About Non-living Things and Living Systems as Cultural Determinants

For the future development of cultural technology, access to the cultural foundations of these culture carriers is necessary. One relevant aspect of this cultural foundation is the distinction between non-living things and living systems. Culture can be preserved, transported, and adapted by non-living things and living systems. Cultural development is only possible through living systems (e.g., humans). Non-living things (e.g., books, fossils, paintings, sculptures) are for preserving, archiving, and displaying the past. First, I present and discuss the theoretical and practical implications of the mechanistic worldview. Second, I give an overview of the ways to define non-living things and life forms. Third, I argue that our mechanistic worldview and the way we grasp the truth is limited by our way of thinking to deal with non-living things only. To resolve the main challenges, we must change our thinking and our acting in the world. Finally, I provide two primary sources of inspiration for this new way of thinking . the Asian way and the way of Indigenous people.