I am very happy today to welcome actress Manuela Thiess Garcia back to CINEMATIC REVELATIONS. Manuela has been on the blog previously speaking about her role in CHANGES, and many other topics; the interview can be found here. In this post, we will be taking things in an entirely academic, but nevertheless, absorbing direction. Manuela will be discussing a number of fascinating topics close to her heart such as politics, existential philosophy, science, psychology, and biology.
Welcome back to CINEMATIC REVELATIONS Manuela!
Athan: Politics is a subject of interest the world over, and a matter of contention in many an instance. What is it that you find most interesting about politics?
Manuela: To not be concerned about what is going on in the world politically is to not be engaged in what controls your life. I think it essential to inform ourselves about the politics around us, so that if need be, we can find a way to make our little voices count. And, if we are fortunate enough to have a public platform of one kind or another, I think it is almost criminal not to use it to influence the larger good as we see it. For example, we live on an endangered planet. We know this, and yet, all too often, we ignore the implications of global warming to our own peril.
Even if we have no political voice for change, we can inform ourselves about what we can do at home to lessen our impact on the planet, and we can make our voices heard on social media, to people we talk to, in the grocery store where they try to hand out plastic bags, or wherever we encounter violations against the earth. I believe we must never be silent where we can see we might affect even a tiny change.
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Athan: Existential Philosophy is always very fascinating. I remember reading the works of Friedrich Nietzsche years ago, and how transfixing these were. His work was graceful and easy to read, but filled with meaning, and pertinent at the time he wrote, and now. What is it about existential philosophy that is so compelling for you?
Manuela: What I find most compelling with regard to how I live my own life influenced by existentialism, is the notion that we are our own makers and thus, we bear responsibility for our own choices. This also acknowledges that life is absurd. It has no meaning other than what we give it, so we must choose what is important without letting anyone dictate to us what that importance should be.
I am not a determinist. I believe in freedom of choice and that what you choose determines who you are. Hence, while I find religion serves people well who have no idea of how to live their own lives and want some sort of guidance, I also feel that it is sad that those people willingly give their freedom over to some dogma or other because they do not understand that they can make their own choices.
People who let others make their choices for them are fair game for politicians who exploit this weakness by praying upon their beliefs and subverting them to their own ends. Look at the MAGA evangelicals in the U.S. for an example.
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Athan: Countless books have been written on science, with many television shows and movies also rooted in this topic. Is there a specific field of science that most intrigues you, and why?
Manuela: All of science intrigues and fascinates me, but if I had it to do over, I would become a physicist. I enjoy learning about particle physics and quantum mechanics in particular. Unfortunately, I do not have a mathematical background and scientific formulas are indecipherable to me, so of course, my understanding is only miniscule. But the very idea - the wonder of it - that we are still just beginning to understand what lies at the subatomic level or that we are able to manipulate it, is fascinating. And the very idea that we even know the subatomic level exists at all, is an astounding validation of what the human mind is capable of. You-tube abounds with videos on science, and to me, they are like attending free university lectures, and I am grateful for them. I have to admit, I also find them more digestible than some of the books which tend to be harder to decipher.
Perhaps it is better that we had never figured out how to split the atom and invented the atomic bomb, and very probably, we will destroy ourselves with our nuclear capabilities, and yet, if our ethics, our good sense, and our morals manage to catch up to our scientific discoveries before we do destroy ourselves, the possibilities are boundless. As I understand it, the new generation of computers, for example, will utilize the discovery of particle entanglement to operate quantum computers.
I also love cosmology but I can barely wrap my head around the notion of the Big Bang. I eagerly await more news from the Webb telescope discoveries and perhaps it will lead to a unifying field theory which will finally merge relativity with quantum mechanics.
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Athan: Psychology is another riveting subject, something that is indispensable in everyday life, relating to fellow human beings but also, for example, what set films in motion, specifically the characters, and their motivations. For you, what is the allure of psychology?
Manuela: As a young person, I had many emotional problems which manifested themselves, among other things, in alcohol and drug addiction. That is not to say that I am emotionally sound at this stage, but I have learned to cope with my defects by getting various types of therapies over the years and by studying psychology. My undergraduate studies are in that field.
As in any scientific area, there is always more to be discovered and psychology is an area that has many different approaches. However, scientific discovery depends on empirical observations, and it is not so easy to peer inside of the brain, but we get closer all the time thanks to high resonance imaging and the like. Still, much of psychology is speculative, and that also makes it interesting as there is still so much to be learned.
We live in an age where many people, especially the young ones, are getting more comfortable with virtual reality than real flesh and blood relations. What that does to the human brain is just being observed. Psychology will be essential in helping people transition into real life social situations. We live in a brave new world, indeed.
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Athan: Biology is yet another engrossing field of study. Do you find the study of human biology the most interesting, or the study of living organisms such as plants and animals, or both?
Manuela: All of the sciences tie together and augment one another, do they not? Biology and chemistry are responsible for many of the life-saving medications we have come to rely on. Without the study of biology, be it plant or animal, we would not begin to understand the inter-connections of the millions of lifeforms on the planet, nor would we be able to comprehend the toll that our ignorance of these interconnections has taken. But we are beginning to understand, and now it is up to us to convince the big corporations via the politicians to save our little pale blue dot and all the people on it, from the doom that many scientists predict.
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It has been a pleasure having you again on the blog Manuela, and I thank you for elaborating on the topics of politics, existential philosophy, science, psychology, and biology. It has been a fruitful, enlightening discussion with you in every way. You are always welcome to return whenever you wish.
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Thank you so much, Athan, for allowing me to expound on my views a little in your forum, here. We all like to have our ideas heard and you give me a chance to do that. I appreciate it greatly.
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