\nWestern Philosophy<\/strong><\/td>\n
\nScience and scientific inquiry<\/strong><\/td>\n
\nEastern Philosophy\u00a0<\/strong>and a subphase of Self Reflection<\/strong><\/td>\n
\nJudaism<\/strong><\/td>\n
\nConsolidation<\/strong><\/td>\n
The above can be better illustrated using the following chart:<\/p>\n
What you see here is not so much a summary (and definitely not a summation) as much as a helicopter view, offering a chronological scan of Shai\u2019s writing, in which I have highlighted key milestones as they seem to emerge from his work.<\/p>\n I would love to hear your thoughts. Please use the Comment section, at the bottom of the page, to share your thoughts and observations. They will be greatly appreciated.<\/p>\n Shimshon Marom 25\/10\/2004 – First digital write-up – Gaia Online<\/strong><\/p>\n This is Shai\u2019s entry into the domain of digital publishing as he contributes an article in the Gaia Online Writers Forum<\/a>. Shai was not only a prolific writer but also an avid reader and it is thus fitting that his first digital post is a book review, the first of 68 book reviews<\/a> written between October 2004 and March 2016 (only three of which were published in the Gaia Online Writers Forum).<\/p>\n 18\/02\/2009 – First Blog<\/strong><\/p>\n In February 2009, Shai starts his rich blogging career with a blog<\/a> dedicated to reviewing Wes Anderson films<\/a>. Of the five posts written between February 2009 and April 2012 and dedicated to this topic, four are written on the blog and one is found in Shai\u2019s Google Drive, perhaps written there with the intention of copying it across at a later stage.<\/p>\n 13\/12\/2009 – Second Blog<\/strong><\/p>\n In December 2009, Shai creates a second blog<\/a> dedicated to reviews of \u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u201d novels. Shai publishes 17 posts<\/a> in this blog between December 2009 and March 2011.<\/p>\n 21\/01\/2010 – Third Blog<\/strong><\/p>\n In January 2010, Shai embarks on his third blogging journey with a blog<\/a> dedicated to reviews of pinball machines :-). This venture is short-lived (one day only) with only one full review published and one incomplete draft.<\/p>\n 22\/07\/2010 – Google Drive<\/strong><\/p>\n Shai continuously explores different channels through which he might best document his life’s research work. Having traversed from hand-written notebooks to on-line writers forums and blogs, he begins using his Google Drive<\/a> as a repository for documents he wishes to store on the web. It seems highly likely that some of his work, originally written and stored in Google Drive is later copied to one of his various blogs. Altogether, this compilation of Shai\u2019s works contains 61 essays and posts<\/a> retrieved from his Google Drive.<\/p>\n I mentioned Shai\u2019s notebooks, so I\u2019ll pause here to add a few comments on this topic.<\/p>\n Shai refers to his notebooks a number of times and as early as 2010, in a journal entry published in Everything2<\/sub><\/a>, he makes the following observation:<\/p>\n A more detailed description of Shai\u2019s notebooks is documented in a later entry<\/a>, from 2014, where he makes specific references to 5 notebooks, each having their own specific designation:<\/p>\n 22\/09\/2010 – Everything2<\/sub><\/strong><\/p>\n In September 2010, Shai begins to share his writing in Everything<\/a>2<\/sub><\/a>, or E2<\/sub> for short, a collaborative web-based community consisting of a database of interlinked user-submitted written material. Between September 2010 and July 2015, Shai submitted 60 items<\/a> to this writers forum.<\/p>\n 30\/09\/2010 – Beginning of Phase I – Western Philosophy<\/strong><\/p>\n In September 2010, Shai begins the first phase of his intellectual journey with an essay<\/a> dedicated to the Greek mathematician, astronomer and pre-Socratic philosopher, Thales of Miletus. This the first of 80 essays<\/a>, written between September 2010 and July 2015, dedicated to analysing the thoughts and writings of the great ancient Greek and classical Western philosophers.<\/p>\n 17\/10\/2010 – Jorge Luis Borges<\/strong><\/p>\n If I had to name three individuals who had a lasting impact on Shai\u2019s philosophical outlook, I\u2019d have to say they are:<\/p>\n On this day Shai composes his first essay<\/a> dedicated to Jorge Luis Borges. Borges is referenced in two earlier essays and between January 2010 and November 2017 is referenced by Shai 17 times.<\/p>\n 06\/11\/2010 – Beginning of Phase II – Scientific Inquiry<\/strong><\/p>\n In November 2010, Shai begins the second phase of his intellectual journey with an essay<\/a> dedicated to scientific summation. Throughout 2010 Shai\u2019s writings are focused primarily on book reviews with the occasional venture into reviews of science. This focus shifts in 2013 when Shai produces 24 science-related compilations. Between November 2010 and June 2016, Shai produces 60 write-ups<\/a> related to varied scientific matters.<\/p>\n 13\/03\/2011 – Superman (I)<\/strong><\/p>\n Shai was always fascinated with cartoon characters and, at least as his written coverage is concerned, mostly with Superman. Between March 2011 and December 2014, Shai writes nine articles<\/a> dedicated to this superhero and in November 2014 he starts a blog dedicated to reviewing Superman novels.<\/p>\n 24\/04\/2012 – Story Writing<\/strong><\/p>\n One of Shai\u2019s unique talents was writing stories in the style of famous authors. In a story<\/a>, retrieved from his Google Drive, he convincingly imitates a vampire genre, Twilight-like movie script, as if it were directed by Wes Anderson.<\/p>\n 06\/02\/2013 – Evernote<\/strong><\/p>\n In February 2013, Shai adds Evernote<\/a> to his suite of repositories. This is an application designed specifically for note-taking, organising, task lists and archiving. This proves to be the ideal tool for him to better control his ever-growing research notes, stored primarily up to this point, in handwritten notebooks and documents stored in his Google drive.<\/p>\n Between February 2013 and January 2015, Shai uses Evernote to document 128 entries<\/a>.<\/p>\n The summary included in the first Evernote entry<\/a> is significant for a number of reasons:<\/p>\n 07\/04\/2013 – Science Reviews<\/strong><\/p>\n Shai publishes his first<\/a>\u00a0in a series of 30<\/a> Science News, documented mostly in Evernote between April 2013 and October 2014.<\/p>\n 04\/05\/2013 – Research Methodology<\/strong><\/p>\n Shai documents<\/a> an Evernote entry discussing his methodology for researching and acquiring knowledge, and his preferred methods for storing notes taken during the process.<\/p>\n Shai devises a system of four tiers of acquiring knowledge:<\/p>\n The notes arising from this process of knowledge acquisition are designated as cJ, Content Journey, or cD, Content Destination. Content collected while conducting research can be maintained in some formats while the summary of that information is destined to be published in an electronic blog to allow for ease of editing and retrieval.<\/p>\n 21\/06\/2013 – \u201cMeta\u201d data<\/strong><\/p>\n Shai documents his interpretation of Locke\u2019s Theory of Knowledge<\/a> which, he explains, \u201cis famous for being based on the principle that the mind is a blank slate<\/em>\u201d and that the mind is \u201cgaining everything it knows by experience<\/em>\u201d. The need to acquire experience in order to gain knowledge is a principle by which Shai chose to live his life. Knowing now that this was his guiding view, makes many of his actions and decisions over the years easier to comprehend.<\/p>\n One other thing to note is the introduction of the term \u201cMeta\u201d<\/a>. This is the first of 20 times that Shai uses this term. I struggled for some time to fully understand his intent in introducing this term but believe that the \u201cMeta\u201d paragraphs represent his thoughts about his own thoughts, and his reflections about his own method of research. True to his phenomenological journey, Shai places his own experiences at the core of his observations, at a level very much similar to that which he assigns the subjects of his observations.<\/p>\n 15\/08\/2013 – Fourth Blog<\/strong><\/p>\n In August 2013, Shai starts his fourth blog<\/a>, entitled \u201cmeanwhile-II\u201d which he dedicates to \u201cwitticisms, epiphanies, and emotional breakdowns<\/em>\u201d. The content of this blog reflects a change in Shai\u2019s overall mood, writing style and direction. While his earlier writings are considerate, scientific and outward-looking, his focus now shifts and, while he continues to produce first-class essays on philosophical and scientific matters, he allows his own state of mind to be revealed in his writing.<\/p>\n Between August and October 2013, Shai posts 13 entries<\/a> in this blog.<\/p>\n 16\/08\/2013 – Daily Journals<\/strong><\/p>\n This is the first<\/a> of 51 Evernote entries titled according to the date on which they were written, making this a personal, chronological journal of observations, lessons learned and conclusions, together with an element of diary writing.<\/p>\n 16\/09\/2013 – Immanuel Kant<\/strong><\/p>\n Although Shai refers to Kant in earlier essays, this is the first<\/a> where he is analysing Kant’s writing and philosophical approach by analysing his “Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics That Will Be Able to Present Itself as a Science” (often referred to as Kant’s Prolegomena). Altogether, 23 essays<\/a> are related to Kant.<\/p>\n Through his analysis of Kant’s work, Shai provides a glimpse into the method he uses to prioritise and order his reading.<\/p>\n He says:<\/p>\n He continues:<\/p>\n A short while later, on Oct 7, 2013<\/a>, Shai makes some further observations:<\/p>\n To which he later adds:<\/p>\n 21\/09\/2013 – Phenomenology (I)<\/strong><\/p>\n I picked the article from this day<\/a> as the sections \u201cLearning to reading to learn<\/em>\u201d and \u201cMisc comments on writing<\/em>\u201d are typical of Shai\u2019s phenomenological journey and his reflection on his own intellectual endeavours and achievements. As explained at length in other places, Shai\u2019s journey has two main components: the first being the domain of knowledge under investigation, be it Philosophy, Science etc; and the second, his reflection on his journey and the lessons he draws from these reflections.<\/p>\n 05\/10\/2013 – Phenomenology (II)<\/strong><\/p>\n An Evernote journal entry<\/a> written on this day contains material that is fundamental and pivotal to understanding Shai\u2019s life philosophy.<\/p>\n Based on his analysis of Kant\u2019s writing, Shai makes the following observation:<\/p>\n Shai\u2019s journey includes two main components, as he is looking to achieve two separate outcomes:<\/p>\n As you read through the volumes of data, analysis and research in this compilation, bear in mind that most of it is the product of this process. It is the progressive collection of data, in a systematic and elaborate manner, progressing from one domain of knowledge to the next, all according to a plan, the core and principles of which are outlined in this Journal entry.<\/p>\n Shai ascribes great importance to exploring his own experiences and extracting their meanings. The space is too short to elaborate on this here but if you knew Shai, you would see a pattern of behaviour and a pattern in the choices he made that fit this model perfectly. For Shai, the world was his laboratory and he used people, places and events as his lab apparatus.<\/p>\n 17\/10\/2013 – 750 Words<\/strong><\/p>\n Early in August 2013, Shai joins a site called \u201c750 Words<\/a>\u201d which encourages members to submit a daily post consisting of roughly 750 words, approximately three pages. The site explains its purpose as: \u201cThe idea is that if you can get in the habit of writing three pages a day, that it will help clear your mind and get the ideas flowing for the rest of the day<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n 13\/01\/2014 – Emmanuel Levinas<\/strong><\/p>\n This is Shai’s first reference<\/a> to Emmanuel Levinas.\u00a0 Levinas’ ideas appear to have made an impact on Shai’s outlook as he refers to him 11 more times<\/a> in the following three and a half years, most notably in a post entitled \u201cPerceptions of wisdom in the Talmud with Emmanuel Levinas<\/a>\u201c.<\/p>\n 08\/09\/2014 – Fifth Blog<\/strong><\/p>\n In September 2014, Shai publishes his fifth blog<\/a>\u00a0entitled \u201cM-III\u201d (short for Meantime-III) and subtitled \u201cThe Traveller is the Journey<\/em>\u201d (not to be confused with a later blog entitled \u201cThe Traveller is the Journey<\/em>\u201d, published in 2015).<\/p>\n In the \u2018About<\/a>\u2019 page of this blog, Shai shares his observations on his place in the world:<\/p>\n So far most I can tell is that this place<\/strong> (world\/reality\/experiences) is filled with shapes and colours.<\/strong><\/p>\n I have a space ship<\/strong> (body\/vehicle\/me) that is the centre of my world, and also my bridge to the world.<\/strong><\/p>\n There are other bodies<\/strong> (people\/space ships\/consciousnesses) in this place.<\/strong><\/p>\n They walk and talk, and act as if this is home. But aren\u2019t they just travellers too?<\/strong><\/p>\n This place<\/strong> (world\/reality\/experiences) is fascinating.<\/strong><\/p>\n I am a traveller<\/strong> (tourist\/explorer\/nomad) and I am travelling<\/strong> (sight-seeing \/ investigating \/ wondering).<\/p>\n <\/div><\/div>\n The blog’s first post<\/a> is an analysis of Hegel\u2019s philosophical writing and is the first of 23 posts<\/a> dedicated to Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel\u2019s philosophical work.<\/p>\n 15\/11\/2014 – Superman (II)<\/strong><\/p>\n Having dedicated two earlier entries in 2011 to Superman, in November 2015 Shai returns to writing<\/a> about superheroes. In a month of flurried activity between mid-November and mid-December 2014, Shai writes 13 posts, dedicated to reviewing Superman, Hawkman, Aquaman and Flash.<\/p>\n 20\/11\/2014 – Sixth Blog \/ Superman (III)<\/strong><\/p>\n In November 2014, Shai opens his sixth blog<\/a> dedicated to Superman. While only two posts ever got written in this blog, and only one published, Shai writes extensively about this and other superheroes, altogether dedicating 15 essays<\/a> and articles to these comic book characters.<\/p>\n 26\/01\/2015 – Seventh Blog \/ Beginning of Phase III – Eastern Philosophy<\/strong><\/p>\n Shai starts his seventh blog<\/a>, entitled \u201c![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thetravellerslastjourney.com\/shai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Writing-over-time.png\")
<\/a><\/p>\n
\nMelbourne, Australia, September 2019<\/p>\n
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