Hall Davenant is a Planetary Engineer specializing in nucleonics, the study of the subatomic particles in nuclei, but now he wonders:
"...had he ever looked into the soul of a man - even his own?" (p. 153)
But that is what psychotechnics is about and, even though the Psychotechnic Institute has been outlawed, the Planetary Engineers':
"...seven years as cadets included mind training under some of the most skilled psychotechnicians in the Solar System..." (II, p. 146)
- so what is "mind training"? Enhancement of mental skills, intellectual aptitudes, conceptual presuppositions and philosophical attitudes without any self-reflection? Davenant is clear enough about his motivation for joining the Order. His father was displaced by the Second Industrial Revolution and he himself wanted something different.
It is time for a great synthesis of the discoveries that have been made both within nuclei and within minds.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
I think Davenant also wanted something bigger to believe in than just making a good living.
Ad astra! Sean
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