[FRIAM] What's so bad about Scientism?

[Nick Thompson]

Glen, 

 

There is another solution to suicidal skepticism which Is to embrace scientism but broaden the definition of science.  This, I think, is CSPeirce's way.  We define good thought as any thought that will, in the fullness of time ... the very, very fullness of time .. be agreed upon.  Good thought is thought that, once and for all, assuages doubt.  By doubt, here, I don't mean entertained doubt.  I mean doubt sufficiently profound that one cannot, when one needs to, pursue any course of action.  REAL doubt.  Paralyzing doubt.

 

Now, science is defined as that method, that will be agreed, in the very long run to produce good thinking.  

 

Notice that this way out of the scientism debate concedes that a value lies at the bottom of scientismicists’  affection for science ... the assuaging of REAL doubt.  

 

Therefore, I stipulate that anybody who embraces REAL doubt as a way of life is NOT going to be happy with this solution.  

 

Nick 

 

PS to Glen:  The seas seem to have stopped pitching for a bit.  

 

Nicholas S. Thompson

Emeritus Professor of Psychology and Biology

Clark University

http://home.earthlink.net/~nickthompson/naturaldesigns/

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Friam [mailto:friam-bounces at redfish.com] On Behalf Of u?l? ?
Sent: Friday, July 06, 2018 2:35 PM
To: FriAM <friam at redfish.com>
Subject: [FRIAM] What's so bad about Scientism?

 

by Moti Mizrahi

 <https://philpapers.org/archive/MIZWSB.pdf> https://philpapers.org/archive/MIZWSB.pdf

 

Given that many of my disagreements with the local atheists hinge on their cultish and non-skeptical acceptance of scientific results and me, therefore, accusing them of "scientism", I found this article helpful.  In this forum, we talk a lot about how science journalism reports results (hyped or not even wrong).  But even *if* a "Science News fanboi" does a good job parsing the difference between the journalism and the actual content of a journal article, there are still plenty of caveats to any lab, research project, or entire domain that can color its produce.  So, I tend toward cynicism when reading any science whatsoever.

 

That said, I think I *am* guilty of something like this _Weak Scientism_, for better or worse.

 

--

☣ uǝlƃ

 

============================================================

FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv

Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College to unsubscribe  <http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com> http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com

FRIAM-COMIC  <http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/> http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ by Dr. Strangelove

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/attachments/20180706/c5b943b3/attachment.html>