Oh, How Little We Know!

The exploration is only starting:

  Science is a method of learning. That is the only thing the word science means. It is not a collection of knowledge, and it doesn't have an opinion. A very common turn of phrase is that "Science says..." this or that. Science doesn't say anything. Science is a method to learn empirically (100% certainty), and that is all.

Oh, How Little We Know

    It is very important for modern people to understand what science is and the extents and limitations of our knowledge. The modern system of education leads us to approach science with an institutional mindset. By nature, our system of education has become standardized, and we tend to adopt a mindset that everyone is running on the same set of knowledge. When scientists prove something, we imagine it joins the collection of human knowledge and bumps out any old ignorant facts that were there before it. The truth is that each book and journal written is written by human beings, subject to mistakes and misinterpretations, if not simply bad science. Each scientist has learned from their own set of experiences and mistakes. Even two people who see the same tests can interpret the results differently.
   For every accepted theory, there are many that are wrong. We have a very rudimentary understanding of many of the aspects of our universe. Energy is one of those things.

"Magic" is merely the unknown.

  Imagine for a moment that you could cast a magical spell. It can be any spell you like, though I prefer a classic Fireball. If you were to go around and test your spell on different things (and people!) to see what different effects it had, you would be practicing science. If magic existed, Scientists would study it and test it until they knew everything they could. Magic would join the ranks of human knowledge. It's effects, purpose, reason, scope, and source would all be documented and discovered. Afterward, "magic" would no longer be magic. It would simply be an effect of the natural universe that we understood. 

   Now reverse the idea, and apply the same concepts to energy. The energy that flows through the power-lines, the signals in your computer, and even the tiny bursts of energy that form thought in an organic brain are all forms of electricity. Energy is everything.
   That same energy creates magnetic forces, gravity, and the bonds that hold Atoms together. Atoms consist of the same energy that binds them, in another form. We have a great deal of knowledge about its effects and function, but what do we know about its source?

...and we are woefully wrong...   

      

   How much can we really know about this seemingly mystical energy that is everything and makes everything happen? We know a great deal about its effect and functions. We know how to use it for our benefit, but we have no idea how it got here, or how it came to explode out of the nothingness and make everything there is. By humanity's best guess, there is about four times as much energy out there in the universe as we can even detect yet! We call that undetectable energy Dark Matter. Dark Matter might not exist, however, the term is just a stand in for our complete lack of understanding. It could be there, our measurements could be flawed, or our basic understanding of physics could be wrong. We just don't know.

There is Magic in Our World

   What test can possibly be applied to discern the origin of...well...everything. In the most accepted model of the universe's creation, there is no explanation for the source of that energy. We generally accept that there was a big bang that came from one single point. How the energy got there is anyone's guess. As far as we understand it, we'll never be able to measure anything further back than that point. The big bang acts as a barrier in science that can cause even the most tempered mind to fantasize about God.
   As far as we understand, all the energy that exists has always existed. The reason a Fireball will never fly from my finger-tips is that there is no cause for it to happen. What cause is there for energy to exist? It is here forever, changeable and fluid in it's properties, yet lossless and permanent.

Tesla Coil in Action

  Magic is defined as the power of apparently influencing the course of events by using mysterious or supernatural forces. If we do not understand the source, but only the effects of energy, it is mystical. I believe that energy can be accurately called magic.

  We use electricity, one manifestation of energy, to power our computers and our lights. We use that energy to influence the course of events every time we turn on the air conditioner.

   Without joking, I am telling you that you use a magical computer to check your email. You drive a car to work that is powered by energy released when gasoline is heated with another burst of magic....um....energy.
   Obviously no one is going to start summoning demons or seeing the future in crystal balls, but there is still magic in the world. There are so many things to discover, and we humans have so much more in store for us beyond microwave ovens and color TVs. We haven't even left the nest. We are children. My son and his son and his son after will still be children. Technology is the new frontier, and only a couple hundred years old at best.
   Go out into the world learn. Remember that magic is ignorance, and humility is the first step toward enlightenment.