""All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree. All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man's life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual towards freedom.
—Albert EinsteinScience—life is richer when you understand its mechanisms, more interesting when you examine the sublime complexity that's inaccessible to the naked eye and more exciting when you realize how future breakthroughs have the capacity to fundamentally change our lives for the better. In short, science is totally awesome. It is also pretty awe-inspiring. You are composed of trillions of atoms that are, by definition, inherently lifeless, but come together in a unique configuration that makes you you.
At any given moment, countless chemical reactions are occurring in your body, creating energy, fueling your thought processes as you read this sentence, forming new cells and fighting against potential disease, among other things, all without any conscious effort or gratitude on your part.
Beyond providing plenty of \whoa""-worthy moments, a lot of science is also inherently funny. Case in point—Bill Nye, everybody's favorite science guy, actually began his entertainment career on a sketch-comedy show.
The folks at the Ig Nobel awards also reside on the lighter side of science, honoring research that first makes people laugh, then makes them think. In 2004, Jillian Clarke was given the Ig Nobel Prize for Public Health when she demonstrated how bacteria and viruses could leap onto fallen cookies and Gummi Bears just moments after hitting the floor, effectively debunking the ""five-second"" rule.
Your digestive tract is also a wealth of comic gold. According to physicians Michael Roizen and Mehmet Oz in ""You: the Owner's Manual,"" you pass gas—the result of bacteria fermenting certain foods in your GI tract—about 14 times a day, producing one to three pints of gas daily. And less than one percent of it smells.
Somewhere, people in lab-coats are studying this phenomenon, which is both hilarious and fortunate for us, since their discoveries could have the potential for improving our lives.
Which brings me to my next point: Science and technology will play a more important role in your life than any generation before you.
According to Kevin Kelly, one of the co-creators of Wired magazine, there will be more change in the next 50 years of science than in the last 400 years.
He also suggested that the 21st century will be one centered on biology: ""It is the domain with the most scientists, the most new results, the most economic value, the most ethical importance and the most to learn.""
Finally, science needs our support.
Scientists are some of the hardest-working folk in academia. After years of undergraduate, graduate and doctoral studies in an increasingly competitive environment, some scientists have to undergo years of criminally underpaid postdoctoral work while they wait to land their dream job.
To invoke Einstein one more time, ""Science is a wonderful thing if one does not have to earn one's living at it.""
I have faith that this will change and more support will go to the researchers who push science forward. In the meantime, watch the National Geographic Channel when you can, eat plenty of fiber, try to learn from that food science course you have to take and thank your high-school biology teachers if you see them. They deserve it.
