杏MAP导航

By Robin Gomes

鈥淭o know the universe, at least in part; to know what we know and what we don鈥檛 know, and how we can go about learning more; this is the task of the scientist,鈥� 杏MAP导航 Francis said on Thursday.  鈥淲hether as scientists or believers, it is always important to start by admitting there is much that we do not know,鈥� he told 60 participants in the 2018 Vatican Observatory Summer  School in Astrophysics.

Sixty undergraduate and graduate students are participating in the June 4-29 summer school which has as its theme, 鈥溾��.&苍产蝉辫; 

No end to learning

While admitting there is much we don鈥檛 know, 杏MAP导航 Francis said 鈥渋t is equally important never to stop at a complacent agnosticism.鈥�   鈥淛ust as we should never think we know everything, we should never fear to try to learn more.鈥� 

The 杏MAP导航 said that metaphysics is one way of seeing things which acknowledges the 鈥�First Cause of everything鈥�, which he said is 鈥渉idden from tools of measurement.鈥�  Another way of seeing things is through the eyes of faith, which accepts "God鈥檚 self-disclosure". 

Harmonizing these different levels of knowledge, he explained, leads us to understanding, which hopefully will make us open to wisdom.

United in common understanding

Noting that the participants came from diverse countries, cultures, expertise and backgrounds, the 杏MAP导航 said they can work together and help 鈥渄evelop a common understanding of our universe.鈥� 

The new and large astronomical surveys on variable stars which the participants are studying, the 杏MAP导航 said are in themselves the result of collaborative efforts by many nations and teams of scientists. 

As man鈥檚 understanding of the vast universe grows, so does our need to learn how to manage the "flood of information."   The 杏MAP导航 said the way astrophysicists handle vast volumes of data is a sign of hope to others who feel overwhelmed by the information revolution of the internet and the social media.