38th of 185 Learning the past is useful or not? Have you ever thought where your knowledge came from? Have you ever thought where your experiences came from? Have you ever thought where your skill came from? The answer probably is "the past". So if I were asked the question that whether learning the past useful, I will say yes.
First and foremost, all our knowledge came from the past. Books, which students uses most frequently, are written by our predecessors, who had tried thousands of millions times to find the truth. Without the theory about our solar system, we won't know that the earth is actually a sphere, and it moves around the sun. With out Newton's law about mechanics, we won't understand the why the object has velocity and acceleration. Without the perfect theories about mathematics, we won't be able to calculate, not mention to that we could design computers.
Secondly, the past experiences are useful in today's life. For instance, when we get touch something extremely hot, the best policy is to touch our ears right after we touch the hot. It is never taught in the book, but everybody in our society does this just because our ancestors do the same. As a mater of fact, an experience is a precious lesson in our life. After that we will surely get something valuable. Thus, the ancient experiences are really a great invaluable asset for us, because one will save much time and encounter fewer troubles after he learned the past.
Although some may argue that things belong to the past only suit to the past, they will never fit to our nowadays society, because different periods have different situations. But my point is that we human are intelligent and flexible, we must learn the past, then comprehend it, then make use of the ancient things. For example, the relics of historical sites centuries ago are transformed for touring which make a profound income for the city or country.
In conclusion, we will never have "today" because we ignore "yesterday". The past is a treasure for us, and learning the past has a significant value, which will ensure us better lives today and tomorrow. |