POLYMATHICS: VALUES OF THE POLYMATH
What are the internal workings of a polymath? What do they value? Our founder Sidney Harman emphasized that to understand polymaths the focus should rest not on what they did, but how they did what they did. Leonardo surrounded himself with those he sought to learn from; creativity for Maya Angelou was the connective heartbeat of the universe; and Marie Curie cherished childlike wonder as her entry point to understanding Nature. Our fall 2020 series explores the pathways and insights from select faculty among us who employ these polymathic values and more in their scholarship and lives. And to what end? To learn how.
Historically speaking, the genius, “lone polymath” is a misnomer. The great polymath Leonardo da Vinci surrounded himself with a diverse circle of musicians, architects...
“Everything in the universe has a rhythm, everything dances. ”
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Critical thinking is a polymathic value employed by ancient philosophers to present day scholars to understand who we are and why we are who we are. It is methodological and epistemological, as students...
“All through my life, the new sights of Nature made my rejoice like a child.”
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“I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.”—Leonardo da Vinci...
