III The Mechanical Interpretation of the Universe

The Mechanical Interpretation of the Univers whether a machine could be constructed to reproduce the thoughts of Newton, the emotions of Bach or the inspiration of Michelangelo, the average man of science was rapidly becoming convinced that no machine could be constructed to reproduce the light of a candle or the fall of an apple. The old science had confidently proclaimed that nature could follow only one road, the road which was mapped out from the beginning of time to its end by the continuous chain of cause and effect.2 But finally, science had to admit that the past of the universe could no longer be so adamantly claimed as the cause of the future. In the light of modern knowledge, a great majority of scientists are in agreement that the river of knowledge is leading them to a nonmechanical reality. Regarding the origin of the universe and its movement, both the theories which have been advanced in the course of scientific progress still fail to carry conviction. Modern research does not strengthen their basis, but rather undermines them. Thus, science itself is contradicting its own theories. Man has now returned to the point of departure, which he had at first abandoned in order to launch himself into deep, uncharted waters. 1. The Mysterious Universe, p.18. 2. Based on The Mysterious Universe.