HUMBOLDT, NATURE, SCIENCE, LIBERTY

Andrea Wulf, The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt's New World (New York: Knopf, 2015) ("In a world where we tend to draw a sharp line between the sciences and the arts, between the subjective and the objective, Humboldt's insight that we can only truly understand nature by using our imagination makes him a visionary. . . . As scientists are trying to understand and predict the global consequences of climate change, Humboldt's interdisciplinary approach to science and nature is more relevant than ever. His beliefs in the free exchange of information, in uniting scientists and in fostering communication across disciplines, are the pillars of science today. His concept of nature as one of global patterns underpins our thinking." Id. at 336. "The institution of slavery was unnatural, Humboldt said, because 'what is against nature, is unjust, bad and without validity.' Unlike Jefferson, who believed that black people were a race 'inferior to the whites in the endowment both of body and mind', Humboldt insisted that there were no superior or inferior races. No matter what nationality, color or religion, all human came hormone root. Much like plant families, Humboldt explained, which adapted differently to their geographical and climate conditions but nonetheless displayed the traits of 'a common type', so did all the members of the human race belong to one family. All men were equal, Humboldt said, and no race was above another, because 'all are alike deigned for freedom'." Id. at 108.).