Michael, Hunches and theories, are not "proven" by tenacity and rational arguement so much as a correspondance with expereince, the power of calculations and theories is that thier predictions meet with expereince. E=MC2 was not presented as a rational arguement to the Japanese, it was expereinced by the peoples of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The expereince corresponded with the theories wich in turn guided further theory. -Ron
________________________________ From: Michael Poloukhine <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Sunday, March 1, 2009 8:53:54 PM Subject: Re: [MD] Faith/Skepticism > dmb says: > In the vernacular language, a theory is just something like a > hunch. But in science a theory is as good as it ever gets. A theory > is the hypothesis that has proven itself. MP: Not to be intentionally contrarian here (let alone defend literal creationism)... .... theories aren't "proven" let alone b y themselves; they simply gain in static power the longer they remain "not dis-proven" by a scientist with a different hunch. In the end that still makes a theory no more than a hunch. It will ALWAYS be a hunch until it is proven wrong by a new hunch or proven as "fact." And a "fact" it is still nothing more than a hunch, just one with an official blessing for being the last one standing for long enough that no one bothers to question it anymore. At that point it takes heretical status to unseat the hunch, usually at the cost of one's profession, sometimes even of one's life. But it is still and *always* just a hunch. This is because that's all science is; the constant refinement / capsizing of hunches. That "in science a theory is as good as it ever gets" [and I completely agree with dmb on that] pretty much assures that this will always be the case. This actually defines the rather pedestrian limitation of science; always guessing, always trying to prove, forever seeking to be right, and as such never allowing itself enough room to actually comprehend. MP ---- "Don't believe everything you think." Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/ Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
