“Love, can we define it?” –Technology of Love, Vol 1, pp19-30
An emphatic, yes!
Let’s take a look at how The Technology of Love (TOL) by Charles E. Hansen has become the basis of a new science of an age-old subject we refer to as Love.
The Technology
With technology, we now have all necessary tools as a new science to explain how love actually works. The knowledge allows us to scientifically apply it to improving human interaction. (p. 506)
For starters simplicity think of the scope of TOL tools as “STEM + 2”; Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, plus Philosophy and Religion.
Using “Systems Theory” Hansen broke new ground integrating all knowledge about the subject of love into a single scientific working model of how love works. As we break into the technological era we’re not constrained by science, philosophy, nor religion (TOL p. 30). It’s never been done before! Hence we have a new science.
Hansen’s Work and Legacy
His work involved 30 years of research as the Technology of Love Project, and published (2004) in book form under the title “The Technology of Love, Volume1”. It is available in hard back on Amazon. Also available digitally, and AI powered at the home to Hansen’s Virtual Memorial Library at Corsense Institute.
TOL theory treats love as a dynamic process, physics applies. It’s for adults, professionals, and graduate level academics, and researchers.
A children’s text book version is also available under the Gimpy’s Secret brand, authored by Hansen’s sister and publisher, E. H. McLelland, available on Amazon.
The basics of TOL are successfully taught to children age 5 years and above. TOL core theory uses just fourteen key words from our native language; 10 are the action vectors of Care, four form the basis of a discussion making loop. Teaching involves verbalization, and role playing.
What Turns TOL into a New Science?
A new science must:
- Explain the phenomenon irrespective of our individual viewpoints.
- Need a common natural vocabulary to convey information to others what we are viewing.
- Do no violence to human or natural sciences, to philosophy, nor to religion. “Love can now break out of its confinement in philosophy, and religion into science.” (Chapter 1, p. 30)
Hansen to the rescue with TOL. As in the past, not unlike today, we still do not have a good understanding of love. This has been an unsolved problem since the early Greek philosophers when they tried to understand the nature of “love.” Today we have become so highly specialized, constrained in the same ways as it was in times of the Tower of Babel.
In Search for Principles of a New Technology
Simply, Einstein’s approach suggested reconciling scientific knowledge with that of direct human experience. This opens the door to scientifically understand what we actually sense, and respond to. (p. 18)
Following Einstein’s hint, TOL uses a combination of simple native language, and the universal language of science that could be understood by all cultures .
In the past science was too narrowly applied and focused on say just psychology, sociology, or philosophy. Worse some non-science form of social/political engineering.
To a scientist or engineer it is our natural language to define a process using physics and math; then we can test to see if it works, and then prefect it, even to scale it up.
Hansen’s Approach
Corsense, from the heart (cor) using all of our senses (sensus) closely follows Einstein’s physics:
- Energy: “Love is action” and is an easily defined unit of measurement (BTU’s, calories, etc.).
- Information: involves all of our senses. It too can be expressed technically in units of measurement (kilobytes, megabytes).
- Entropy: Gives relative (a mathematical relationship) sense of social order/disorder as well as a concept of complexity of action.
- Vector Mathematics: A concept by which we can define the purpose, direction and intensity of an action vector of care.
Now we have a pretty good idea of our science and where we’re coming from. Love is easily studied as a scientific process or interaction between humans.
You say, this is fine; but its logic. What about feeling, emotions, motivations of love and care? Import point! Hansen also addresses this perspective “elegantly” as scientists would say, and we will address this aspect of TOL in detail at another time.
Applications in the real world
You do not to be a rocket scientist to immediately benefit from applying TOL in day-to-day relationships. However, being STEM+2 conversant will help further understanding the new science of TOL.
For the inquisitive the following are a few of my favorite tools and applications of TOL:
- Healing: A very powerful concept throughout TOL. Hansen often talked about this with me. The vector actions of care of Comforting in conjunction as Attentiveness and Listening or even Protecting, quality of healthcare is greatly improved. This was invaluable as a care giver conveying love in all its for to an Alzheimer relative for over 15 years.
- The OODA Loop: A concept of the famous Col. Boyd, it’s a decision-making loop that became a decisive strategy and tactic applied in my own experience. I used it to recover debts due associated with resolving a dispute with a business partner in the mid-90s. Later when I received my autographed copy of TOL in 2005, knowledge of Boy’s work led me to discover TOL had a much more powerful decision-making loop with a built-in value system. This feature makes Hansen’s work so unique and scientific!
- The RKRC Loop: Based on the OODA loop, it’s defined as the causal components of love: Respect, Knowledge, Responsibility and Care. Care is the action component. It important to note the moral, mental, and spiritual issues of love are reconciled here at the strategic level. At the tactical level Care is subdivided into actionable vectors of physical actions. They are real, face-to-face contact, observable with our senses, that convey love.
- Entropy: This is a scientific concept of math and physics. Note the ten action vectors of care increase in complexity and entropy with scale. Attentiveness, Listening, Thanking, Encouraging, Praising, Comforting, Assisting, Sharing, Contributing, Protecting. There is a mathematical relationship between entropy and complexity here, and it’s non-linear. This has enormous implications when applying TOL as a clinical tool, for example: organizational efficiency, clinical scale applicable to social stability, order/disorder, complexity of task, and physiological stress-mental/physical. Positive vectors are where we need to be able to do good things, but keep is simple!
- Theology and Medicine: Here is where Hippocratic oath, Love and Care come together, holistically viewed as Body, Mind and Spirit. Its origin started in the churches and monasteries during the early Christian era. Today in the Greek Orthodox community of physicians, HUMS (Holy Unmercenaries Medical Society), this forms their core belief of healing.
- Justice and Art of Warfare: Negative actions vectors come into play opposing action vectors of love. See Chapter 7.6 “Why is Justice?” TOL offers a dynamic model for conflict resolution such as: War-Peace, Love-Hate, Good-Evil. I think of TOL as Strategic Game Theory modeling, 3-D chess, if you like.
The Future for the New Science of Love
Now that TOL is a science, anything is possible!
Let’s take a moment to map out our path so far which leads us to conclude TOL being THE new science of Love.
Knowledge as a key vector of TOL, the basis of understanding, leads us over time to enlightenment, and beyond to wisdom. Technology propels us to a new science.
This is where we are now!
Where we go from here is anyone’s guess, since Science now gives us the tools for navigation and exploration of the world.
Looking back, reflecting on our roots only adds to our knowledge. It helps us see the opportunities, and challenges that lay ahead. For example, an inspiring book for TOL followers recently caught my eye, The Healing Imperative, by Catholic historian Mike Aquilina. The subject: “The Early Church and the Invention of Medicine as We Know It”.
Paraphrasing Mike Aquilina, Love, and the need to care for others seemed to find a home in the Churches during early Christian era. Healers of that time were predominantly church goers. Monks and the monasteries were the hospitals and R+D, ambulances were wheel barrels pushed by Monks.
Add to this, the word love is referenced 300-500 times in Bible scripture. This is in itself indicative that the concept love and care be cornerstones of human interaction and it’s worth understanding how it works. But we are still primitive in our technical understanding of how love works. TOL as a new science for starters breaks the feelings versus logic barrier. Modern medicine today is “high tech”, but short on delivering care and conveying love.
Recent mushrooming growth in the Life Coaching profession seems to be reviving a sense of traditional practice how we can convey love and how it works. What is stopping us from building upon what worked in our past to move forward with knowledge?
Conclusion
It’s up to you!
Your choice to expand from here with new knowledge (technology). TOL gives us a better understanding of how human interaction for mutual benefit works to unite the world to do good things.
Finally, Let’s try for a definition of TOL:
The Technology of Love is a new science of care holistically applying systems theory to modeling the natural order of human interaction at the moral, mental, physical and spiritual levels.
Thoughts? Post in comments.
