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Do not fill this in! == Related terms and problems == === Worldviews === {{main|Worldview}} [[File:Home in Relation to Everything.png|thumb|Scientific [[worldview]].]] A worldview is a comprehensive representation of the world and our place in it.<ref name="McIvor">{{cite book |last1=McIvor |first1=David W. |title=International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/philosophy/philosophy-terms-and-concepts/worldview-philosophy |chapter=Weltanschauung}}</ref> As a representation, it is a subjective perspective of the world and thereby different from the world it represents.<ref name="Bunge">{{cite book |last1=Bunge |first1=Mario |title=Matter and Mind: A Philosophical Inquiry |publisher=Springer Verlag |url=https://philpapers.org/rec/BUNMAM |chapter=1. Philosophy as Worldview|year=2010 }}</ref> All higher animals need to represent their environment in some way in order to navigate it. But it has been argued that only humans possess a representation encompassing enough to merit the term "worldview".<ref name="Bunge"/> Philosophers of worldviews commonly hold that the understanding of any object depends on a worldview constituting the background on which this understanding can take place. This may affect not just our intellectual understanding of the object in question but the experience of it in general.<ref name="McIvor"/> It is therefore impossible to assess one's worldview from a neutral perspective since this assessment already presupposes the worldview as its background. Some hold that each worldview is based on a single hypothesis that promises to solve all the problems of our existence we may encounter.<ref name="De Mijolla-Mellor">{{cite book |last1=De Mijolla-Mellor |first1=Sophie |title=International Dictionary of Psychoanalysis |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/philosophy/philosophy-terms-and-concepts/worldview-philosophy |chapter=Weltanschauung}}</ref> On this interpretation, the term is closely associated to the worldviews given by different religions.<ref name="De Mijolla-Mellor"/> Worldviews offer orientation not just in theoretical matters but also in practical matters. For this reason, they usually include answers to the question of the meaning of life and other evaluative components about what matters and how we should act.<ref>{{cite book |last1=MARSHALL |first1=GORDON |title=A Dictionary of Sociology |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/philosophy/philosophy-terms-and-concepts/worldview-philosophy |chapter=Weltanschauung}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Weber |first1=Erik |title=Introduction |journal=Foundations of Science |date=1998 |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=231–234 |doi=10.1023/A:1009669806878 |url=https://philpapers.org/rec/WEBI}}</ref> A worldview can be unique to one individual but worldviews are usually shared by many people within a certain culture or religion. === Paradox of many worlds === The idea that there exist many different worlds is found in various fields. For example, theories of modality talk about a plurality of possible worlds and the [[many-worlds interpretation]] of [[quantum mechanics]] carries this reference even in its name. Talk of different worlds is also common in everyday language, for example, with reference to the world of music, the world of business, the world of football, the world of experience or the Asian world. But at the same time, worlds are usually defined as all-inclusive totalities.<ref name="Sandkühler"/><ref name=" Mittelstraß"/><ref name="Fraassen"/><ref name="Duco"/> This seems to contradict the very idea of a plurality of worlds since if a world is total and all-inclusive then it cannot have anything outside itself. Understood this way, a world can neither have other worlds besides itself or be part of something bigger.<ref name="Sandkühler"/><ref name="Declos">{{cite journal |last1=Declos |first1=Alexandre |title=Goodman's Many Worlds |journal=Journal for the History of Analytical Philosophy |date=2019 |volume=7 |issue=6 |pages=1–25 |doi=10.15173/jhap.v7i6.3827 |url=https://philpapers.org/rec/DECGMW|doi-access=free }}</ref> One way to resolve this paradox while holding onto the notion of a plurality of worlds is to restrict the sense in which worlds are totalities. On this view, worlds are not totalities in an absolute sense.<ref name="Sandkühler"/> This might be even understood in the sense that, strictly speaking, there are no worlds at all.<ref name="Declos"/> Another approach understands worlds in a schematic sense: as context-dependent expressions that stand for the current domain of discourse. So in the expression "Around the World in Eighty Days", the term "world" refers to the earth while in the colonial<ref name="Wondrium Daily 2021">{{cite web | title=The Old World-New World Debate and the Columbian Exchange | website=Wondrium Daily | date=2021-01-31 | url=https://www.wondriumdaily.com/the-old-world-new-world-debate-and-the-columbian-exchange/ | access-date=2022-04-10}}</ref> expression "the [[New World]]" it refers to the landmass of North and South America.<ref name="Fraassen"/> === Cosmogony === {{main|Cosmogony}} Cosmogony is the field that studies the origin or creation of the world. This includes both scientific cosmogony and creation myths found in various religions.<ref name="Long">{{cite book |last1=Long |first1=Charles |title=Encyclopedia of Religion |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/science-and-technology/astronomy-and-space-exploration/astronomy-general/cosmogony |chapter=Cosmogony}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Cosmogony |url=https://www.britannica.com/science/cosmogony |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=12 April 2021 |language=en}}</ref> The dominant theory in scientific cosmogony is the [[Big Bang theory]], according to which both space, time and matter have their origin in one initial singularity occurring about 13.8 billion years ago. This singularity was followed by an expansion that allowed the universe to sufficiently cool down for the formation of subatomic particles and later atoms. These initial elements formed giant clouds, which would then coalesce into stars and galaxies.<ref name="Zeilik25"/> Non-scientific creation myths are found in many cultures and are often enacted in rituals expressing their symbolic meaning.<ref name="Long"/> They can be categorized concerning their contents. Types often found include creation from nothing, from chaos or from a cosmic egg.<ref name="Long"/> === Eschatology === {{main|Eschatology}} Eschatology refers to the science or doctrine of the last things or of the end of the world. It is traditionally associated with religion, specifically with the [[Abrahamic religions]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Eschatology |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/eschatology |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=13 April 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Owen |first1=H. |title=Encyclopedia of Philosophy |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/bible/bible-general/eschatology |chapter=Eschatology}}</ref> In this form, it may include teachings both of the end of each individual human life and of the end of the world as a whole. But it has been applied to other fields as well, for example, in the form of physical eschatology, which includes scientifically based speculations about the far future of the universe.<ref name="Halvorson">{{cite web |last1=Halvorson |first1=Hans |last2=Kragh |first2=Helge |title=Cosmology and Theology: 7. Physical eschatology |url=https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/cosmology-theology/#7 |website=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |publisher=Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University |access-date=13 April 2021 |date=2019}}</ref> According to some models, there will be a [[Big Crunch]] in which the whole universe collapses back into a singularity, possibly resulting in a second [[Big Bang]] afterward. But current astronomical evidence seems to suggest that our universe will continue to expand indefinitely.<ref name="Halvorson"/> === World history === {{main|World history (field)}} World history studies the world from a historical perspective. Unlike other approaches to history, it employs a global viewpoint. It deals less with individual nations and civilizations, which it usually approaches at a high level of abstraction.<ref name="Bentley">{{cite web |last1=Bentley |first1=Jerry H. |editor1-first=Jerry H |editor1-last=Bentley |title=The Task of World History |url=https://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199235810.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199235810-e-1 |website=The Oxford Handbook of World History |access-date=14 April 2021 |language=en |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199235810.001.0001 |date=31 March 2011|isbn=9780199235810 }}</ref> Instead, it concentrates on wider regions and zones of interaction, often interested in how people, goods and ideas move from one region to another.<ref>{{cite web |title=What Is World History? |url=https://www.thewha.org/about/what-is-world-history/ |publisher=World History Association |access-date=14 April 2021}}</ref> It includes comparisons of different societies and civilizations as well as considering wide-ranging developments with a long-term global impact like the process of industrialization.<ref name="Bentley"/> Contemporary world history is dominated by three main research paradigms determining the periodization into different epochs.<ref name="Cajani">{{cite book |last1=Cajani |first1=Luigi |editor1-first=Jerry H |editor1-last=Bentley |title=The Oxford Handbook of World History |date=2011 |url=https://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199235810.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199235810-e-4 |language=en |chapter=Periodization|doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199235810.013.0004 }}</ref> One is based on productive relations between humans and nature. The two most important changes in history in this respect were the introduction of agriculture and husbandry concerning the production of food, which started around 10,000 to 8,000 BCE and is sometimes termed the [[Neolithic Revolution]], and the [[Industrial Revolution]], which started around 1760 CE and involved the transition from manual to industrial manufacturing.<ref>{{cite book |author=Graeme Barker |title=The Agricultural Revolution in Prehistory: Why did Foragers become Farmers? |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fkifXu2gx4YC |date=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-955995-4}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Industrial Revolution |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Industrial-Revolution |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=14 April 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Cajani"/> Another paradigm, focusing on culture and religion instead, is based on [[Karl Jaspers]]' theories about the [[Axial Age]], a time in which various new forms of religious and philosophical thoughts appeared in several separate parts of the world around the time between 800 and 200 BCE.<ref name="Cajani"/> A third periodization is based on the relations between civilizations and societies. According to this paradigm, history can be divided into three periods in relation to the dominant region in the world: Middle Eastern dominance before 500 BCE, Eurasian cultural balance until 1500 CE and Western dominance since 1500 CE.<ref name="Cajani"/> [[Big history]] employs an even wider framework than world history by putting human history into the context of the history of the universe as a whole. It starts with the [[Big Bang]] and traces the formation of galaxies, the [[Solar System]], the Earth, its geological eras, the evolution of life and humans until the present day.<ref name="Cajani"/> === World politics === World politics, also referred to as [[global politics]] or [[international relations]], is the discipline of political science studying issues of interest to the world that transcend nations and continents.<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Baylis |editor1-first=John |editor2-last=Smith |editor2-first=Steve |editor3-last=Owens |editor3-first=Patricia |title=The Globalization of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations |date=2020 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-882554-8 |edition=Eighth Edition, New to this |url=https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-globalization-of-world-politics-9780198825548?cc=us&lang=en& |chapter=Glossary}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Blanton |first1=Shannon L. |last2=Kegley |first2=Charles W. |title=World Politics: Trend and Transformation, 17th Edition - 9780357141809 - Cengage |date=2021 |publisher=Cengage |url=https://www.cengage.com/c/world-politics-trend-and-transformation-17e-blanton/9780357141809/ |language=en |chapter=Glossary}}</ref> It aims to explain complex patterns found in the social world that are often related to the pursuit of power, order and justice, usually in the context of [[globalization]]. It focuses not just on the relations between nation-states but also considers other transnational actors, like multinational corporations, terrorist groups, or non-governmental organizations.<ref name="Baylis">{{cite book |editor1-last=Baylis |editor1-first=John |editor2-last=Smith |editor2-first=Steve |editor3-last=Owens |editor3-first=Patricia |title=The Globalization of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations |date=2020 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-882554-8 |edition=Eighth Edition, New to this |url=https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-globalization-of-world-politics-9780198825548?cc=us&lang=en& |chapter=Introduction}}</ref> For example, it tries to explain events like [[9/11]], the [[2003 war in Iraq]] or the [[financial crisis of 2007–2008]]. Various theories have been proposed in order to deal with the complexity involved in formulating such explanations.<ref name="Baylis"/> These theories are sometimes divided into realism, liberalism and constructivism.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Blanton |first1=Shannon L. |last2=Kegley |first2=Charles W. |title=World Politics: Trend and Transformation, 17th Edition - 9780357141809 - Cengage |date=2021 |publisher=Cengage |url=https://www.cengage.com/c/world-politics-trend-and-transformation-17e-blanton/9780357141809/ |language=en |chapter=2. Interpreting World Politics through the Lens of theory}}</ref> Realists see nation-states as the main actors in world politics. They constitute an anarchical international system without any overarching power to control their behavior. They are seen as sovereign agents that, determined by human nature, act according to their national self-interest. Military force may play an important role in the ensuing struggle for power between states, but diplomacy and cooperation are also key mechanisms for nations to achieve their goals.<ref name="Baylis"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Korab-Karpowicz |first1=W. Julian |title=Political Realism in International Relations |url=https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/realism-intl-relations/ |website=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |publisher=Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University |access-date=14 April 2021 |date=2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Moseley |first1=Alexander |title=Political Realism |url=https://iep.utm.edu/polreal/ |website=Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy |access-date=14 April 2021}}</ref> Liberalists acknowledge the importance of states but they also emphasize the role of transnational actors, like the [[United Nations]] or the [[World Trade Organization]]. They see humans as perfectible and stress the role of democracy in this process. The emergent order in world politics, on this perspective, is more complex than a mere balance of power since more different agents and interests are involved in its production.<ref name="Baylis"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Cristol |first1=Jonathan |title=Liberalism |url=https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199743292/obo-9780199743292-0060.xml |website=Oxford Bibliographies |access-date=14 April 2021 |language=en}}</ref> Constructivism ascribes more importance to the agency of individual humans than realism and liberalism. It understands the social world as a construction of the people living in it. This leads to an emphasis on the possibility of change. If the international system is an anarchy of nation-states, as the realists hold, then this is only so because we made it this way and may change since this is not prefigured by human nature, according to the constructivists.<ref name="Baylis"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Cristol |first1=Jonathan |title=Constructivism |url=https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199743292/obo-9780199743292-0061.xml |website=Oxford Bibliographies |access-date=14 April 2021 |language=en}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page