History Repeats and the Line is a Circle

History Repeats and the Line is a Circle

"History Repeats" is something we hear all the time, but do we know why? Every line on the planet above is a straight line on a geodesic globe. History Repeats and the Line is a Circle.

The Ant On The Globe and General Relativity

It's important to reframe the idea of a linear progression in history, in nature, in growth, and in the way we see our own selves. The myth of a flat line in any space is a myth. Consider an ant walking along a "straight line" of latitude or longitude on a globe, we know it will converge again.

Maybe the real reason history repeats is because we are foolish enough as historians, scientists, and farmers to believe that it shouldn't?

Jim Bruner

This is an obvious truth that we are not used to considering in the "non math" or in the non-quantum, relativistic world. The arc of time itself is a circle; It's called the arc of time for a reason. In fact the circle is one of the only true geometries in reality -- and it is actually triangles.

All Journeys Are Circular

We have the arc of time, the weight of events, the cycles of life. All of these are cycles, even the seasons and calendars are circles. Spacetime is a geodesic and all journeys are circular.

Maybe the real reason history repeats is because we are foolish enough as historians, scientists, and farmers to believe that it shouldn't? What would a world of truly linear progression and endless unyielding uniformity even look like. Where would the wonder and mystery appear?

So You are Back Where You Started?

Generally speaking, it's not a bad thing that history repeats. It is bad when it repeats and we are none the wiser. This is where urban farming and history converge.

Be wise, kind, and gracious; for time and your legacy are a gift given and taken. Like Yin and Yang, each piece plays a part in the circle that is a whole. You will always be just at the end and back where you started.

As the 2023 Summer comes to an end I am reflective. I dream of following my line and building a world-class facility and learning lab to shape the future of applied STEM and agriculture. I am good with being back where I started as long as I can also be wiser than I was.