Mystery

The unique situation of the human condition is the human mind's ability to examine its own origin and demise. This is the well from which all mystery arose in the human mind. As the human mind awoke to its powers to investigate and explain the basis of its own existence, mystery gradually lost its power. Mystery's power was supplanted by the power of solving mystery. 

The power of religion was based in its naive explanation of the cosmos to unsophisticated minds. By investing these explanations with financial, political and military power, religion has had its eras of control. Now there is little power in naive explanations of the Universe. There is great power in science in an age when human existence is threatened by overpopulation and natural degradation of the planet which sustains the species.

Science does not seek to eliminate mystery. It seeks to further examine mystery. Science without mystery would be like carpentry without wood. As long as there are unanswered questions in the human mind, there will be mystery. However, in a scientific age, creating mystery from that which is scientifically known is a waste of time. An understanding of what science has already revealed confirms that there is a great deal of mystery in our Universe. Rather than making up uniformed explanations for the unknown scientists accept what is as it is until there is a better explanation. Seeking the better explanation of mystery is the motivation of the scientific mind.