Mankind's Primary Adaptive Mechanism

Culture is "mankind's primary adaptive mechanism". Essentially, culture is a shared store of values and beliefs common to a group of people. The prevalence of culture in the life of the individual leads to the question, " Can we have beliefs or knowledge which are independent of our culture?" Two terms must first be defined: knowledge and beliefs. A belief may be defined as "the ideas in which we have faith in and are emotionally linked to". Knowledge may be defined as a "justified true belief" . Essentially the question asks whether knowledge may be produced or acquired independently of culture. From my perspective, this differs from one area of knowledge to another and differs from one individual to the next.

The natural sciences are an area of knowledge which have significantly impacted our perception of the natural world. The natural sciences denote subjects such as physics, biology and chemistry. From my perspective, the natural sciences are an area of knowledge independent of culture. In order to reach this conclusion, I examined the scientific method. The scientific method is a method used to distinguish a science from a pseudo science ( fake science). According to the traditional picture of the scientific method, science is divided into 5 steps known as inductivism.

1. observation

2. hypothesis

3. experiment

4. law

5. theory

A scientist would initially observe and classify data. He would proceed to look for pattern in the data and formulate a hypothesis. Following this, the scientist would make a predication. The scientist would test this predictions through experiments. If the experimental results confirm the hypothesis, a scientific law has been discovered. The scientific method limits the influence of bias and prejudice in the experimenter. It provides an objective, standardized approach to conducting an experiment and, in doing so, improves the scientist's results. By using a standardized approach in their investigations, scientists will stick to the facts and limit the impact of preconceived notions. This standardized approach, employed by scientific communities throughout the word, is unaffected by culture, language and religion. If two different people from two different areas of the world were to carry out the same experiment using the scientific method, they would be expected to obtain similar results. An example of the scientific method's universal application and acceptance was recently observed in Germany. At an international workshop held in Germany in 2009 , 40 leading scientists from nine countries gave state-of-the-art presentations and discussed new methods of identifying timber origins. The workshop provided a platform for interdisciplinary exchange of information amongst scientist. The scientist ability to interact with one another and exchange thoughts displayed the scientific method's complete independence from culture and global acceptance. The scientific method proves that scientific knowledge can be obtained regardless of one's location, language or culture. Having lived abroad for several years and having experienced several different cultures and education systems, I can testify to the statement that scientific knowledge is independent of culture. Local Singaporeans schools study the exact same properties of matter as Australian schools . Similarly, calculations for quantitative chemistry are no different from one school to the next, the formula for the number of moles was the same in my Singapore school as it is in my Australian school. The global applications of the scientific method displays the universality of science and its independence from culture.

Even in the sciences, however, there are cases where culture influences scientific discoveries and methods. Culture may effect the type of research carried out. Stem cell research is considered a moral taboo. The controversy stems from the embryo's death during the process of acquiring the stem cells. Many claim the embryo's death to be no different from murder and argue against the research on both moral and religious grounds. The social controversy results in a lack of funding towards the research and a resulting impediment on the results obtained. On the other hand, cancer inquiry is universally accepted, and a large number of social networks, organizations and fundraisers work to generate money and support for such researches . Certain cultures are less receptive to the idea of scientific progress. An extreme example would be North Korea. In North Korea, there is a general rejection of common scientific laws and an emphasis is placed upon scientific research favored by the government.

Literature delivers a creative record of all human experiences. The ability to read and analyze literary text expands our perspective of the world. Literature may be defined as a "written works, esp.