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Science formulates theories. When the theory fails Science discards the theory and moves on to the next new thing. That is not the kind of truth one can build a spiritual life on. I can explain this to you but I cannot understand it for you. Thanks for letting me borrow a great line.
Science is a good utility tool. When it works it can advance our lifestyle. It can also destroy humanity in an instant with awesome precision with no feelings.
It is not difficult to see why Science appears as God to some.
You know, the nature of the universe IS change and metamorphosis. A spiritual life that fails to take this simple physical fact into account is kind of pointless, IMO.
And you need to get out of the house more. Plenty of people intuited the changeable nature of the universe many years before the advent of modern science, and, again, built a spiritual life around it. It is a very rich tradition.
And lose the "science is god" trope. The only people who think this are some brands of religious folks. It shows, at best, very lazy thinking. (I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.)
Science formulates theories. When the theory fails Science discards the theory and moves on to the next new thing. That is not the kind of truth one can build a spiritual life on. I can explain this to you but I cannot understand it for you. Thanks for letting me borrow a great line.
Science is a good utility tool. When it works it can advance our lifestyle. It can also destroy humanity in an instant with awesome precision with no feelings.
It is not difficult to see why Science appears as God to some.
As can god (ever hear of the Great Flood?). And the Hindu gods...seems like I remember Shiva being the destroyer (among other characteristics). In fact, since many christians believe god created EVERYTHING, according to them god created science.
You know, the nature of the universe IS change and metamorphosis. A spiritual life that fails to take this simple physical fact into account is kind of pointless, IMO.
And you need to get out of the house more. Plenty of people intuited the changeable nature of the universe many years before the advent of modern science, and, again, built a spiritual life around it. It is a very rich tradition.
And lose the "science is god" trope. The only people who think this are some brands of religious folks. It shows, at best, very lazy thinking. (I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.)
Good post! As usual.
I have 2 degrees in geology and was a science teacher for over a decade. And all those geology, meteorology, and astronomy professors...none ever made an statements that I heard that came close to thinking that science is a god. We see science as a tool of man. And, we see it's imperfections (and therefore its perfections, as well) as the work of man's mind.
I have 2 degrees in geology and was a science teacher for over a decade. And all those geology, meteorology, and astronomy professors...none ever made an statements that I heard that came close to thinking that science is a god. We see science as a tool of man. And, we see it's imperfections (and therefore its perfections, as well) as the work of man's mind.
Exactly. The fact that science changes is exactly why it is popular with deeply intelligent people. If all science was, was a body of never-changing facts, what creative person would EVER get interested in it?
You know, the nature of the universe IS change and metamorphosis. A spiritual life that fails to take this simple physical fact into account is kind of pointless, IMO.
And you need to get out of the house more. Plenty of people intuited the changeable nature of the universe many years before the advent of modern science, and, again, built a spiritual life around it. It is a very rich tradition.
And lose the "science is god" trope. The only people who think this are some brands of religious folks. It shows, at best, very lazy thinking. (I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.)
Yes, apparently searching for the truth is not the way, only asserting the 'truth' is the way to spirituality. Our ancestors clearly knew differently.
You know, the nature of the universe IS change and metamorphosis. A spiritual life that fails to take this simple physical fact into account is kind of pointless, IMO.
And you need to get out of the house more. Plenty of people intuited the changeable nature of the universe many years before the advent of modern science, and, again, built a spiritual life around it. It is a very rich tradition.
And lose the "science is god" trope. The only people who think this are some brands of religious folks. It shows, at best, very lazy thinking. (I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.)
Change is inevitable. Truth is truth because it does NOT change. If it changes it is not truth, it is something else. Science does not deal with truth, not even proof. It formulates theories about how stuff works. The theory holds good until it no longer does.
Spirituality is all about truth, truth that stands firm.
Science does not use the word "theory" the same way it is used in the non-scientific world. Scientists gather data and formulate hypotheses, then test the hypotheses and make changes as the testing indicates. After the various hypotheses and confirmed testing have lead to conclusions, a scientific theory results to summarize the hypotheses supported by the testing to create a valid explanation of the phenomenon being tested.
Science does not use the word "theory" the same way it is used in the non-scientific world. Scientists gather data and formulate hypotheses, then test the hypotheses and make changes as the testing indicates. After the various hypotheses and confirmed testing have lead to conclusions, a scientific theory results to summarize the hypotheses supported by the testing to create a valid explanation of the phenomenon being tested.
Science doesn't just create theories.
If you are referring to my post,
I did not say that, I don't know who did. If they just create theories, they will no longer be working as scientists. They have to publish the results and procure grants and monetize the discoveries. I know how that works.
Still a hypothesis and theory based on observable and measurable data. I am using the word exactly as scientists use it. Calling it that does not diminish the validity or the value scientists contribute.
One only have to google "theories that have failed" to know that they are good until they are not so good or something becomes newly observable. Or somebody decided to fudge facts and are now in jail.
Science and scientists can easily be tainted like anyone else by capitalism and politics and even personal morals and bias such as when treatment for AIDS did not materialize as promptly as they could have. Everyone knows all that.
All this has nothing to do with spirituality. There is no conflict between spirituality and science because everything exists because of What Exists.
In addition, no scientific theory has EVER been "discarded".
Hypotheses, yes. Theories, never.
And discarding hypotheses that don't prove out is a feature, not a bug. Not all hypotheses are proven. So better ones are found, until they test as correct.
I chalk up a lot of these nonsensical complaints about science not making up its mind to sloppy press coverage of science -- the conflation of association with cause, for example -- combined with poor reading skills, often combined with scientific ignorance on the part of both writers and readers.
Change is inevitable. Truth is truth because it does NOT change. If it changes it is not truth, it is something else. Science does not deal with truth, not even proof. It formulates theories about how stuff works. The theory holds good until it no longer does.
Spirituality is all about truth, truth that stands firm.
That's a very odd response, given that spiritual truths change all the time. Just compare today's spiritual truths with those from, say, 100 years ago. Let alone 2000 years ago.
Change is the very nature of the universe in general and life in particular. You speak of change as if it is something we have to put up with. You are whistling in the wind - you are a very temporary phenomenon manifested by the universe, and your insistence on permanence is really kind of funny.
Also, and this is a pretty minor nit, you completely misunderstand how scientists use the word 'theory'.
I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.
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