The Physics of Significance: Why We Crave a Smattering of Mattering
Most of the time, Sean Carroll’s Mindscape takes us to the furthest reaches of the cosmos or the microscopic vibrations of string theory. But in the recent conversation with philosopher and novelist Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, the focus shifts inward to a territory that is simultaneously more familiar and more elusive: the human drive to matter. In this episode, titled "Rebecca Newberger Goldstein on What Matters and Why It Matters," we are treated to a masterclass on how our biological reality as "creatures of matter" dictates our psychological need to be "creatures who matter."
The Definition of Mattering
Goldstein provides a deceptively simple definition that anchors the entire discussion: to matter is to be deserving of attention. This isn't just about seeking fame or being the loudest person in the room. It starts with the self. As biological entities, we are hardwired to pay an excessive amount of attention to our own survival and flourishing.
Goldstein links this to the concept of entropy. To be alive is to exist in constant resistance to the natural slide toward disorder. This biological persistence, which Spinoza called conatus, creates a vacuum of justification. If we are going to expend so much energy and attention on our own existence, we feel a deep-seated need to prove to ourselves that we are worth the effort.
The Four Strategies of Significance
One of the most helpful frameworks Goldstein introduces is her categorization of how humans attempt to satisfy the mattering instinct. She breaks these down into four distinct archetypes:
- Transcendent Mattering: The belief that we matter because a higher power or cosmic narrative has assigned us a role.
- Social Mattering: Finding significance through our relationships, either intimately (family and friends) or broadly (fame and public recognition).
- Heroic Striving: Tying our worth to a standard of excellence, whether intellectual, athletic, or artistic.
- Competitive Mattering: A zero-sum approach where one feels they matter more only when others matter less. This is often the root of political and social division.
Etymology and the Mother of All Things
In a particularly striking moment, Goldstein reveals the linguistic connection between "matter" and "mother." In the history of Western thought, the Latin translators of Aristotle reached for the metaphor of motherhood to describe the passive, receptive "stuff" of the universe. This evolution from mater (mother) to materia (matter) suggests that our very language for the physical world is inextricably linked to the idea of nurturing and attention. It’s a profound reminder that we cannot talk about the universe without talking about the value we project onto it.
The Golden Nugget
"To be alive is to be in resistance to the transformation from within... To matter is to be deserving of attention. And first and foremost, we want to deserve our own attention."
Why This Episode Stays With You
What makes this Mindscape episode a "must-listen" isn't just the high-level philosophy; it is the vulnerability with which Goldstein and Carroll approach the subject. They discuss the "hell of loneliness" and the existential dread that occurs when a person’s "mattering project" fails. Whether it's the story of William James’s youth spent in a suicidal depression or Kevin Bacon wearing a prosthetic nose to experience the invisibility of the "un-famous," the anecdotes ground the abstract theory in lived reality.
By the end of the hour, you aren't just thinking about physics or philosophy. You are looking at your own daily projects and asking: Which of these actually makes me feel deserving of the space I take up in the universe? It is a rare podcast that provides both a scientific lens and a mirror for the soul.