Never heard of it? More accurately, it should be 鈥渢he science of droppin'鈥�, but you are probably none the wiser. Neither were we until we wandered into an out-of-the-way bookshop in London and stumbled upon a little book called Droppin鈥� Science from Three Rivers Press. Admittedly, it wasn鈥檛 in the science section, but then the bookshop didn鈥檛 seem to have one. (We can鈥檛 be sure as the owner told us, 鈥淚f you can鈥檛 see the book you want, it鈥檚 probably been stolen.鈥�)
Droppin鈥� turns out to be hip-hop parlance for dropping a clever bit of true street wisdom into your songs or conversation. Usually it is one of those bits of wisdom that is so profound it can seem truly mundane 鈥� or vice versa. If you perfect the science of droppin鈥�, your listeners will never be able to figure out which.
So what鈥檚 in it for scientists? Our view is that with droppin鈥� becoming a science, scientists should be aware of this new chance to increase their street credibility and party cool.
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Let鈥檚 get started. First get into the swing with some quotes from the legendary giants of hip hop. 鈥淪trength has to come from the inside鈥� 鈥� Eve. 鈥淓verything changes and nothing changes鈥� 鈥� Macy Gray. 鈥淟ife鈥檚 struggles make you realise the importance of having a mother鈥� 鈥� Black Rob.
Next, learn from great scientists who were inadvertently droppin鈥� long before hip hop was invented. Listen to these gems from science鈥檚 greatest voices. 鈥淧rediction is very difficult, especially about the future,鈥� said Niels Bohr, a beautiful combination of the shallow and the deep that would win a place in any anthology of droppin鈥�.
鈥淵ou cannot think about thinking, without thinking about thinking about something,鈥� said Seymour Papert. Exactly. 鈥淲hat鈥檚 a sundial in the shade?鈥� asked Benjamin Franklin. (We are still thinking about the answer, a sign of excellent droppin鈥�). Then there鈥檚 Erwin Schr枚dinger鈥檚 injunction to 鈥渢hink what nobody has yet thought, about that which everybody sees鈥�.
Time to try it for yourself. What will you learn? Maybe that all wisdom looks the same, whether picked up in the street or the lab. As Albert Einstein said: 鈥淲isdom is not the product of schooling but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it.鈥�
Now see if you can tell who is responsible for these two quotes: 鈥淜nowing and understanding are the same鈥� and 鈥淭he understanding that the truth gives you, and the freedom that the truth gives your heart, is something every man is capable of having and entitled to have鈥�. Einstein or RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan?