At The Ness: Science is not Just Philosophy

Atheist neurologist blogger Steven Novella wants us to know:

So no – in general scientists and the institutions of science do not pretend that science is pristine or monolithic, nor that we have some magical insight into the ultimate nature of reality (another saying is that, there is no teacher’s edition to the universe so we cannot look up the answers in the back). Science is admittedly difficult, messy, always a work in progress, with conclusions that are tentative. It is also operationally a series of refined models for predicting observations or the results of experiments. But, from a practical point of view, those models can be very useful. We can put fuel in a metal tube and ignite it, and based upon our models send the payload on top of that tube across the solar system to take detailed pictures of a distant world. Our models are so precise it is as if scientists sunk a putt from across the country.

Steven Novella, “Science is not Just Philosophy” at The Ness (September 20, 2021)

Wait. If Novella is right, the science presenters in media must be speaking a different language from the rest of us. The impression that he says they don’t convey (“insight into the ultimate nature of reality”), they in fact do — by a variety of means. That’s okay, of course, until the whipped cream hits the fan.

There is no problem with this when science theorists are theorizing about dark energy. But it can be a big problem when they are discussing real-life issues today where the rest of us are involved. Like COVID lockdowns, to name one example.

Note: Novella’s comments are in support of getting the COVID-19 jab.

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