This was the message presented to Hamilton Rotarians this week by American physician, educator, director and high-ranking member of the Baha'i faith, David S. Ruhe.

Dr. Ruhe's speech, "Bonding for the New Millennium'', outlined the wonders of past, present and possible future technological development.

But he also expressed caution for the world on the verge of the 21st century.

"As we end one century and enter another, the speed of change is impossibly great for most of us,'' Dr. Ruhe told Rotarians at their weekly luncheon at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute.

"The age of science has been ours and it is about to blossom into a fulfilment that most of us are not ready for.'' Dr. Ruhe highlighted the progress of science in the first half of the century with Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, and Karl Marx's "flawed but real adaption of Darwin in the evolution of social structure''.

He also spoke of Sigmund Freud's "grasp of the human mind'' and Adam Smith's vision of an "economic order as a globally involving idea''.

Dr. Ruhe explained that these early contributions laid the foundation of extraordinary change that has been the hallmark of this century.

Despite the devastation and millions of lives lost in both world wars and internal conflicts, science has continued to advance, he added.

Recent developments in transportation and communication are of special importance.

Dr. Ruhe praised the human brain as "the most complex instrument'' and spoke of the phenomenon of the "big brain''.

Using 21st century computer communication, scientists and business people alike will "put their brains with other brains to share the business of the world as never before,'' he said.

"The net result is that we have become one world, like it or not,'' Dr. Ruhe stressed.

"We are now experiencing the benefits and victims of currents of universalism. We are inextricably one world.''