Why has the public opinion polling around scientific endeavors become so negative? Well, it’s matter of semantics, but we have allowed those who wish to speak of isms to do the speaking on topics that will always be ish.
Example-
“Thanks to Science, we know blank to be the blank.”
Everything about this statement is wrong. Not just wrong, but actually the exact opposite of what should ever be judged as correct. The only thing that has ever been settled in the scientific world is the word used to describe it. “Science.” and even then, I would argue that considering that settled is idiotic.
IMHO, it is a bad choice for a label. I think we should replace the word science with “ongoing efforts to reduce variables” because the intended meaning of the above example is really, “Thanks to our ongoing efforts to reduce the variables around blank, we have found blank to be the most likely reason for blank, given the information at hand.
That is what anyone who uses the first example is, in good faith, saying.
Now before I go any further, let me address the immediate cop out rebuttals and petty replies that may be brewing in your mind and also, to those who do put way too many m’s where they should be using h’s…
Please take my words in context with the humility and honest intent that I have in saying these things. To be clear, take these words as they are, spoken by someone who is way better at your job, occupation, and favorite activity than you are. I am a way better scientist than most phd holders. I base this reasoning not just on my complete lack of outstanding student loan debt gained in the pursuit of piece of paper that will never be worth what you paid for it, (Which means I’m also better at math than you,) but also because I have the rare talent combination required to both know and follow the most basic rules contained within the scientific method. You, the phd holder I am speaking to have proven time and time again, to be incapable of following those rules while at the same time understanding them.
Surely, if your opponent both knows and plays by the rules of your game while you do neither, you are not winning.
That said, let’s go over some basics using a FAQ style Q&A to learn you something-
What is the core function of science? It is to learn the nature of the events we experience in life.
What is the core action of science? It is the questioning of the circumstances surrounding any scenario. By that I mean, we find the reason behind any event by looking at factors connected to or surrounding it. We can never actually know the full measure of anything, so we must constantly interrogate the details with better, more accurate tools, starting with the simple human vision, hearing, touch, taste, smell, and judgement then going forward into mechanical meters and beyond.
Is science ever settled? No, as previously stated , “…we must constantly interrogate the details with better, more accurate tools…”
What if a scientist claims to know the ultimate anything about anything? If they claim that, they are not scientist. They are a cultist. Ignore them and for god sakes, stop paying them for their faulty opinions.
That will be enough for today. Please ponder those 4 points and come back with an answer to the question, “What is science?” Please post your answers in the comments.