Ariadne's Thread Summary and Analysis

The natural sciences stimulate the development of other sciences. Their complexities can be unraveled through consilience that works through breaking down components and then putting them back together. It is easier to dissect each element rather than analyzing in the opposite direction when investigating general phenomena. Consilience allows for understanding organisms through the examination of their organization. Through the analysis of elements we arrive at researching molecules. The way ants communicate is investigated through researching their organization, environment, and evolutionary history. Each colony is a superorganism made of members whose reactions affect other members. The communication systems of ants can be identified as released pheromones.

Dreams seem to be important in cultures that frequently represent serpents as part of trances and hallucinations. Freud investigates dreams, focusing on the role of unconsciousness as part of the hidden processes of the...