From the moment humans were able to fill their bellies long enough to stop and think, they've searched for the meaning of it all. Who are we? Why are

The Electronic Starfield - by Gurwinder - The Prism

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2022-07-04 23:30:03

From the moment humans were able to fill their bellies long enough to stop and think, they've searched for the meaning of it all. Who are we? Why are we here? What happens when we die? Our distant ancestors looked for clues to such riddles in the enigmatic patterns of nature, from half-intelligible words whispered by wind through trees, to faces sporadically appearing in clouds. Above all, our ancestors sought answers in the stars, tracing lines among them in the hope of unveiling cosmic secrets.

The stars were important to early civilisations because they formed a common reference point, a way to synchronise a society. They acted like a great compass, allowing people to navigate land and sea, and they also helped people keep track of the seasons, enabling agriculture.

But the stars didn't just anchor our ancestors in time and space; they also anchored them in meaning. Astrologers joined the dots in the sky to form constellations depicting mythical scenes and characters, allowing their legends to be preserved and retold. One could even say the starlit sky was a prototype internet; the first system for storing and distributing cultural information across a fixed and universal medium.

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