And out of the ground Yahweh God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and He brought each to the man to see what he would call it; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. And the man gave names to all the cattle and to the birds of the sky and to every beast of the field…

Most commentaries do not spend much time on these two verses, and those who do discuss it will talk about how by naming things man exercises dominion over the earth and all its creature. The act of naming things gives man power over it, parallel to the Divine Word which exercises dominion over creation by his Word.

What is rarely noticed however is here we have encapsulated the whole art of the sciences, which gives mankind unparallel dominion and control over the whole earth. The science essentially consists of two parts: God presenting the thing to man, and man naming it. Notations and things, that is the summary of the science. Reality must then first be “carved at the joints”, exhibiting a basic structure as created by God. Man must then discern the structure and then properly name the things.

This is why mathematical physics is the crowning achievement of science. Mathematics is the ultimate art of notations and notation manipulation, the science of signs if you will. With the precision and exactness afforded by mathematical signs, the application of the same unto physical reality tracks unto the intricate and precise joints found in reality, as carved out by God himself.

When mankind can no longer properly name physical reality, they cannot exercise dominion over it, and they will eventually be ruled by it. When signs and notations are not properly used to name things, they will become idols and constructs, physical reality will dominate man, and man will create signs and constructs without referents, without naming things, and worship them.

This is the state we find ourselves today, when we can no longer name male and female, and where people worship “Science” as empty constructs without understanding its proper referents.