Does the world have a purpose?
People in this world can be classified in two different ways. We find -first- the ones who see things, but never go further beyond "seeing". Then, the ones that see, process, think and analyze in order to come to a conclusion. These people, scientists among them, have come to a point in their life where they asked themselves: is there a purpose to all of this? Is there a reason why the universe is the way it is? Is our life on Earth a part of a big plan, or is it all by chance?
On one hand, there are some who said No. Peter Willion Atkins is one of them. In fact, he says that there is no evidence, and a sentimental wishful thinking can not drive us to a logical, truthful and reliable conclusion.
He also mentions that, if a very complex system can have a purpose (an engine, or even a spoon), that does not say that a whole universe has one.
As a scientist, he insists on the fact that the universe was created directionless by physical laws in 14 billion years, unguided process.
By the end, he states that our ignorance of the truth does not mean we should associate the purpose of this universe to a divine, malign and whimsically capricious reason.
To prove that, he states that humankind, or theologians, tend to create concept for their own puzzlement, their own benefit. This kind of totally invented concepts should never be regarded because they are based out of nothing but illusions. Such as that God created the Evil, but God, in his opinion, does not even exist.
To sum up, he mentions that our Universe is hanging completely useless without any awesome grandeur. Therefore, to think there is one, diminishes it.
On the other hand, there are scientists that deeply believe in a great purpose of this Universe. Jane Goodall is one of them. In her essay, she starts with the idea that a scientific evolution on Earth can’t be just because of an unseen law under a simple organism will. The evolution on Earth is much more complex and is not a blind process without purpose. She mentions later that since everything has a beginning at an end, and the Earth started billions of years ago, there is an end. Therefore, there is a purpose. Humanity spent their entire lifetime trying to explain things, and to give meaning to everything going on around them. That drives us to the conclusion that the Universe must have one. Even disregarding any religious concept, we still ask ourselves why are we programmed to believe in God? Where did the laws of physics come from? Why are they designed to make life complex?
Jane Goodall states her personal experience as an example: her visit in the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Paris. She states that all the genius of nature were combined together at the same moment that the emergence of a conscious mind had to question itself the question of purpose of life on Earth. To end up her essay, Jane Goodall insists that one day, the purpose of life will be revealed to everyone.
The two writers had very different, but persuasive arguments. While Peter W. Atkins is based on physical, touched and seen evidences, Jane Goodall was more seeing beyond the lines. He saw science as facts, evidence and conclusion. She saw science as a way to connect our brains to our souls and observe the Earth to find out about unknown things like purpose.
I can state as example: Peter W. Atkins mentioned that not because a certain complex mechanism has a purpose that the whole Universe does. In opposition, Jane Godall insists on the fact that every single mechanism is related to each other in order to serve a bigger purpose.
We can also see the contrast of their opinions when Peter W. Atkins mentions that not because we can not find a truthful well-proven purpose we should invent one. Jane Goodall states that the entire humanity spent their lifetime in order to prove it, and that day will come sooner or later.
In my point of view, our life has a purpose. To admit that all of this -nature, astronomy, science, medicine- is all by "chance" is not realistic, nor enough. How come, a scientist , that spent a big part of his life between experiments, explaining every phenomenon based on arguments and proving every single detail, can claim that "it is all by chance"?. It is the same as someone who wants to explain how birds fly by looking at fish.
Second, everything around us is working in a very specific way to keep the balance on Earth. Everything is well-measured, well-defined, well-placed. Let's take the example of our Globe, if it was one centimeter ahead of where it is, it would be all burned. If it was one centimeter behind, it would all freeze. Is that chance?
If the smallest of the creatures on earth, viruses for example, would disappear, the biggest creatures would not exist. Is that chance?
We, humans, were created different from other species for a reason. We were created able to think in order to observe this universe and find out the purpose behind it. We were not giving these skills to admit we are here because "it is just the way things went". We were provided with intelligence, sight, and all the 5 senses to be able to know that we have a purpose. No boat goes into the ocean without having a destination. We did not ride this boat by chance. We are going somewhere, following the flow of life.
Everyone, or should I say, everything, has a purpose. Life as a whole has purpose. We might not be able to see it right now, but it is everywhere around us. If you get up at 7:46 instead of 7:45, there is a purpose. If the store is out of your favorite food, there is a purpose. If you get sick, there is purpose. Everything that happens in our daily life, no matter how big it is, has a reason behind it.
We wake up because we have a purpose: to love, to work, to raise money, to help. A life without a purpose is not worth living. A universe without a purpose is meaningless.
