[lit-ideas] Re: Censorship
- From: "Phil Enns" <phil.enns@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 16 Oct 2005 08:55:26 -0400
Eric Yost wrote:
"Boiling point is not a rule. It is a measured standardized ..."
In other words, a rule.
Eric concludes:
"On the other hand, if you are saying the equivalent of 'nothing
excludes the possibility that tomorrow the sun will not rise' (Hume?)
then I can't really argue with that."
The great thing about the scientific method is that it allows for, and
actively encourages, the possibility of new facts altering established
beliefs. I am not even an amateur in these matters but my impression is
that Einstein's greatness lies in his recognizing anomalous facts and
coming up with a theory that accounted for them. The claim 'nothing
excludes the possibility that tomorrow the sun will not rise' is not
necessarily a skeptical one but can function as a reminder that the
empirical business of collecting facts is not, and never can be,
finished. While the rule regarding the boiling point of water has a
great many facts to support it, the rule itself is not, and never could
be, a fact. When rules become facts is the day when scientific inquiry
comes to an end.
Sincerely,
Phil Enns
Toronto, ON
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