shirgall Posted September 23, 2014 Posted September 23, 2014 http://theweek.com/article/index/268360/how-our-botched-understanding-of-science-ruins-everything Here's one certain sign that something is very wrong with our collective mind: Everybody uses a word, but no one is clear on what the word actually means. One of those words is "science." Everybody uses it. Science says this, science says that. You must vote for me because science. You must buy this because science. You must hate the folks over there because science. Look, science is really important. And yet, who among us can easily provide a clear definition of the word "science" that matches the way people employ the term in everyday life? So let me explain what science actually is. Science is the process through which we derive reliable predictive rules through controlled experimentation. That's the science that gives us airplanes and flu vaccines and the Internet. But what almost everyone means when he or she says "science" is something different. To most people, capital-S Science is the pursuit of capital-T Truth. It is a thing engaged in by people wearing lab coats and/or doing fancy math that nobody else understands. The reason capital-S Science gives us airplanes and flu vaccines is not because it is an incremental engineering process but because scientists are really smart people. In other words — and this is the key thing — when people say "science", what they really mean is magic or truth. ... 2
MMX2010 Posted September 23, 2014 Posted September 23, 2014 I agree with that, and find it annoying. I've asked people to give me examples wherein large numbers of people followed science and disaster happened, and they've replied "phrenology" and "discrimination against homosexuals". (But those two things are example of smart people, sometimes scientists, arriving at their conclusions without experimentation - which isn't science.)
lorr Posted September 23, 2014 Posted September 23, 2014 In other words — and this is the key thing — when people say "science", what they really mean is magic or truth. ... The first thing that I thought of was movies, TV, and fiction in general where magic is used in the plot as an explanation of the unexplainable. (I am aware of Stef's hypothesis that magic in fiction is a metaphor for delusion, but I'm talking about magic as a plot device). As fewer people accept magic as a plausible plot device, science (because people understand it just as little as they understand magic) often fits in perfectly. I know that's not what you mean - you're talking about in the real world and not in fiction - but it seems to me that the line isn't so clear between the two in most people's minds.
Sal9000 Posted September 23, 2014 Posted September 23, 2014 And yet, who among us can easily provide a clear definition of the word "science" that matches the way people employ the term in everyday life? Popper fought essentialism in his books all the time. Having a clear definition of something does not create knowledge on this. You can get a clear definition of what movement is, but this won't help you. Science is the application of the scientific method which is a subset of Bayesian statistics. So let me explain what science actually is. Science is the process through which we derive reliable predictive rules through controlled experimentation. The scientific method is a framework. You make hypotheses and test them. You make predictions and test them. A theory is not scientific when it cannot provide predictions and / or hypotheses. It's also unscientific when there are no specific boundaries mentioned as to when it becomes false. To most people, capital-S Science is the pursuit of capital-T Truth. It is a thing engaged in by people wearing lab coats and/or doing fancy math that nobody else understands. While most people may think so, Popper claimed that all people are scientists. In fact, learning to walk, talk and everything else is about making hypotheses and testing them. 1
J. D. Stembal Posted September 24, 2014 Posted September 24, 2014 Three words come to mind, anthropogenic global warming. 1
Dylan Lawrence Moore Posted September 24, 2014 Posted September 24, 2014 My cousin took an online English course a few months ago. He was computer illiterate enough to require my help to navigate the website. We clicked through a little bit to find the lesson's first vocabulary test. Amongst this list was the word "hypothesis". The definition? "A guess you make then prove." Ouch.
WasatchMan Posted September 24, 2014 Posted September 24, 2014 "Science was born as a result and consequence of philosophy; it cannot survive without a philosophical (particularly epistemological) base. If philosophy perishes, science will be next to go." - Ayn Rand 1
pretzelogik Posted November 25, 2014 Posted November 25, 2014 Science is interchangeable with authority.
Pepin Posted November 26, 2014 Posted November 26, 2014 Science is interchangeable with authority. No it isn't.
shirgall Posted November 26, 2014 Author Posted November 26, 2014 Science is interchangeable with authority. Says you. To me, science is one of two method for determining truths about the universe: * deductive reasoning: testing hypotheses with careful experiments that can be replicated by others. * inductive reasoning: determining hypotheses by observing patterns in the behavior of the universe. Both methods lead to universal "laws" by volumes of evidence and elimination of counterexamples. The authorities of merit in such a system are those that make insightful contributions anywhere along these paths.
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