Psalm 8 asks, “What is man that thou art mindful of him?” It goes on to place humans in context; a little lower than God and crowned with glory and majesty. Protagoras wrote, “Man is the measure of all things”. It does seem tempting to measure things in terms of other humans. Yet Protagoras was criticized for relativism. It is an old debate that has been reappearing in my thoughts a bit recently.

Yet I’m not as interested in the philosophical debate of the absolute and the relative. Lately, I’ve been thinking about how this affects us in our daily lives. We’re in the middle of Social Web Week here in Connecticut and I’ve been writing a bit about it. Of course, from a Protagorian viewpoint, I am tempted write about the events of the week based on my own measurement, on my own involvement. Yet Social Web Week has come about through a group of volunteers working together and it is much bigger than the measure of any of us.

It is this perspective that leads me to my interest in the unconference approach to events. It seems like too many panels at too many events are measured in terms of the men on the panels, and this time, I’m talking old white men, and not simply man meaning any sort of human. Yet good events are ones that are much greater than the pontifications of the four or five people on the panel. They are opportunities for everyone to share ideas and learn, whether they are on a panel or in an audience.

Looking at the stuff of our lives as a measure of ourselves can be narcissistically gratifying, but it can also be horribly limiting. It can preclude our ability to experience something beyond our expectations or imaginations.

Yet this focus on the stuff of our lives being merely measures of ourselves seems to pervade so much of Western thinking. In many ways, Wittgenstein’s Tractatus seems like the ultimate hierarchy of propositions reflecting this viewpoint. Yet in his final proposition, Wittgenstein left room for something greater with his “Whereof, one cannot speak, thereof, one must remain silent”.

There are times for silent awe. Yet there is also the time for creativity, for art, for exploring new ideas and finding new language. The idea that there is much more out there than we are currently capable of understanding can be limiting. It can be an argument to not reach out and to settle for what is known. Or, it can be an argument, as one of my favorite musicians says, to jump anyway.

So, jump into art, into Social Web Week, into unconferences, into opportunities to experience something beyond our expectations or imaginations.