Science Education and Spiritual Transformation

Science Education
and Spiritual Transformation

Thought Provoking Science Lessons
that Use Critical Thinking
to Transform Yourself

It will also become available from Amazon

Science Education
and Spiritual Transformation

Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1 ... Observation versus Analysis
[Making an "O/A" is a technique to focus on being a good scientist by being a good observer.]
Chapter 2 ... You Are Your Own Best Teacher
[The mechanics of the laws of nature versus the wonder engendered by natural laws? Fostering genuine awe versus critical thinking only.]
Chapter 3 ... The Nature of Science
[Social and psychological implications of how we teach, viewed through the lens of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics).]
Chapter 4 ... Thermodynamics
[Laws of thermodynamics, expansion / contraction / density / weight. Aristotle's four elements.]
Chapter 5 ... Interrogation versus Observation
[Examining the pervasive role of technology versus the transformational role of the human senses.]
Chapter 6 ... Friction
[Without friction, everything would fall apart. The same is true for social, emotional relationships and learning.]
Chapter 7 ... The Psychological Handling of Quantum Mechanics
[Implications of what we have learned in school for the past two centuries.]
Chapter 8 ... The Relationship Between Fire & Desire
[The biology, chemistry, and physics of flame and fire as related to the psychology behind intention and wishing.]
Chapter 9 ... Gravity
[Gravity seen as a force versus Einstein’s geometry of curved space in The theory of relativity. ]
Chapter 10 ... The Scientific Method
[Galileo’s historic attempt to bring new ideas using the scientific method. How modern science is based on physical evidence.]
Chapter 11 ... Carbon Dioxide 5 Ways
[Properties of carbon dioxide and its role in the interplay between humankind and nature’s plants.]
Chapter 12 ... Naming, Categorizing & Labeling
[The need for STEM disciplines to differentiate various parts of nature into categories as seen through the lens of the chemistry of bread.]
Chapter 13 ... The Woods are on Fire!
[The biochemistry of organic matter and minerals undergoing oxidation & breathing, followed by the engineering and physics of metals.]
Chapter 14 ... The Mathematics of Trees
[The proportions of water, carbon dioxide, and minerals that make up the matter in a tree.]
Chapter 15 ... Nature Favors Balances
[The lime cycle. Proportions of iron, magnesium, calcium, potassium, sodium in the earth. The balance of acids, bases, salts.]
Chapter 16 ... The Scientist-Artist
[Can technology imitate nature? Art imitates nature. If engineering innovations could increasingly become artistic they might transform the earth.]
Chapter 17 ... Carbon-Based Life Forms
[The organic biochemistry of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen in the symbiotic actions of photosynthesis.]
Chapter 18 ... The Physics of Trees
[Theories of how sap rises, and plants grow upwards.]
Chapter 19 ... The Mathematics and Science of Wonderful Water!
[Water's molecular geometry and other synergetic properties it exhibits.]
Chapter 20 ... The Test of a Real Scientist
[Good Science = Good Observation]
Conclusion
Appendix

Science Education and Spiritual Transformation
(there will also be a free online version)

(First Edition)
John Bickart, Ph.D.
Red Shirt Interactive Group
Asheville, NC

Copyright © 2023 John Bickart. Some rights reserved.
This book may be shared for non-commercial reasons. This means that it may be copied as a whole or in part and shared in print or any electronic media as long as it is not sold or used to carry advertising. If copied, the author requests attribution.

Cover photo composite by Anthony Scaravilli

1st edition, 2023
ISBN: 9798833945506
Printed in the United States of America

www.bickart.org

Dedication
All of my dedications for books written thus far include my loving wife, Wendy. There is a reason for that, Wendy. This one is also for, and largely because of you.

Back Cover of the Book

These thought-provoking essays are meant to promote critical thinking.

Are you a student of science? What does that mean to you? Does it mean that you want to know the rules of science so that you can work in that field? What about your purpose in life? Do you consider yourself to be a whole person with the desire to develop your character in addition to learning science? This book may be for you if your learning path is full of living questions and the stuff of wonder. Do you feel like every fact that is thrown at you is allowed to be challenged, overthrown, or updated? If you feel that you live in a space where there could be a knocking at the door at any moment and new ideas and new versions of yourself might come walking in ... then join me in these creative essays.

Science education is like making friends; you form relationships with whatever you study. And just like a relationship with a good friend, it can be spiritually transformative. What is a spiritual relationship? It is one that is more about giving than receiving - where you truly care about someone or something - one that transforms into genuine friendship with the world around you, with nature.

This book contains 20 of my favorite lessons from over 50 years of teaching, where I felt successful in reaching all manner of students. In each, we tried to listen to a spiritual message from nature that we could apply to our own lives. In the 70s, I taught in a Waldorf school. In the 80s and 90s, I consulted on adult education in the corporate world to Fortune 500 companies. Then, I taught in a high school that had students who were largely emotionally disturbed. Following these wonderful experiences, I taught in a men’s, then women’s prison. I have taught in different parts of the world from Shanghai to Peewaukie - from New York City to San Francisco. I have been pairing science with spirituality before the mainstream was ready to entertain it. But, what about now? It seems to me that humankind has a chance right now to make a significant transformation.

Just think of the possibilities if we could extend our passion for relationship with friends to all of the beings of nature? What if we pursued science with the intense, heart-felt intangibles that we feel for our loved ones?
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Science Education and Spiritual Transformation

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Science Education
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