{"id":2436,"date":"2016-02-18T18:15:55","date_gmt":"2016-02-18T23:15:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.flascience.org\/wp\/?p=2436"},"modified":"2016-02-18T18:18:08","modified_gmt":"2016-02-18T23:18:08","slug":"you-cant-have-it-both-ways","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=2436","title":{"rendered":"You can’t have it both ways"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have genuine difficulty understanding a person who looks down on science and yet has no problem benefiting from it. A letter-to-the-editor writer in today\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Daytona Beach News-Journal<\/a> did exactly that \u00e2\u20ac\u201c denigrate science while praising its products \u00e2\u20ac\u201c in response to my column published Sunday<\/a>. He writes:<\/p>\n

THE VAGUE SIDE OF SCIENCE
\nScience. It sounds so, well, scientific. The word conjures images of brilliant, bald men in glasses and white smocks unlocking the secrets of the universe. Not quite. Mark Twain said in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Life on the Mississippi,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u0153There is something fascinating about science. One gets such a wholesale return of conjecture for such a trifling amount of fact.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

To those who worship science, like Brandon Haught (author of the Community Voices column in Sunday\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s paper, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mix science, religion in public schools,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d) this will be painful to accept \u00e2\u20ac\u201d but most of science is speculation, extrapolation, or simply made up. Eventually, nearly every scientific fact turns out to be wrong. From phantom planets to phlogiston theory to luminiferous aether to phrenology, all of which were at one time generally accepted scientific facts. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the problem with science; you just can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t count on it.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I understand the scientific process. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s humanities\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 most valuable tool as we try to understand the universe in and around us. I value science for its amazing utility. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t worship it. Science in its infancy may have had more than a fair share of speculation and fantasy but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s come a long way since then.<\/p>\n

According to some pundits, 98 percent of scientists accept the current theories of global warming. At one time, probably 98 percent of scientists accepted the theory of spontaneous generation. Didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t make it right.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I agree. The majority believing something doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t make it right. The facts do.<\/p>\n

Of course science is useful. But to teach it in schools to the exclusion of religion and philosophy is silly. Consider the progress we have made: We have airplanes that fly faster than sound, we have vast networks of communication, we have cured many of the diseases which afflicted mankind for centuries to the extent that life expectancy is almost double what it was only 150 years ago. And yet, we are still fighting wars over the same casus belli which incited cavemen.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Wait. The writer said earlier that you can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t count on science. But now he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s listing science and technology-based achievements as good things. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m sorry, buddy, but you can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have it both ways. And in my column I never said religion and philosophy shouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be taught. I did say that religion shouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be taught as science or as an alternative to science. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a difference. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m actually all for there being comparative religion courses in schools. But I seriously doubt that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what the writer has in mind.<\/p>\n

You want to teach science in school, feel free. I would encourage it, but let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not discount the probability that what we teach will eventually be obsolete. The only sensible approach is to teach philosophy and religion in the classroom next door to the science lab. If we are ever to truly see significant progress in the evolution of homo sapiens, we are far more likely to accomplish it through philosophy than nebulous scientific facts.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And here he goes, back to bashing science. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think anyone is saying science is necessarily going to alter who we are as human beings. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ever been the stated purpose of science. Correct me if I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m wrong. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not convinced religion or philosophy will do the trick either, though. And I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like to point out that many of the wars the writer mentioned earlier were sparked by conflicting religions.<\/p>\n

Finally, this writer’s nonsensical response to my column actually grasped at a very small element of my piece. Regrettably, the column’s headline “Don’t mix science, religion in public schools” was misleading and missed the point of the column. I had no control over the headline. But the actual content of the column focused on who should have influence over the review and selection of instructional materials. Creationism was only mentioned toward the end. That shows you where this letter writer’s head is at.<\/p>\n

(Cross posted at Going Ape<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I have genuine difficulty understanding a person who looks down on science and yet has no problem benefiting from it. A letter-to-the-editor writer in today\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Daytona Beach News-Journal did exactly that \u00e2\u20ac\u201c denigrate science while praising its products \u00e2\u20ac\u201c in … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcZNLl-Di","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3515,"url":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=3515","url_meta":{"origin":2436,"position":0},"title":"Science teachers are a critical need in Florida … again","author":"Brandon Haught","date":"January 18, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"The Florida Department of Education issues an annual report entitled Identification of Critical Teacher Shortage Areas. (Here is the most recent report.) For at least a decade, science has been on the list of certification areas that \"represent the greatest need among teachers statewide.\" The factors used to determine which\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":15,"url":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=15","url_meta":{"origin":2436,"position":1},"title":"I LOVE Science","author":"Brandon Haught","date":"August 24, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Congratulations to Santa Rosa and Escambia counties for launching a school initiative called I LOVE Science. Apparently, it is a mentoring program where volunteers come into the classroom to teach about science. \"I LOVE Science comes out of a national need for more people in science and math,\" said Mary\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "In the Classroom"","block_context":{"text":"In the Classroom","link":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?cat=2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":214,"url":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=214","url_meta":{"origin":2436,"position":2},"title":"Why are science FCAT scores low?","author":"Brandon Haught","date":"May 24, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Low science FCAT scores (see previous post)\u00c2\u00a0were mentioned in many news stories yesterday and today, and a few even made that element the story\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hook. (\u00e2\u20ac\u0153But scientists they are not.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d) There is no in-depth analysis of the problem, though, that I have found. Mainly, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all about reading, writing and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Analysis\/Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Analysis\/Commentary","link":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1059,"url":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=1059","url_meta":{"origin":2436,"position":3},"title":"Op-ed: Is science education important to Florida?","author":"Brandon Haught","date":"June 4, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Earlier this week I submitted an op-ed column to newspapers across the state on behalf of Florida Citizens for Science. Today the Gainesville Sun ran it. The Sun even ran a political cartoon with the column! A couple of other papers expressed an interest in it, but I haven't gotten\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 1 comment","block_context":{"text":"With 1 comment","link":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=1059#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":140,"url":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=140","url_meta":{"origin":2436,"position":4},"title":"Science on the FCAT, good or bad?","author":"Brandon Haught","date":"January 19, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Here's an interesting look at whether having a science FCAT is good or bad in the long run. Bruce Alberts raised those concerns during his time as president of the National Academy of Sciences, an organization dedicated to \"furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "In the Classroom"","block_context":{"text":"In the Classroom","link":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?cat=2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":97,"url":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=97","url_meta":{"origin":2436,"position":5},"title":"Letter to the editor about science FCAT","author":"Brandon Haught","date":"November 15, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is an interesting letter to the editor about the science FCAT: As a science graduate and education specialist teaching science in high school, I find myself along with other teachers arresting our science curriculum in anatomy and physiology, physics, zoology, environmental science and chemistry to help our students either\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Analysis\/Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Analysis\/Commentary","link":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2436"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2436"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2436\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2438,"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2436\/revisions\/2438"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2436"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2436"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2436"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}