I had an interesting experience at one of the high schools this week. I was teaching a biology class and things were not going too bad until the third period. This big girl comes into the class and will not shut up. And then she starts getting really aggressive towards me. This went on for a while and she is really disrupting the class. So I finally ask her to leave and this sets off another round of aggression towards me. Then I realized that she was high as a kite because of the glazed over look on her face. Somehow I managed to get her out the door to a parade of obscenities coming from her. Then I had to deal with her allies that remained in the classroom. They were ridiculing me pretty good about being a sub. Finally I asked one kids do you think you are better than me? Then I asked what do your mother and father do that is so great that you think your better than me? And when the girl next to him said :he is on Welfare, a profound silence fell on the room. And I simply said you know people who live in glass houses should not throw stones. This big mouth did not say another word. This is not the first time that I have had to deal with uncontrolled ecstasy from someone who’s actions have no consequence. I have no problem with uncontrolled ecstasy. That is what you get when you go to a rock concert. But unless you can sing, a total lack of restraint in life comes from a place where nobody has taken any responsibility for anything. This could be the definition of an artist. But if you cannot draw, sing, or dance, uncontrolled ecstasy is not going to get you anywhere. Its just a waste of energy, in most circumstances in ordinary life. I am pretty sure that a lot of people are filled with a lot of positive emotions but they learn to restrain this exuberance for the sake of the people that are around them that may not be as exited about life. I think for most people, science is something that lowers the excitement about life. But there are some people that get very psyched about science. Its probably equivalent to how most people feel about football for them. I guess when the time comes that most people feel about science the way they do about football a new civilization will be upon us.