method is its primary feature. This makes science humble, he said. All scientists know they are sometimes wrong in their hoped-for conclusions. To have humility is to always be fair, regardless of the effects. In science, one must always adhere to the method, regardless of the effects. Even well-established science sometimes has to be corrected in the light of new information. Thus, science is always being refined. Disproving established beliefs and valid criticism are encouraged in science.  

     Sagan from the Demon-Haunted World:

“Science is a way to call the bluff of those who only pretend to knowledge. It is a bulwark against mysticism, against superstition, against religion misapplied to where it has no business being. If we’re true to its values, it can tell us when we’re being lied to. It provides a mid-course correction to our mistakes.”

 

Insights from ‘Democratizing Science’ by Paola Mattei

     Science was questioned and mangled in many ways during the COVID pandemic. Anti-science forces came to the forefront amid backlash against science. The 2023 book, ‘Democratizing Science,’ by Paola Mattei, explores public trust and public engagement of science. This includes backlash against science and public participation in science, such as citizen science. I am in favor of citizen science in general. However, some manifestations of it have been biased, such as groups of biased environmentalists doing amateurish citizen science for the sole purpose of catching industry pollution occurrences. According to the book’s introduction, which is all I have read, it:

“…explores the perils of adopting a ‘populist’ approach to science policy not driven by intellectual curiosity…”

     I think that COVID showed the difficulty in translating science into policy. Public trust is science has been eroded somewhat in what they call the post-truth society. The proliferation of fake health news, quack cures, and distrust in basic science is perhaps encompassed in the Trump administration’s appointment of cabinet members who are not qualified in science. RFK Jr is perhaps the prime example. People do have a right to believe what they want, regardless of what science says. Perhaps the issue is how science could possibly impede that human right to believe what one wants. What makes these issues perhaps more difficult is that there is no shortage of scientists, those trained in science, who reject mainstream science and embrace much less likely viewpoints.

“In Western liberal democracies, we are experiencing a significant decline in trust in scientific authorities. The attacks against science are organized by groups that advance their own cultural domains and systems of beliefs, such as religious groups, industry groups (challenging the existence of climate change, for instance) and social movements (for example, the movement against the use of pasteurized milk in the United States embraced by famous public figures). These groups hold views against scientific knowledge and defend their beliefs as sacred ideologies that are not subject to analytical and critical questioning.”

     The book is Euro-focused and concerned with educational systems and the influence of populism, particularly European radical right populism, which has been growing in recent years. Here in the U.S. and to some extent in Europe as well, there is also radical left populism. The notion of adopting draconian rules against carbon emissions promoted by the radical left is one possible implication. On the right, there is the notion of doing the opposite, or promoting draconian rules against regulating emissions in any way. Thus, the problem of populism is basically one of adopting extremist views, whether extreme left or extreme right.

 

Insights from George Sarton and Alison Wylie About Humanizing Science

     An October 2022 paper in the Journal of Canadian Philosophy by Alison Wylie, ‘Humanizing Science and Philosophy of Science: George Sarton, Contextualist Philosophies of Science, and the Indigenous/Science Project,’ explores the ideas of George Sarton from 1924. Sarton called science “our greatest treasure,” but also warned that it should be humanized to keep it from doing more harm than good. He emphasized that science was dynamic and ever-changing, noting that “fixed knowledge is dead knowledge.” Perhaps Thomas Kuhn exemplified this best in his early 1960s book, ‘The Structure of Scientific Revolutions,’ which argued that paradigm changes in science are often slow, as new knowledge must not only replace old knowledge but also entrenched views about that old knowledge. Sarton also noted that science is a collective enterprise as well as a social one.

“In short, the fierce commitment to rigorous inquiry that Sarton prized above all else must be “tempered by … humility and charity,” a “broadness of outlook and boundless generosity”

     The paper focuses mainly on archaeology and its impact on and need for engagement with indigenous populations. Sarton, like Sagan after him, emphasized the importance of humility in science. Kuhn did as well in addressing the problem of entrenched views in developing consensus. One must be humble in conceding that new knowledge can replace established knowledge. In the paper’s conclusion, Wylie notes the following:

“Sarton advocated for the sciences: that we learn from “the thoughts and ideas of other people,” especially critical voices within philosophy and those whose ways of investigating and understanding the natural and social world diverge from our own, and that we attend to values and interests that have typically not been addressed by scientific inquiry.”

 

Insights from ‘Why Democracies Need Science’ by Harry Collins and Robert Evans

     In a 2017 book by Harry Collins and Robert Evans, ‘Why Democracies Need Science,’ the authors put forth an idea they call “elective modernism,” explore the continuity of science (even when new ideas are adopted, many older ideas remain a part of the explanation), and the morality of science. It also explores the nexus of science and policy and the value of expertise. They write:

“The attacks on science come from many sources. From the outside, science is beset by post-modernist analysis that sees no truth, only ‘accounts’; it is beset by environmentalist critiques that see science as an instrument of ecological disaster; and it is beset by political regimes that see value only in economic terms, or, in America, can make political capital by contrasting science unfavourably with religion.”

“Most social analysts think that democracy needs protecting against scientific and technological experts; we argue that scientific and technical experts have the potential to protect democracy!”

     In considering the morality of science, we should consider for whom the science is being conducted. Nazi scientists had aims in line with their fascist government, and similar governments we may consider immoral also have scientists working to their benefit.

     The authors divide the sociological study of science into three waves. Wave 1, from the early twentieth century to the early 1960s, involved great faith in the scientific method. Wave 2 coincides with the publishing of Kuhn’s influential book, which showed that paradigms in science were based not only on sheer truth but also on consensus. It was an acknowledgement that there are social contexts to scientific findings. Wave 2 also revealed that expert advice depends on social assumptions. This, they say:

“…led to arguments in favour of the democratization of science, and of expertise more generally, in order that the interests and priorities that inevitably coloured expert advice would better reflect the concerns of the wider society.”

     While Wave 2 explored the pitfalls of technocracy, Wave 3 returns to technocracy, or rule by experts, but the definition of expert changes from those with specialized knowledge to a more inclusive definition involving different kinds of expertise. They note society-wide ubiquitous expertise, specialized expertise, and meta-expertise as types and divide specialized expertise into interactional expertise and contributory expertise. 

     They note that experience-based people who are not experts, but who are key stakeholders in the decisions made by experts, should have some influence over those decisions, as Wave 2 seems to advise. They divide Wave 3 into a technical phase and a political phase. For the technical phase, they note:

“…the normative claim is that technical advice should be provided in such a way as to minimize the effect of political bias and influence. This means that technical advisors should not exaggerate the certainty or impact of their work in order to influence the political decision, and that decision-makers should not demand that engineers and scientists draw firm conclusions when this cannot be done.”

     The political phase is how the ideas of science experts are translated into policy.

“The aim of Wave Three of science studies is to preserve the idea of expertise as specialist knowledge and to find a better way of analysing and managing the trade-offs between expert authority and democratic accountability.”

     The authors’ idea of elective modernism seems to have to do with choosing the experts over the non-experts, even though the experts will sometimes be wrong.

“It remains the case even though we know that there will be occasions when the conclusions of the person who has observed will turn out to be less accurate than the view of the person who has not observed – the person with the tea leaves. In spite of that possibility, the elective modernist prefers the view of the person who has observed. And “the elective modernist proper has to cleave to that preference without justifying it by reference to the successfulness of observation over other methods of knowing.” Not only is this the way of elective modernism, but it is also more robust than relying on success as a criterion: for all the reasons given for why observation is flawed and unreliable, there will be instances when observation turns out not to be more successful than other methods; but in these circumstances, elective modernism will be unaffected.”

          They use the examples of corroboration and falsification to promote their idea of elective modernism. While corroboration has been maligned by scientists showing that simply replicating the same experiment does not prove something if the experiment itself is somehow flawed, they note that replication is still a very good means in science to validate. Falsification is also not perfect, as it sometimes can be circumvented, as Karl Popper’s student showed. Popper was the originator of falsificationism. However, corroboration and falsification remain the best ways to verify scientific results.

 

Insights from New Scientist

     New Scientist published a very short article a few months ago that illustrates that there are other methods of knowing aside from science that are sometimes just as valid. They give an example of the philosophical implications of quantum physics. As Sagan and others noted, there are many questions that science cannot currently answer. Some can be approached by other means, such as philosophical inquiry. A few years back, I read Stephen Hawking’s last book, ‘Brief Answers to the Big Questions,’ in which he opined about those difficult-to-answer questions. He put forth some really interesting ideas, but did not really answer those questions to my satisfaction. This simply illustrates that science can’t answer everything. The article notes:

“But in allowing philosophy into the lab, we must not let it be accompanied by dogma or muscle out evidence and the scientific method. A recent case that perhaps went too far is the idea that trees share resources via a "wood wide web". As ecologist Suzanne Simard explains, the backlash to her promoting this idea came from people feeling she had overreached on what the science can say.”

“The lesson, though, is not to dismiss philosophy – as the calculating quantum physicists did – but instead to see it as another tool in the scientific toolbox. Science doesn't have a monopoly on good ideas, and as long as it can be justified in evidence, knowledge from other disciplines should be welcomed.”  

 

My Conclusion

     I believe that science and democracy are two of the most important human endeavors. Science is the best means we have of knowing things, and democracy is the best means we have of creating just societies. Both were created by humans, and neither is perfect. In terms of secularist belief, one could say that I believe in science and democracy. I think that they are two of humanity’s greatest achievements.

 

 

References:

 

Carl Sagan on Humility, Science as a Tool of Democracy, and the Value of Uncertainty. Maria Popova. The Marginalian. November 9, 2015. Carl Sagan on Humility, Science as a Tool of Democracy, and the Value of Uncertainty – The Marginalian

Humanizing Science and Philosophy of Science: George Sarton, Contextualist Philosophies of Science, and the Indigenous/Science Project. Alison Wylie. Published online by Cambridge University Press, Canadian Journal of Philosophy. 20 October 2022. Humanizing Science and Philosophy of Science: George Sarton, Contextualist Philosophies of Science, and the Indigenous/Science Project | Canadian Journal of Philosophy | Cambridge Core

Introduction: Science and Democracy, Introduction of the book, ‘Democratizing Science.’ Paola Mattei. September 2023. Introduction_Science_and_Democracy.pdf

Why Democracies Need Science. Harry Collins and Robert Evans. Polity Press. 2017. Why Democracies Need Science

Science doesn’t have a monopoly on good ideas. New Scientist, May 2026. Science doesn't have a monopoly on good ideas

 

Syntholene Energy’s Synthetic Sustainable Aviation Fuel: Iceland Project Aims to Lower Costs with Geothermally Integrated Production and Process Heat

     While e-fuels, or synthetic fuels, are a bonified method of decarbonization, like many other decarbonization methods, they suffer from high costs compared to current practices. One company hopes to decrease costs by employing high-temperature electrolysis with geothermal heat and power.

     Dan Sutton, CEO of sustainable aviation fuel production company Syntholene Energy, presented a webinar with Graham Bain for Enverus’s Innovation Underground. A summary of the webinar is given below.

     Sutton noted that low-cost industrial heat is a very valuable commodity. Generating hydrogen with solid oxide electrolyzers relies on electricity and can be accelerated by industrial heat. That heat is provided via hot geothermal. This makes the process more economical, especially in certain places (such as Iceland) where geothermal is bot hot and at shallow depths. Here it can significantly outcompete traditional electrolysis. Power-to-liquids have been around for a long time but are very expensive. Coal and gas had been the feedstocks previously. Synthetic e-fuels such as sustainable aviation fuel (e-SAF) are made from H2 and CO2.  They can be powered with renewable energy, which lowers carbon footprint. Geothermal is both renewable and provides heat, which brings down hydrogen production costs.

     Syntholene began 10-12 years ago. High-temperature e-SAF is the business. Geothermal has been getting deeper for cheaper, but shallow geothermal heat, which occurs in Iceland, is ideal. and makes economics better for H2 derivatives. In the process, electricity and geothermal heat runs through a thermal coupling to make steam. Energy is saved by preventing losses with the heat. and geothermal turbines through which the steam runs provides energy for cracking H2O for H2.    

     Sutton notes that the company’s demo facility worked very well from the outset and has now been in operation for 600-700 hours, with more than a metric ton of H2 produced in weeks. The process can work with nuclear energy and waste heat as well. The goal is the break $2/kg boundary for H2 production, then approach $1/kg with scale-up. This is a first-of-kind project. They planned it in detail and built modularized components. Modularized components like turbines are smaller but can be added together and can improve economics as oversizing is limited and off-the-shelf components can be used rather than each needing to be customized. Modularized supply chains increase efficiency and encourage optimization. This process could also be used for other green H2 derived fuels. E-fuel in the form of methanol-to-jet fuel is popular now. Sutton noted that the first goal to attract investors is to make a small model that works in the field, however not optimized it is.

     Syntholene’s commercial scale site has been selected in Northeast Iceland, but they are still working on the details. Most of the catalysts they use are widely available so supply chains for them are not constrained such as those requiring rare earth elements. If supply chains are assured then the main issue becomes materials costs. He encourages simplification. What is the hardest engineering problem? Creating geothermal steam and dealing with impurities such as silica, sulfur, etc. It is the geothermal steam that must be converted into the process heat source for electrolysis. Costs are the biggest problems, not engineering. CO2 source issues must also be solved.

 

Webinar Q&A

      What are the dominant Capex and Opex drivers? The process is thermally integrated. Initial Capex is high, but with 25–40-year plant life, or possibly longer, it can be economical in time. Energy is 98% of the cost of producing SAF, H2, etc. Thermal integration helps reduce it. e-SAF is basically highly refined kerosene. Underutilized geothermal assets are common due to locations being not near demand centers. Utilizing hem for e-SAF could help scaling and make some existing geothermal plants more utilized. Geothermal-to-e-fuels is the goal. He thinks aviation demand will increase significantly. Their project is expected to create jobs, more than data centers do. E-SAF companies are often uncompetitive.

     Is it a cheaper way to make e-SAF or more a cheaper way to make H2? H2 is often 70% of cost. H2 is not an end product but a step in the process. It costs a lot to transport and store. Using it immediately in processes is better and cheaper.

     Can flared methane be used for heat? It can be used for steam-reformed H2 for cheap, but needs carbon capture to be sustainable (blue H2). This is best used where natural gas is cheap but still must be gathered, moved, and stored, which is also costly. What does success for Syntholene and e-SAF look like? The industry must solve cost-competition with fossil fuels. Policies and subsidies can help but are often not enough. If one could get to 2X fossil fuel costs or 1.5X, then more will happen. Economic viability must be proven or at least a pathway towards it. They believe they can demonstrate such a pathway.

Emerging Markets' Client Profile for Syntholene Energy     

     Emerging Markets Consultants’ client profile for Syntholene Energy notes that aviation fuel is responsible for 2.5% of the world’s carbon emissions. It is also noted that in the EU there is a current requirement for 2% e-SAF blending in jet fuel, which is set to rise to 6% in 2030, and projected to 70% by 2050. They note that current costs of e-SAF are 7-10 times the cost of jet fuel, which makes it very uneconomical. Their goal is to get to 2X or even down to 1.5X the current cost of jet fuel. I am not sure if that is with or without subsidization, but I am going to assume it is with subsidization. 

     The graphics below about the demonstation project in Iceland are from Syntholene Energy's website.

   

References:

 

Syntholene Energy Corporation. Emerging Markets Consulting. Syntholene Energy Corp. (TSXV: ESAF) | EMC Profile

Synthetic Aviation Fuel: Inside Syntholene’s Bet on the Thermal Hybrid Path. Webinar by Enverus. July 20, 2026.

Syntholene Energy Website. Syntholene Energy (TSXV: ESAF) | Synthetic Aviation Fuel

 

Stoicism and Its Influence on Military and Secular Leaders: Reason, Responsibility, Good Citizenship, and Ethics are Emphasized

     When I was taught a little Greek philosophy in grade school, the Stoics and Epicureans were depicted as having opposing approaches to what they considered a good life. Later, I learned that was not really the case. Stoics were depicted as somber and gloomy in contrast to the fun-loving Epicureans. But discipline is not incompatible with joy and pleasure.  Adherence to duty and responsibility is a feature of Stoicism. The Buddhists say that discipline can bring a sense of joy. Psychologists say virtuosos and athletes get into “the zone,” where they experience joy in their craft. Confucius also stressed the importance of duty and the joy that could be found within it. Discipline and self-control can be developed, and success in them can bring joy or a sense of accomplishment.  

     The Stoics also stressed the importance of logic and noted that it was a prerequisite and a foundation for ethics. Their logic system involves premises and conclusions. Examples are given below of logical connectives, modal definitions, and indemonstrable arguments.

     I was fortunate to hear about modern practitioners of Stoicism on the PBS show Firing Line with Margaret Hoover. One included Daily Stoic founder Ryan Holiday and retired General and former Defense Secretary James Mattis. The other was an interview with retired General Stanley McChrystal. They noted how Stoic values helped them strive to be better warriors, better public servants, and better people. Mattis brought up the Crosby, Stills, and Nash song ‘Teach Your Children,’ and its lyrics: “You who are on the road must have a code that you can live by.” He argued that Stoicism can provide a useful code to live by.

     Wikipedia describes Stoicism as:

“…a philosophical movement and practical guide to living, emphasizing daily self-discipline and moral improvement, which originated in the Hellenistic period of ancient Greece and proliferated well into the Roman Imperial period.”

     Zeno of Citium is considered to be the founder of Stoicism around 300 B.C. He was influenced by the Cynics.  His most influential successor was Chrysippus.

“Stoicism became the foremost popular philosophy among the educated elite in the Hellenistic world and the Roman Empire to the point where, in the words of Gilbert Murray, "nearly all the successors of Alexander [...] professed themselves Stoics". Later Roman Stoics placed greater emphasis on practical ethics and the cultivation of inner moral discipline in everyday life.”

     Stoicism was popular in Asia Minor in the city of Tarsus, where Saul of Tarsus, aka. the Apostle Paul, lived before he went to Jerusalem. He was a fierce critic of early Christianity before he experienced his epiphany on the road to Damascus and became a disciple of Jesus. The Stoics in Tarsus were known to be “mythmakers” and developed their own prophetic mystery cults. Some have ascribed this function to Paul as a mythmaker of Christianity. He was known to be influenced by Stoicism and to be responsible for the early Christians being fond of the Stoic ideas of Epictetus and the Roman Stoic Seneca. The Discourses of Epictetus is an important source. Other influential Stoic philosophers include the Roman philosopher Musonius Rufus and the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, whose book, Meditations, is considered to be a classic of Stoicism and remains popular to this day. The Roman Pyrrhonist philosopher Sextus Empiricus was also fond of Stoicism and was a good source of information about Stoicism.

     The Stoics believed that adhering to their tenets of virtue could lead to eudaimonia: a well-lived life. They believed that:

“…people should aim to maintain a will (called prohairesis) that is "in accordance with nature". Because of this, the Stoics thought the best indication of an individual's philosophy was not what a person said but how the person behaved.

     Stoicism was revived somewhat in the Renaissance, and later in the 18th century, the philosopher Immanuel Kant developed an interest in Stoic logic. More contemporary revivals of Stoicism derive from the publication of the book ‘Problems in Stoicism’ by A. A. Long in 1971.

     As noted below, Stoicism also likely formed a basis of modern cognitive psychotherapy, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy.

“Stoic philosophy was the original philosophical inspiration for modern cognitive psychotherapy, particularly as mediated by Albert Ellis' rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), the major precursor of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The original cognitive therapy treatment manual for depression by Aaron T. Beck et al. states, "The philosophical origins of cognitive therapy can be traced back to the Stoic philosophers.”

     In more recent times, Ryan Holiday, founder of Daily Stoic, has been a champion of Stoicism. He cites the Stoicism of Frederick the Great, Montaigne, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Adam Smith, John Stuart Mill, Ambrose Bierce, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Theodore Roosevelt, and General James Mattis.

     The four virtues, or values of Stoicism, are courage, temperance, justice, and wisdom. Seneca noted that encountering misfortune allows us and can enable us to be courageous in confronting it. Aristotle noted that there can be too much courage, which can lead to recklessness. Thus, he advocated for the right amount of courage. Temperance, or moderation, is simply avoiding excess. Epictetus emphasized developing virtuous habits through practicing moderation. Marcus Aurelius noted that justice is the source of all the other virtues. The Daily Stoic cites the Roman thinker Cato as influential on George Washington’s and Thomas Jefferson’s notions of democracy and justice. Wisdom is a virtue that allows us to grow through lifelong learning and by making efforts to understand things as they are.  They note:

“Wisdom has always been prized by the Stoics. Zeno said that we were given two ears and one mouth for a reason: to listen more than we talk. And since we have two eyes, we are obligated to read and observe more than we talk as well.”

“It is key today, as it was in the ancient world, to be able to distinguish between the vast aggregations of information that lay out there at your disposal—and the actual wisdom that you need to live a good life. It’s key that we study, that we keep our minds open always. You cannot learn that which you think you already know, Epictetus said. It’s true.”

     They also stress that true wisdom is accompanied by humility.

     Holiday and the Daily Stoic offer nine Stoic exercises to practice. I have found that there are remarkable parallels with Buddhist philosophy, which I will point out.

1)        The Dichotomy of Control. This involves seeking to understand what parts of life are controllable and which are not controllable, what we can change and what we can’t. As I am well-versed in Buddhist philosophy, I know this is one of several parallels between Stoicism and Buddhism. The Buddhist version, from Shantideva’s ‘Way of the Bodhisattva,’ goes something like this: If you can change it, change it. If you can’t, then it simply must be accepted, and one should not worry about what one can’t change.

2)        Journaling. This simply refers to writing down or otherwise keeping a record. This is journaling as a form of self-examination. One method is to review what you have done in a day and write about it. Marcus Aurelius’s ‘Meditations’ was written to himself, as a form of journaling. “It’s not enough to simply hear these lessons once, instead, one practices them over and over again, turns them over in their mind, and most importantly, writes them down and feels them flowing through their fingers in doing so.” This sounds like the three activities important in Buddhism: hearing, contemplating, and meditating.

3)        Practice Misfortune. The Roman Stoic philosopher, Seneca, said we should practice poverty. They note that comfort can be a form of slavery in that we worry about losing our comfort. Anxiety and fear arise from the mind, not from experience. They are judgments about the future. We are advised to practice what we fear. There is another Buddhist parallel here in the words of the female Tibetan practitioner Machi Labdron, who said: “Go to the places that scare you.” They quote Seneca: “It is in times of security that the spirit should be preparing itself for difficult times; while fortune is bestowing favors on it is then is the time for it to be strengthened against her rebuffs.”

4)        Train Perceptions. This involves seeing obstacles as opportunities. This occurs in the Stoic practice known as “turning the obstacle upside down.”  Marcus Aurelius stated it as: “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”  They explain it as: “There is no good or bad to the practicing Stoic. There is only perception. You control perception.” A Buddhist might say “the path is the goal” or that all obstacles are chances to practice, and one should therefore be grateful for them.  

5)        Remember—It’s All Ephemeral. The point here is that all of our achievements can’t really be possessed. They are fleeting, often quite temporary, and their importance fades away. Thus, we should not get too attached to them. The Buddhist parallel would be the notion that this life is basically a dream that is gone in an instant, so getting attached to accomplishments is not useful.

6)        Take The View from Above. Here, they note that Marcus Aurelius would practice the “bird’s eye view,” the view from above, which is perhaps equivalent to looking at the big picture. Stoic scholar Pierre Hadot described it like this: “The view from above changes our value judgments on things: luxury, power, war…and the worries of everyday life become ridiculous.” They note that the point of the exercise is to “tap into what the Stoics call sympatheia, or a mutual interdependence with the whole of humanity. As the astronaut Edgar Mitchell, one of the first people to actually experience a real ‘view from above’ put it, “In outer space you develop an instant global consciousness, a people orientation, an intense dissatisfaction with the state of the world, and a compulsion to do something about it.” Take a step back from your own concerns and remind yourself of your duty to others. Take Plato’s view.”  A likely Buddhist parallel would be to avoid attachment, to avoid getting caught up in self-importance, which is known as “ego-clinging,” and is known as the root cause of all suffering. To zoom out is to see the world from the perspective of others or from a cosmic perspective, rather than see it as revolving around oneself.

7)        Memento Mori: Meditate On Your Mortality. We are all going to die, and we had best remember that as much as we can. Seneca said, “The one who puts the finishing touches on their life each day is never short of time.” Socrates was said to have originated the practice of memento mori, or meditation on one’s death, at least in the so-called Western tradition. At around the same time as Socrates lived, the Buddha taught in India. The early teachings describe an extensive way to meditate on death, including sitting with human corpses and even enduring the stench and observing the stages of decomposition. This is part of meditating on impermanence. The Japanese Zen teacher Suzuki Shosan was a former Samurai whose main practice became constantly being aware of his own mortality. Seneca said we die every day and don’t know if we will wake the next day. Epictetus told his students: “Keep death and exile before your eyes each day, along with everything that seems terrible— by doing so, you’ll never have a base thought nor will you have excessive desire.”

8)        Premeditatio Malorum. This involves planning for all possibilities in one’s mind, even those one dreads. Premeditatio Malorum means “the premeditation of evils.” This is simply preparing oneself psychologically for the inevitable misfortunes of life. This is another practical or pragmatic aspect of Stoicism where one mentally prepares for all contingencies. Humans develop expectations and are often disappointed when they are not met. A possible Buddhist parallel is again the practice of non-attachment. In this case, to expectations. Seneca noted: “Nothing happens to the wise man against his expectation,” he wrote to a friend. “. . . nor do all things turn out for him as he wished but as he reckoned—and above all he reckoned that something could block his plans.”   

9)        Amor Fati. This means a “love of fate,” or a deep acceptance of fate. Marcus Aurelius describes it thus: “To love only what happens, what was destined. No greater harmony.” This is a way to live in the moment. German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche described it as loving whatever happens. They describe it as “treating each and every moment—no matter how challenging—as something to be embraced, not avoided.” Accepting whatever happens is a common and important Buddhist practice as well.

     In conclusion, I would agree that Stoicism provides a nice framework philosophy that is indeed applicable to modern times. I can also understand why some military leaders and leaders in general are attracted to the philosophy. The Greek and Roman philosophers were not just thinkers. They lived their ideals as best they could, and as Socrates illustrated, sometimes suffered unfortunate fates. I am also a fan of other varieties of Ancient Greek philosophy, including Cynicism, Pyrrhonism, Epicureanism, Academic Skepticism, Pythagoras, the pre-Socratics, and Neoplatonism, to name some.

     

 

 

References:

 

Stoicism. Wikipedia. Stoicism - Wikipedia

What Is Stoicism? A Definition & 9 Stoic Exercises To Get You Started: Stoic Exercises, Wisdom, and More. Daily Stoic. What Is Stoicism? A Definition & 9 Stoic Exercises To Get You Started

 

Household Air Pollution and Clean Cooking Fuels: Despite Efforts, Many Still Lack Access: LP Gas, aka Propane, Offers the Most Practical Solution: Efforts by the UN, WHO, and Others

     Programs to promote and subsidize clean cooking fuels have been around for a long time. The fuels they replace cause respiratory diseases, particularly among women and children who breathe the toxic smoke. While environmentalist elites in the U.S. try to depict natural gas and LP gas, or propane, as toxic because they do emit some nitrogen oxides (NOx), those other fuels, including wood, charcoal, kerosene, crop residues, dung, and even coal, emit far worse pollutants. Compared to them, natural gas and LP gas are clean. Hence, the relative term “clean cooking fuels.” LPG does not produce the fine particulate matter and soot as the solid fuels do, and that makes it much healthier for those in the home, especially when the stoves are unvented, which is often the case.

       Jennifer Hernandez and Vijaya Ramachandran wrote an article about clean cooking fuels in The Ecomodernist that highlights the work of Kirk Smith in solving this problem over several decades. They write:

“Beginning in the early 1980s, Smith studied the consequences of cooking with solid fuels in poorly ventilated homes. He and his colleagues documented the links between household smoke and serious illness, including childhood pneumonia, chronic lung disease, and cardiovascular disease. His work on clean cooking in India helped transform household air pollution from a largely overlooked problem into a major public-health and development priority. Smith worked with Indian researchers to measure women’s exposure to smoke from traditional cooking fuels such as wood, dung, charcoal, and crop residues. That fieldwork helped establish the scientific basis for understanding household air pollution as a serious cause of respiratory and cardiovascular disease, especially among women and young children.”

     Smith argued that slightly cleaner biomass stoves were an inadequate solution and advocated for the use of LPG.

“By documenting the risks of solid-fuel cooking and making the case for clean fuels at scale, Smith helped shift clean cooking from a niche stove-design issue to a central question of health, gender equity, air quality, and development. Smith and his collaborators showed that household air pollution was among the world’s largest environmental health risks, contributing to millions of premature deaths each year.”

     The World Health Organization notes that about one quarter of the world’s population, or 2.1 billion people, are exposed to high levels of household air pollution. This is expected to fall to 1.8 billion people by 2030, which is great, but not nearly enough. These toxic cooking methods are estimated to cause 2.9 million premature deaths per year, including 309,000 children dying per year. Sub-Saharan Africa leads the world in lack of access to clean cooking fuels, with an estimated 923 million people lacking access. This is where the majority of people lack access to electricity.

     The specific diseases caused by toxic cooking fuels and their occurrence are listed by the WHO below:

     The WHO points out that rural people are especially affected by the lack of clean cooking fuels.

“There is a large discrepancy in access to cleaner cooking alternatives between urban and rural areas: in 2021, only 14% of people in urban areas relied on polluting fuels and technologies, compared with 49% of the global rural population.”

     Of course, there are fuels cleaner than LPG. These include electricity, solar, biogas, and ethanol, but biogas cleanliness is variable depending on how processed it is. These options are often not available and not affordable.  

     They list another benefit of switching from wood and charcoal to LPG. It saves the local forests from being stripped away as they have in several places in the world, including central Africa and Haiti.

“The contrast between Haiti and the Dominican Republic illustrates the point. The two countries share the island of Hispaniola and have similar environmental conditions, but they have followed very different cooking-fuel paths. The Dominican Republic shifted much more of its household cooking away from wood and charcoal and toward LPG or electricity, while Haiti has remained heavily dependent on charcoal.”

     Forests in Haiti have been cut down, while those in the Dominican Republic have been preserved. This is a major reason that flooding causes such devastation in Haiti but not in the Dominican Republic. Forests stripped for cooking fuels in Africa have led to destructive landslides that have killed many.

     Another issue is that women and children spend considerable time sourcing and gathering these toxic cooking fuels, time that could be spent on education. It also puts them at risk for injury and violence.

     WHO also points out that indoor air pollution is a major contributor to outdoor air pollution.

     They note that Smith was concerned that restrictions on fossil fuel use due to climate change concerns would lead to restrictions on LPG use, which would ensure guaranteed health problems for billions of women and children. They write:

“A targeted LPG subsidy for poor households must be evaluated as a public-health intervention, not as a generic fossil-fuel subsidy.”

     They stress that LPG must be made affordable, with subsidization as necessary. It should also be widely available. They argue that policy should support LPG as the major solution until affordable electricity is available. They also argue that Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) should not be pitted against climate concerns.

“The same principle applies more broadly. Energy policy should not be reduced to a choice between climate and development goals. Healthier and more prosperous societies are generally better able to invest in environmental protection, forest restoration, and cleaner energy systems. Climate policy should support energy transitions within poor households, to improve health outcomes and alleviate the burden of poverty.”

     WHO recently reported that the UN’s SDG on ambient and household air pollution has not been improving over the past 5 years but has remained more or less stable since COVID. There are three SDGs regarding ambient and household air pollution, listed below.

     There are also efforts from the private sector that focus on problems like clean cooking fuels. One, I wrote about earlier this year, Energy Corps, was founded by energy CEO Toby Rice, his wife, and prominent geologist and energy expert Scott Tinker. 

References:

 

A Practical Climate Test: Clean Cooking for the World’s Poor: A recognition of Kirk Smith and his refusal to prioritize climate change over the needs of the world’s poor. Jennifer Hernandez and Vijaya Ramachandran. The Ecomodernist. July 17, 2026. A Practical Climate Test: Clean Cooking for the World’s Poor

Household air pollution. World Health Organization. December 26, 2025. Household air pollution

New SDG data shows stalled progress on air pollution and health. World Health Organization. June 29, 2026. New SDG data shows stalled progress on air pollution and health

 

Canadian Wildfire Smoke is Bad for Americans., But U.S. Wildfire Smoke is Also Bad for Canadians, and Ways to Be Protected

 

     No one wants to breathe unhealthy, toxic air. Combustion in its various forms is responsible for particulate matter (PM), which is dangerous to breathe. It does not only matter how big the source is, but where one is relative to it. Sources of PM include wildfires, campfires, bonfires, wood-burning fireplaces, coal-fired power plants, biomass power plants, waste-to-energy power plants, coke plants, industrial combustion processes, diesel-burning transportation, home heating, ships, trains, jets, smoking, and many more. Wildfires can be a major and dominant force. Weather inversions can bring the smoke closer to the ground, where humans have no choice but to breathe it. This happens very often in places like California, where a significant portion of it comes from China and Southeast Asia. California consistently has some of the worst air quality in the U.S., due in no small part to its susceptibility to these weather or heat inversions. Thus, poor air quality events from wildfire smoke require two conditions: fires and a weather inversion to hold the smoke down.

     A few years ago, my car dealer’s repair shop offered a free cabin air filter replacement when Canadian wildfire smoke was present. That is one way we can protect ourselves. Another is simply staying indoors when the air quality is bad due to PM. Vulnerable people might want to wear masks or use home air purifiers. PM pollution can be dangerous, especially for vulnerable people. I wrote a detailed post on PM pollution last August.

     A group of Republican Senators just penned an angry letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, demanding better forest management practices in light of three consecutive years of cross-border Canadian wildfire smoke events. However, sometimes the opposite occurs when smoke from U.S. wildfires impedes Canadian air quality. The letter included the following:

"Our hospitals are once again treating children, dialysis patients, and older residents for the effects of smoke that did not originate anywhere near them."

“This is the third consecutive year we have had to write to Canadian officials about a crisis that Canada has the tools to prevent and has chosen not to."

     The pic below shows Vancouver in 2020 under a blanket of U.S. wildfire smoke.

     I don’t know whether Canada could manage its forests better to prevent fires or not. Experts have noted that there are other climate and weather factors that make fire more or less likely. According to an article in Cleveland.com:

“Canada’s forests have always experienced wildfires as part of natural ecosystems, but scientists say today’s fires are increasingly occurring under conditions that allow them to grow larger and burn longer, according to CBS. Warmer temperatures, reduced snowpack, dry vegetation and prolonged drought create landscapes where fires can ignite more easily and become more difficult to contain.”

“Forest management practices, including removing excess vegetation, conducting controlled burns and creating firebreaks, can help reduce wildfire risks in certain areas, USA TODAY reported. But experts say those tools cannot completely prevent large-scale fires, particularly when weather conditions create extreme fire behavior across millions of acres of remote forest.”

     Canada’s fires in recent years have broken records. They did not change their forest management practices that had been sufficient until the more recent fires. Perhaps they should intensify those efforts, but it’s not likely that will solve the problem.

“Scientists and wildfire specialists, however, caution that blaming forest management alone overlooks the broader forces driving today’s fire seasons. They say a combination of climate change, weather patterns, forest conditions and human decisions all contribute to the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires.”

     Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno said he would introduce legislation to sanction Canada over the wildfire smoke, and another GOP senator from affected Michigan quipped:

“Unless you want to become the 51st state, learn to manage your forests.”

     I think the proposed sanctions and the rhetoric, including calls to enter Canada and fix the forests for them, are uncalled for, disproportionate, and an insult to our friendly neighbors.

     Moreno called for forest thinning, fuel reduction, prescribed burns, and beefed-up enforcement against arson. I don’t know how much that would help. Some major fires have been started by prescribed burns that got out of control. Detection and enforcement of arson is difficult in any case.

Addendum - right after I posted this, I got in my car and drove to town, noticed the smoky air, and even smelled it. Then my A/C stopped blowing cool air. Then I remembered to set the air to recirculate so that no air comes in from outside. This was a recommendation for smoky air and also for hot days in general. It's possible that my cabin air filter got clogged. I may pull it out and either replace it or clean it. I was lucky that after a while, it started blowing cool air again.  

  

 

References:

 

When American Smoke Choked Canada: Some Republican lawmakers have blamed Canada for poor air quality in the United States and said poor forest management is to blame. But Canadians have also inhaled smoke from American wildfires. Ephrat Livni. New York Times. July 17, 2026. When American Smoke Choked Canada - The New York Times

GOP senator to introduce bill to sanction Canada over wildfire smoke. Alexander Bolton. The Hill. July 16, 2026. GOP senator to introduce bill to sanction Canada over wildfire smoke

Canada wildfires are sending smoke across U.S. - but experts say there’s more to the story. Chris Pugh. Cleveland.com. July 17, 2026. Why Canada Wildfires Aren’t Only About Forest Management - syracuse.com

Canada attacked by Republicans over wildfire smoke crossing US border. Tag24 News. July 17, 2026. Canada attacked by Republicans over wildfire smoke crossing US border