BIG

BIG HISTORY:
HISTORY:
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
I’m not going to lie; I didn’t have any idea what is the 4FYE1 course
included in my class schedule when I enrolled. Fortunately, first meeting with
the course went well and I can say I’m intrigued on how it will go and be
different to other subjects we have taken in the past. To have an idea about the
course, we’ve watched a video titled “What is Big History?” with David
Christian, father of Big History, leading the discussion. According to him, in Big
History, many disciplines are interlaced to form a single story for the history of
everything and our connection with this everything. It seems too much for me
to take in if I were to think that what I have studied for like eight years would
just be in one course. However, I agree to his idea that we are taught and
learned our world in fragments making us having non-unified vision of the
world so having Big History can give us a sense of purpose and fascination to
the world and to life.

Our universe is not static instead it is expanding faster than we thought

according to some articles I’ve read. As it expands, its complexity increases. I
believe that this phenomenon also applies in our lives that as we grow
everything around us and everything about us get more complicated. We need
to embrace more responsibilities that come with aging. It’s not just about us
anymore as we involve and share ourselves to the others. Our world is
expanding so is our perspectives and knowledge to everything we get interacts
to. In relation to this, we’ve watched a video titled “Powers of Ten” which
provides us a new way of looking at the world. Seeing the video makes me
realize what we know is not enough and there are still questions left
unanswered. Even though I feel somehow small or meaningless compared to
how big the universe is, I also feel thankful that I exist to see this wonderful
creation and live within it.
 BIG HISTORY:
INTRODUCTION
A threshold is a transition point. It's a significant event that creates
something completely new. Big History is divided into nine thresholds which
are Big Bang, Stars, Chemical Elements, Earth & Solar System, Life, Collective
Learning, Agriculture, Industrial Revolutions, and The Future, respectively. If I
were to make thresholds in my life, there would be five of them in the present
and obviously there’s more to come. The first threshold would be when I was
born because that’s when it all started for me. It took a great effort and energy
for my parents to bring me in this world, of course we all know how it is
happened no need for elaboration. Second would be when I started going to
school at the age of four. As a child, it took courage to be away with my
parents just to be with strangers while trying to apply all I learn from my
mother; I didn’t cry just for everybody’s information.

Next threshold would be after elementary and I need to study in the city
far from home, new people to meet, and very new different environment. The
fourth one would be start of senior high school, again new school and new
people so I need to adjust again. Lastly, college is very new to me, even
though I happened to stay in the same school and I already knew most of the
people. I applied to a school scholarship wherein I have to work as a student
aid in the morning for four hours then my class is in afternoon. I haven’t
adjusted well yet with the schedule I have but I’m hoping I will soon.

Another topic we’ve discussed is the Big History process: divergence,

convergence, and emergence. I think I can connect it with the quote saying
that everything happens for a reason. In spite of that, sometimes it’s just really
hard to think about the reason why certain things exist for they just happen to
be there and when we knew the reason it will just left us amazed and
speechless.