Dilemma- Knowledge v/s Utility

The Knowledge and Utility Dilemma

Have you ever seen a child looking into a kaleidoscope? The breathtaking array of pattern and color exploding from that little tube can leave one spell bound. Its magical! A similar experience is gained from a pure pursuit of knowledge.

‘Knowledge for knowledge’s sake, that’s how it is and is always meant to be. Recently, however, there has been a view gaining ground that knowledge has to be useful or add value. Knowledge has to be accountable to justify the tax payers money invested in it. The pursuit of knowledge for its sake is elitist and leaves out the masses. But is the worth of knowledge to be judged by its utility? According to me it is a very unfortunate view to hold and reeks of a capitalistic and limiting mind set. If that were the case then surely only the pure sciences would survive the test and be ‘valued’, while the social sciences and humanities would be left behind.

But is this what we want? Does one really think that  better products, better technology or a more cost effective  way of working only qualify as ‘usefulness’. What about other benchmarks of evaluation like beauty, creativity, passion, sensitivity, curiosity? What about a better and higher order mindset that knowledge creates? Isn’t that usefulness too? Doesn’t the making of better human beings lead to a better world? 

The discovery of the Higgs boson in the year 2012 has led to a major breakthrough in the field of particle physics and has changed the way we perceive the Universe. The boson, however, despite being such a great discovery, does not have any practical application; almost all of its uses are purely in the theoretical realm. But despite this, the value of the knowledge obtained from the discovery of this particle is not diminished. Billions of dollars have been spent on the project and rightly so. The end result or achievement is priceless, worth much more. It is a mighty achievement; nothing short of ‘phenomenal’ as it has unraveled part of the mysteries of our beautiful world.The scientific experiment has silenced all critics and advocates of the ‘Utility’ theory. What is an insignificant parameter like ’utility’ in the face of an amazing discovery!The great desire to explore the unknown, to venture into uncharted territory, to discover new realities, that’s what man is made for and mankind should dream of.‘A tiny leap for man a giant leap for mankind’ that famous statement by astronaut Neil Armstrong when he set foot on the moon is so true! It helps comprehend the wonders that the pursuit of knowledge does to mankind.Sadly, this is not the case today. Crouched by our fear that the outcome or result may not be as expected or the resources required far greater than planned we’re afraid of venturing boldly into the unknown. The pressure of usefulness has restricted freedom of thought and stunted our growth.

Another new discovery is the fact that the mass of the universe does not weigh as much as it was thought to be. Scientific discoveries such as these too can give us valuable insights and open up newer areas of knowledge without any possible application of it. Thus we can see that despite the discovery lacking in true application in society,it promotes a greater human understanding of the Universe.

Another example to prove that the value of knowledge is not diminished without application is in the area of Art. Art is an expression of one’s knowledge and imagination emanating from that knowledge. The painting of ‘The Mona Lisa’ does not have any true application, yet every year millions travel across the world, spend money just to come and see it. Mona Lisa evokes imagination through her mysterious smile and her unknown origins. One of the reasons why ‘The Mona Lisa’ or for that matter all art is appreciated, is because art has a sensory as well as an emotional impact on its viewers and that’s true with knowledge as well.

The other different view of looking at Knowledge is the ‘Utility’ theory which states that Knowledge is good if it does good. Knowledge is not inherently valuable.This view is correct in itself as application of knowledge for the benefit of the world is both desired and appreciated and is also to be encouraged. There is no greater endeavor than the one that contributes towards society. The discovery of penicillin,electricity, gravity, the great compositions of Bach and Beethoven, artistic masterpieces like the frescoes of Sistine Chapel, the Internet, cellular technology, cloud computing….etc have changed the face of the earth and made a huge difference  in our lives, that life is unimaginable without them.

Professor von Prondzynski argues  that ‘Knowledge for knowledge’s sake  made sense in the past when “Education  was largely the property of a social elite who had no need to justify what they were doing…Today’s society needs something more, and there can be plenty to give.”

Recently a discovery has been made that details that dog fleas can jump higher than cat fleas. This discovery is pure nonsense; it does not have any real life application, neither does it enhance our scientific thinking ,neither does it open up areas for further research. The research paper was awarded the Ig Nobel prize, for trivial or improbable research. There are many of such nonsensical research being conducted viz. proving that coca cola kills sperms, the word ‘huh’ exists in every human language; analysis of ancient Egyptian toilets, a chemical recipe to partially un-boil an egg etc. People are therefore disillusioned with the prolific and absolutely irrelevant research being done today feel justified of their approach to put accountability on knowledge.

In the consumer driven world of today, there are many supporters of the Utility theory of knowledge. Subjects that do not have any real world applications are valued less and thus are studied less.Pure mathematics is a branch of mathematics that studies abstract concepts, proves theorems;has little or no application.This subject is hardly ever chosen by students, except perhaps by those who want to pursue it at a teaching level. Applied mathematics is what most students choose because of its utility in finance and industry.

Art, too according to the Utility theory needs to fulfill or provide application to considered valuable. A prime example of this is the ‘Washington Crossing the Delaware’ by Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze. This painting has a real world application for the Americans as they share an emotional connect with itas it reminds them of the sacrifices that were made for their nation’s freedom. One could also gain an insight into history through the painting as it showcases the clothing, artifacts, battle plans laid out by George Washington before the battle with the Hessians.

In conclusion I would like to say that Knowledge and Utility are interconnected. Their verbs ‘Thinking’ and ‘Doing’ are two sides of the same coin. A thinker will always be a better doer. A doer today will be a better thinker tomorrow. A thinker who imparts his thinking empowers other thinkers and doers. A thinker, who simply thinks, empowers himself and that’s good too. A doer who simply does,helps others and that great as well!Both a thinker and a doer, of course is a person of higher order and what each of us should aim to be. Thus we see thinking and doing are inextricably woven and make up the fabric of society we live in.

Knowledge if not useful now, creates a toolbox for the wise which can be used later for new discoveries. Every piece of knowledge or learning or information therefore has value. No, knowledge is not a means to an end. It is not even an end. Knowledge is infinite. There will always be mouths to feed and bridges to be built and targets to be achieved. But let not the realities of today stifle our vision of tomorrow. Let’s not cage our scientists and artists into the domesticity of a householder, make them accountable, give them a to-do list and a budget! An open and free mind is the hallmark of knowledge and key to discovery and then of course …..utility!