Rebecca Moore

HIS111
Lesson 4 Writing Assignment 1

From the Journals of Francis Bacon.

My life has been one full of accomplishments and meaning. I have written a number of books to

date, and published many works on various subjects to make this world a better place, through the

wonders of science. Our world had grown stagnant, as men looked only upon past knowledge, and

merely attempted to explain it, never seeing its flaws. I have been pushing for a different view of our

world, one where science is ever expanding, learning and discovering new things, and using them to

aid humanity. What good is our knowledge of nature if it cannot help humanity?

The first problem I had to face was the mood of man in this age toward the world around us,

and the study of that world. So many merely wanted to rely on ancient traditions, never questioning

them nor exploring them any further. They seemed to have no desire to look about them and study what

we experience. I sought to change that, by encouraging them to look closely and observe what they see,

smell, touch, taste and hear. To use their senses to make observations, record them, and then explain

them. Once this has been done, new thoughts will occur. Why do things produce the sensations we

observe? How can we use these to better our lives and our world? What else can these things we are

observing do? We must find out by experimenting with the nature we see around us. These are the

notions I have put forth to challenge our modern man.

Our knowledge must yield useful results, and it is my hope that these results will be used to help

mankind. What we need now is deeds, great deeds and new avenues for them, not all these useless

words. The scholastic learners are void of deeds. They study only the expired works of dead men, and
forget to aid the live men around them. They propose logic before they undergo the experience of what

they are looking at. What good is logic when knowledge is missing? Logic rarely helps people.

Application and results are what this world needs to progress. Only then will new possibilities present

themselves.

What possibilities there could be ahead of us! Possibilities that will help the people of Europe in

ways we can only begin to imagine. Commerce and wealth could boom with our knew knowledge, and

our nations grow stronger and more intelligent. Science must serve those who study it for it to have any

real use. By studying nature, we will discover new ways to help humanity. New ways of building and

housing people, new products to develop and sell to boost our economies, and new ways to farm and

produce food to feed our own. What new materials are waiting to be discovered which will improve our

lives? What new industries await us in the next year? We will not know unless we cast aside these

notions from the past, and embrace innovation and change.

Already my ideas are yielding new thoughts. Our supporters have been regularly reporting

news. Wondrous news. Explorers are sending reports on their discoveries, using their senses to observe

and record. Sailors have also been sending information on their travels. No more are they relying on

old knowledge. They are experiencing the world for themselves, and beginning to wonder at it. What

new developments will these observations bring to our world? I am eagerly awaiting the day when they

come to fruition.

Perhaps I have not been able to contribute directly to my dreams in the sense of my own

recorded data and experimentation, but I do seem to have opened the minds of those who can. Myself

and those like me are challenging man to look beyond antiquity, and discover and describe a new

world, full of possibilities for all. These new innovations could improve the lives of thousands here.
They will also make our countries stronger and on better terms with each other, as we move to a unified

world based on our new principals. It is my hope that our work will create a new world where

technologies are ever evolving, and the lives of our citizens ever improving (Text 646-647).