Category: Science

Why much of the public doesn’t believe in science, a handy illustration

“Claim: Advanced dinosaurs may rule other planets” Yup. Maybe. more

Fashionable bashing of “scientism” merely disguises its collision course with reality

” … everything is supposed to be weighed and measured even though the human mind that evaluates the results is supposed to be an illusion.” more

“- ome, sweet “-ome,” in science usage

“In fact, it goes on for about 18 pages if you go to the Omics.org site and print out its list of omes and omics.” more

John Gray: “Scientism has been shown to be an illusion time and time again”

“But it is another illusion to imagine that scientism will go away.” more

Sorting science from speculation: Handy guides available

Watch out for “may have,” “might have,” “could have,” “would have,” “would have to have” … in other words, the researchers are only speculating. more

Assessing Thomas Kuhn’s legacy: “It’s not so clear that there will be any more revolutions in physics”

If Hacking or others want to put down Kuhn, they’ll have to do better than this. more

He said it: Newton in Principia, on rules of reasoning for experimental philosophy

The ongoing debates over methodological naturalism have pointed us back to Newton’s Rules for scientific reasoning. So, thanks to Paul Halshall of Fordham University’s Modern History Sourcebook, let us cite for reference: ___________________ >> Modern History Sourcebook: Isaac Newton: The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy [Excerpts] [The Rules of Reasoning in Philosophy] RULE I We… more

Can a paradigm in science be true?

The question might be easier to examine if we turn it around and ask, can a paradigm be false? more

Genetic meltdown causes adaptations? Journal paper doesn’t support it, merely states it

“Scientists can and often do make claims that are completely unsupported by their science. And AITSE is here to help you sort out the science from the bunk.” more

James Lovelock: A self-confessed climate “alarmist” changes his mind

James Lovelock, father of Gaia theory and previous forecaster of humanity’s doom by global warming, now says he was an alarmist who extrapolated too far in making his predictions. More after the click. more

“Magnifying the Universe” — Fantastic Infographic

Here’s a fantastic infographic that needs to be in every science classroom. I’ve seen similar ones, but this is by far the best: The Universe made possible by Number Sleuth Be sure to look at this in full screen mode. Whether you love or hate ID, you’ve got to admit that this is one beautiful… more

Bayesian thinking – and trusting one’s gut

The moment one finds oneself asking, “Could this really be true?” is not usually the moment one has the evidence that it isn’t. It’s the moment when one should feel free to articulate one’s doubts, at least to oneself. more

Yes, a Catholic can be a young Earth creationist in good faith

“It comes as a surprise to many Catholics to learn how little the church teaches in this area–how few tenets are established as true beyond doubt, … ” more

“It’s Friday, but Sunday’s coming!” — Nobel Prize holder Charles Townes on design thought and anti-evolutionism, in light of Michael Shermer in Sci Am on “the standard scientific theory” of evolution

What on earth does the title of a famous Good Friday Sermon have to do with the ID controversy? (Even, come Easter Sunday morning . . . ) A lot. Sadly. As I was reading and thinking about Dr Torley’s latest amazing UD series and some of UD’s ever so fascinating comments [one of the… more

Shroud of Turin continues to baffle researchers

That’s science working as it should. No fatuous claims are dredged up to explain it away. If we don’t know, we don’t know. Maybe some day we will know all. more

A scientist on why churchgoers might be much less trustful of science than decades ago

The scientist as intrusive social worker … it’s a long way from Eureka!, and not exactly a winning or exciting image. more

Scientists: Getting to know our moral and intellectual superiors better

Of course, most prominent scientists are not like this. But some are. It pays to know. And one of the vices of scientism is the airbrush. more

It’s not science that people are losing confidence in, it’s scientists

Decline in trust in science ROSE with education more

He said it: Charles Murray on the fact that middle class people, including scientists, often go to church, …

” Of the academics and scientists in the GSS sample, only 16 percent said they had no religion. ” more

Contest: Who invented the phrase intelligent design?

Charles Darwin uses the term in an 1861 letter, in response to something John Herschel wrote. more

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