Science, scientism or pseudoscience?

Cold case (Malayalam; 2021)

Amazon Prime

We thought science had an answer for all of Man's woes. The recent pandemic just put it in plain sight to us how inadequate we are. With all the latest armamentarium, statistics and cutting-edge biomedical technology at our disposal, one year into the Covid-19, we are still groping in the dark of how to sound the death knell of this near-invisible foe.

Logically, science, with its systematic application of knowledge of the material world, which uses methodical and unbiased analysis, should uncover truths and fundamental laws of the world. There was a time when advances in the sciences helped squash beliefs propagated by religious men and shamans who claim to communicate with the netherworld to find solutions to our problems. We sniggered at them, labelling their sciences as pseudoscience or mumbo-jumbo.

Our belief in science in the 21st century is shaken. All the statistics and data in various rhymes and reasons fail to tackle the root of the problem. It seems that the virus is taking us for a spin and is having the last laugh.

Practitioners of alternatives are starting to suggest that perhaps our excessive belief in the power of scientific knowledge and techniques, i.e. scientism, needs reassessment. After all, many of the fields which were dismissed as quackery never really disappeared. Telepathy, morphic resonance, synchronicity and even religion had been rejected as they cannot be verified by scientific inquiry. They suggest that we descend from our high horses and give a little credence to this field of so-called pseudosciences.

After all, the wisdom of many ancient Eastern civilisations did not fall from the sky or was infused via ancient alien transmission of technology. All the astronomical calculations, architectural par excellence and seafaring prowess, did not materialise from thin air. Maybe we have to rediscover, remind and relearn the knowledge that our ancestors knew. We need to find the key to that treasure chest, which probably got misplaced in the annals of time when we got too complacent with the pleasures of life.

I thought this movie was very nicely made, albeit its occasional holes in its plots. (Like my daughter would say, “don’t ask too many questions!”) The storytelling and the build-up are slightly different. One crime, but there are two ways the victim and the perpetrators are pinned down.

 
A fisherman nets a black garbage bag from a lake. The police are called in when he finds a human skull in it. The forensic team then determines that it belonged to a young female. Through digital facial reconstruction techniques and intelligent detective work, it is determined that the deceased is a certain Eva Maria.

On the other side of town, a recently divorced TV journalist with a young child moves into a rented house. Her area of work is paranormal activity. She soon notices some unusual occurrences in her new home. Through her guest in one of her previous shows, a seer is summoned. The seer senses the presence of an unsettled soul of a lady yearning to be heard.

Through imaginative storytelling and parallel investigations, the storytellers try to tie the twisted ends to give an intelligent and plausible explanation to the turn of events whilst pinpointing the wrongdoer in the end. The story tells us that science and mystic knowledge should complement one another to solve man's problems, not to be at loggerheads to prove one's superiority over the other. Maybe, just maybe, we should not write off non-science knowledge as mere mumbo jumbo.

scientism
excessive belief in the power of scientific knowledge and techniques.

morphic resonance
the idea of mysterious telepathy-type interconnections between organisms and of collective memories within species.

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Strength in Unity!

The Falcon and Winter Soldier (Miniseries, E1-6; 2021)
Marvel Cinematic Universe

Just how long did it take for a person to stay in a country for him to be accepted by his fellow countrymen to be one of them? Human beings are innately racists. For a long time, they have generally felt safe being amongst their own kind who share the same sentiments and values. Perhaps it is something that they have not been able to shed off from their tenure as dwellers of the caves. In those days (even now, of course), Nature has been quite harsh for things to be left for granted. The vulnerability of exposure to the elements of Earth made us suspicious of everything. The last thing they want to be is to end up as a meal for others.

So, it is human nature to look upon the other who looks different from them and be wary of their intention. But we also have developed a sense of awareness that teaches good values and conducts. Are these mere decorative motifs to fill books and scriptures?

'The Falcon and The Winter Soldier' takes off from 'The Avengers: End Game' when Captain America (Steve Rogers) handed his mantle to Sam Wilson after 'The Blip'. Sam, feeling inadequate, donates Captain America's shield to the Museum. The real reason for his non-acceptance is that he thinks that America is not ready for a Black Captain America. He leads a life as The Falcon. When trouble starts with a group of serum enhanced anti-patriotism soldiers, Captain America's shield is gifted to an ill-prepared John Walker. 

The rest of the story tells how The Falcon teams up with The Winter Soldier to overpower the anti-patriotism group, taking the shield from John Walker to become the new Captain America, puts the names of former black soldiers who sacrificed for the USA in the annals of military hero list. The whole show is basically a social commentary that reminds us that America is neither white nor black, but it comprises a potpourri of colours and shades.

That brings us to our country, Malaysia. Modern Malaya skyrocketed to international fame in the early and mid 20th century in trade, commerce and sports. This happened primarily because of the hard work of various ethnic groups who landed here by choice or by fate. The euphoria of Independence and self-rule propelled them to even greater heights. We were labelled as the emerging 'Tiger of Asia'. The tiger, however, had its developmental milestones stunted by the works of bigoted zealots who were hellbent on purging the country of its people who were not of their selected ethnicity and religion. 

They know we grow in unity but in their blinkered eyes, but it seems that blind faith blinded them. In the meantime, we are spiralling down the ladder of hopelessness and ponder upon the possibility of becoming a 'basket case'. The pandemic is our wake up call.

Going back to the story of a black being Captain America, my friends and I had invested in hours of discussion on the above subject. On the one hand, the great divide is attributed to repetitive restrictive laws and social constructs that segregate and suppress a race the already had a checked start from the starting line. They were enslaved and systematically oppressed over generations leaving scars that left a trans-generational dent in their psyche. Opposition to this type of argument is that 150 years after their emancipation in 1865 is a long time for the oppressed to pull themselves up by the bootstrap. American history has its fair share of black success stories as well. Many black millionaires, entrepreneurs, and many musicians of the Harlem renaissance re-engineered songwriting and music appreciation. One or two success stories are here for perusal...

Harry Pace (1884-1943)
Founder of Black Swans Records and Northeastern Life Assurance Company.

Georgia born, orphaned and passed out as a white to live in a white-dominated housing area under the Jim Crow laws. In his later years obtained a law degree to have a legal practice.

Roland Hayes (1887-1977)

Started singing in his early teenage years in church choirs. After singing in troops, he finally picked the courage to have his own musical recital of classical European music at a time when black music was limited to minstrelsy and getting a sponsor was impossible. Using his good office at the church and kind sponsors, he rented a whole hall for this purpose. His popularity soared. He soon performed in many major US cities. He later performed in London for the British royalty. His magnum opus must be performing Schubert's piece in Berlin in 1924 in front of a jeering German crowd. This was after WW1 when the Germans were unhappy with placing black American soldiers in Germany. There was pin-drop silence once he started singing.

Roland Hayes' 'Were you there.'

(narrating the biblical moment when Christ was on the Cross.)

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Machiavelli is child's play, meet Chanakya!

Chanakya
Amar Chitra Katha Classics

Thanks, Aman, for the suggestion.

Forget the 16th century Niccolo Machiavelli and his devious Machiavellian tactics in 'The Prince' to usurp power and defeat your enemies. Forget Adam Smith as the 18th century Father of modern economics and his treatise 'Wealth of Nation.

Before the modern world knew about science, politics and economics, Indian civilisation had already delved deep into the above subject. Chanakya, who lived around the 300CE, was a master political advisor exemplaire. A Brahmana, a scholar knowledgable of various sciences, is said to have been instrumental in masterminding Chandragupta to establish the Maurya Empire. 

It was about 2,500 years ago when Alexander (questionable whether he was Great) from Macedonia was creating a ruckus in Northern India. Maghada was the largest kingdom in India then. Hence, most people thought that it was natural for its ruler to chase away foreign aggressors from their land. 

It started with a minister in the Maghada kingdom, Shakhtar, getting insulted by the ruler. The minister deviously got Chanakya to get an audience with King Nanda, the Maghada monarch. In a stuprous state, the drunken king ridiculed scholar Chanakya.

An incensed Chanakya vowed to strip the King and his sons of their powers. Shakhtar and Chanakya sneaked a cunning plan to instigate Nanda's eldest son, the most intelligent and the strongest of his sons, Chandragupta, to snatch the rein of power. They also induced a pact of convenience with a greedy king Parvathak for his army.

Nanda was defeated and poisoned by Chanakya's spies. Forget 'House of Cards', Chanakya was a master planner. He engineered who should be in and who should be out in Chandragupta's newly established reign. Royal hidden manoeuvres, quick sleigh hand tactics, backstabbing and attempted poisoning of Chandragupta, all were nipped in the bud by the maverick Chanakya in the course of his illustrious career in the courtyard.

Chandragupta Maurya

It is said after organising a solid army, Chandragupta went on to build an Empire. Even this story in Amar Chitra Katha simplifies and perhaps, romanticises Chandragupta to have warded off Alexander away from India, the timeline is a bit off. History tells us that King Porus is credited for defeating Alexander. But the Macedonians fought many wars over the Indian frontier. In one such clash with the Nanda Empire (remember the early part of the story!) and Gangaridai, Alexander's army mutinied because the raving elephant army was too intimidating. Their morale declined, and the military had to retreat.

That event essentially marked the end of the Alexander warrior days. He died on the way back, the cause of which remains speculative. It ranged from malaria to depression after the demise of his male companion to poisoning.

Chanakya, also known as Kautilya, authored 'Kautilya Arthsashtra' in the 3rd century BCE. He is a pioneer in the fields of political sciences and economics. His work is the basis of classical economics.

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Memories are made of these?

Sardar ka Grandson (Hindi, Sardar's Grandson; 2021)
Netflix

Somebody was comparing two pieces of land that were carved out of a more significant portion of land, circa 1947-48. See how the parent state reacts to the other. What a contrast!  In 1947, the Muslim state of Pakistan (1,030,000 km²) was carved out of a large piece of land that was essentially Buddhist/Hindu for thousands of years. Despite all the bloodshed and emotional trauma that accompanied this creation, India, by and significant accepted the turn of historical events and carried on with life, trying to improve itself.

In contrast, the tiny Jewish State of Israel  (22,000 km²) was reborn in 1948 after 2000 years in a place where their forefathers, thousands of years previously before, were exiled. Yet, their neighbours and their yeomen are hellbent on the state's annihilation. The problem is where to mark the beginning of history and selective bias of record to determine who was there first. 

Since its inception, Israel has been defending itself from hostile neighbours. It had turned a deaf ear to curses from many of their proxies. Collectively, the enemies of Israel have made it a crusade to fight the land held sacred by other believers as well, Christians and Baha'is included. Still, there can be no place for intellectual discourse. Instead of living in harmony with its neighbours as the great scriptures advocate and improving their living standards, they chose anarchy. There has been no peace for the past 70 years.

When someone loses a place that they call home, what do they actually lose? Is it the physical space occupied by the person, or is it the memories associated with the place? Can the experiences and feelings be quantifiable? Is it justified to live brooding over lost land, living in melancholy reminiscing on how things were? Or should we accept it as the ever-changing tide of history and move on? Cambodia was once a race of master builders. Greece was where people of Europe started thinking beyond their primal, animalistic needs. But look at them now. Wind of change does not escape anyone.

Maybe it is trans-generational trauma of sorts, or perhaps it will be forgotten as the older generation, which was there in flesh and blood during the 1947 Partition. The event has affected the Punjabi community tremendously. 

This 2021 light comedy tells the tale of a Punjabi American immigrant (Amreek) who has to return urgently to Amritsar to visit his 90-year-old ailing grandmother, Sardar Kaur. In the USA, he runs a moving business with his fiancée, Radha. Due to his lackadaisical attitude and bumbling demeanour, they part ways.

Back in India, his grandmother's dying wish is to visit her former home in Lahore. Before the Partition, she and her husband had built a home. She had to leave it in desperation when Pakistanis moved in and killed her husband. So get a visa and go, right? The problem is that the grandmother is denied entry to Pakistan. On record, she has assaulted a Pakistani official many years before, as a spectator, before during a friendly cricket match. 

By then, Radha has moved on to other things. Amreek once witnesses her advertisement of her translocating a whole tree. Amreek decides to do the same for Sardar's house. As fate would have it, the official whom Sardar had assaulted is now Lahore's mayor, and he is not going to give the permit for translocation so easily. As expected, Amreek is successful, he and Radha are united, Sardar is happy, and the film managed to portray an image of buffoonery on the people of Pakistan and their officials. Perhaps that is the reason why the film fared so poorly on IMDB and Rotten Apples' scales.  The leftist media have to stand in support of their brethren. An enemy of my enemy is my friend.

The movie is average, but there are a lot of loopholes in the storyline. Imagine navigating a double-storey townhouse through the narrow and diabolical streets of Lahore on a trailer. If the viewers were to look beyond all these faux pas, they might enjoy this romcom.

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The post war awakening

Virgin And Gipsy
Book Written: DH Lawrence (first published 1930)
Film version: 1970

It was a time when the Western society was evolving from one that lived for the collective good of the community to one that emphasised personal exploration and realising their full potential. The time was ripe for an individual break out from the yoke of social mores and search out for the real reason for his existence. The world was changing. They saw what conformity brought them - the greatest war to end all wars. Women realised they are more than what they are credence for. The Great War illustrated that they could perform jobs deemed only 'suitable' for men. The Suffrage Movement made great strides in wage equality and voting. They also found educational opportunities.

Women in the 'Roaring Twenties' were held back not simply by political, social and economic obstacles but by unconscious psychological “stops and inhibitions planted in childhood”. The rebel streak in them struggled to bring out suppressed desires, one of them being sexual desires. Novelists were quite open about women’s stifled sexual desires, be it clandestine or against the course of Nature. 'The Virgin and the Gipsy/Gypsy'  is one such book. 'Gentleman Jack' is another description of Anne Lister's sexual escapades written in coded journals.

The euphoria of the end of the war did not last long. The Great Depression, which rolled in 1928, also brought in unemployment, humiliating poverty, the rise of fascism, and another war was to muffle the postwar dreams of freedom, fulfilment and equality for women.

Women from the rest of the world may have followed the path shown by their counterparts in the Western of wanting to exhibit their sexual liberties. Although late for the party, even till today, they continue to find their new place in the sun. The struggle between conserving the sanctity of a biological process and controlling one's body is ongoing. One party calls it masculine toxicity, whilst the counterargument is that the female body is no business for societal scrutiny and rules.

'The Virgin and the Gipsy' is written by DH Lawrence. Lawrence had the dubious reputation of having many of his books banned for explicit sexual content during his lifetime. He was referred to as a pornographer in some circles, but many admired his openness. We grew up hearing about it through the forbidden book 'Lady Chatterley's Lover', which was surprisingly in the red spot section of my library. Still, we never laid our mere mortal hands on it as it was being passed around amongst the mafia of senior librarians and their inner circle. DH Lawrence also ran afoul with the law for being a British spy but was never convicted. He died of tuberculosis at the age of 44. 

This novella tells the tale of two sisters, their late teenage years, Lucille and Yvette, returning from France after finishing their studies to a lifeless village in the English countryside. The girls grew up with their vicar father without a mother. Their mother had apparently abandoned them to elope with her lover. This dark moment is constantly reminded to them by their domineering paternal grandmother, Mather, who moved in, filling in the place of the absent mother. Moving in together with Mather were her daughter (Aunt Cissy, Vicar's fussy unwed sister) and her son, the reclusive Uncle Fred.

The sisters, especially Yvette, find their stay back quite suffocating. Even though Yvette fills up her time partying and gallivanting with friends of her age, she finds it unfulfilling. She wants to find love. This, she finds in an unnamed character (at least till the end), a married gipsy who is scorned upon by her society. Yvette also finds acquaintance in Mrs Fowler, a soon-to-divorced Jewess, who lands in the village with her lover for a 'brought forward' honeymoon. 

Through the prism of her father's failed marriage, her domineering grandmother, the mousey behaviour of her father in front of his family and the restrictive atmosphere of the social mores, Yvette finds muscular virility in 'The Gipsy'.

It also looks at the invisibility of certain members of our society. The Gipsy, Joe Boswell, was a war hero in WW1, but he is just another social outcast in the post-war era. We can try to be politically correct by discontinuing the word 'Gipsy' and labelling them Romani instead. But the crux of the matter is that we have to change our mindset, not just the semantics. It is also a class issue.

Romani flag (Cakra!)

[P.S. For the record, the Romanis are said to have originated from Northern India. Known as nomadic travellers throughout Europe, and is often the subject of discrimination. They became a part of whichever land they sojourn. The Romani language is said to be almost 60% similar to the Punjabi language. During the WW2 Holocaust, Romanis perished in the concentration camp together with the 6 million Jews. In 1971, Gypsies from all over Europe congregated near London for the First World Romani Congress to stamp the existence. The representatives discussed multiple social, educational, war crimes, language, and cultural issues affecting the community. They agreed on a common flag for Romanis.]

[P.P.S. Gipsy evolved to Gypsy over the years]

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A priceless gem

And Then There Was None (Miniseries, 3 episodes; 2015)
BBC

I heard about this book even way back in Standard 6. I remember that we, young pre-pubescent boys, were intrigued by its title, 'Ten Little Niggers'. That was, of course, its original title when Agatha Christie wrote the book in the UK in 1939 and was based on a rhyme from minstrel shows and children's games. The poem goes to tell how ten blacks end up dead in ten different ways. In the story, the 10 murders happen similarly as described in the poem, but not so a pretty straightforward way.

When the book was reprinted in the USA, due to the sensitivities of the word 'nigger' even back then, it was renamed with the last line of the poem when old the figures died - 'and there was none'. Later publications also used the title 'Ten Little Indians', an 1869 poem and 'Ten Little Soldiers'. This book has the reputation of being the best selling book, selling over 100 million copies.

Ten Little Niggers (Frank Green) 1869

Ten Little Indians (Septimus Winner) 1868

Ten little nigger boys went out to dine One choked his little self, and then there were nine. Nine little nigger boys sat up very late. One overslept himself, and then there were eight. Eight little nigger boys travelling in Devon One said he'd stay there, and then there were seven. Seven little nigger boys chopping up sticks One chopped himself in half, and then there were six. Six little nigger boys playing with a hive A bumblebee stung one, and then there were five. Five little nigger boys going in for law One got in chancery, and then there were four. Four little nigger boys going out to sea A red herring swallowed one, and then there were three. Three little nigger boys walking in the zoo A big bear hugged one, and then there were two. Two little nigger boys sitting in the sun One got frizzled up, and then there was one. One little nigger boy living all alone He went and hanged himself and then there were none.

Ten little Injuns standin' in a line, One toddled home and then there were nine; Nine little Injuns swingin' on a gate, One tumbled off and then there were eight. Refrain: One little, two little, three little, four little, five little Injuns boys, Six little, seven little, eight little, nine little, ten little Injuns boys. Eight little Injuns gayest under heav'n, One went to sleep and then there were seven; Seven little Injuns cutting up their tricks, One broke his neck and then there were six. Six little Injuns kickin' all alive, One kick'd the bucket and then there were five; Five little Injuns on a cellar door, One tumbled in and then there were four. Four little Injuns up on a spree, One he got fuddled and then there were three; Three little Injuns out in a canoe, One tumbled overboard and then there were two. Two little Injuns foolin' with a gun, One shot t'other and then there was one; One little Injun livin' all alone, He got married and then there were none.

ref: Wiki

Many versions of this murder mystery story have been out in many languages, in newspaper serials, books, plays, movies and miniseries. Essentially, eight guests are invited to spend the weekend on a secluded island by unknown hosts, Mr and Mrs Owen. The invitees (a mix of retired army men, surgeon, aristocrat, teacher, governess, judge) and the two helpers have a dark history behind their regular appearance. Their misdoings are announced, and slowly one by one, they drop dead like flies. Fear mounts as each suspects the other as the murderer, and the guessing game starts of who the next victim could be.

I had the chance to watch the 1945 movie version and this 2015 BBC miniseries version. The 1945 one, as the whole story had to be rushed through one and a half hour duration, it failed to create depth in its storytelling. I enjoyed the 2015 one as it shows through various flashbacks what mistake each character had done wrong in their lifetime. There is a kind of moral dilemma whether what they did was wrong or justified. There was also a Tamil version of this story - 1967 Athey Kangal done in Eastman colour. If the BBC version excelled in storytelling and characterisation, the Tamil version made up in terms of pleasing eye-catching costumes and the ear-worm inducing songs and dances that have lingered in Tamil moviegoers minds all this while.

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When you see the light, you may wish you did not!

Agatha Christie's Poirot (S13E05) Curtain: Poirot's Last Case
(Final Episode, 2013)

This must easily be the saddest of all of Hercule Poirot's episodes. Throughout this episode, the tone set is sombre, and a tinge of melancholy hung around every scene. Times have changed. Poirot is quite ill, arthritic and is wheelchair-bound. He is physically challenged, but his mind is not. His sidekick, Captain Arthur Hastings, is aged, recently widowed and has an adult daughter. 

Hastings is invited to the Styles, the place they had solved their first case together. Poirot needs Hastings to be his ears, eyes and legs to complement his razor-sharp 'grey cell' to 'prevent' an imminent murder. The identity of the murderer is only known to Poirot but is kept away from a frustrated Hastings.

David Suchet

Many deaths still happen during their stay, and together the identity is known only much later, after Poirot's demise! Yes, this is the last case of Poirot, and the fictional detective dies in a way that can be construed as suicide. 

Agatha Christie wrote this story during World War II and kept it safe for thirty years and was published in 1975. It was the last novel published before her death. The book was both anticipated and dreaded by fans for it contained Poirot's death. Many of Agatha Christie's fans refused to read it. For old time sake, this 2013 TV adaption brought in the initial duo of David Suchet and Hugh Fraser, who appeared as Poirot and Hastings respectively, when the first episode of the series came out on ITV in 1989.

This episode is heart wrenching one. Here, we see Poirot using his grey cells to crack the case and trying to answer some philosophical questions about life, death, and doing the right thing as he approaches the tail-end of his career and his life, which we will see at the end. Poirot puts himself in a precarious position in the end, but with the hope of forgiveness from the Almighty. In the end, he realises that a wrong must be done for the greater good. 

Au revoir, Poirot. Goodbye, till we meet again!

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