Well put, Dan. Science has a methodology which is based upon certain assumptions. Many scientists make the mistake of assuming that that's all there is. But many non-scientists likewise make the mistake of pooh-poohing a scientific discovery out of ignorance of how science works, or because on the surface it *appears* to contradict something they (the protestors) accept on faith.
Here's an example: no one's ever seen electrons jump from one energy level to another, but if they didn't, your CD player wouldn't work. Dan R Allen wrote: > John: > It seems to me that an honest scholar would just stick to writing things he > > can authenticate using the documentary record, or at least the > archaeological record. In the absence of such records the author isn't > just engaging in unfounded supposition, he is engaged in irresponsible > guessing and wild speculation. That is, he is just making up the > story. Such a book is fiction, not nonfiction. > > Dan: > And hence the humble "SWAG" is born... > > If science limits itself to just the existing record, whether documentary > or archaeological, and not try to extrapolate beyond that, then it really > can't expand understanding. > There needs to be _some_ supposition, hopefully founded on existing > records, in all archaeological theories (or any theory for that matter), > but it should only be there to help in defining further research. The > problem, as I see it, is that many scientists invest so much of their egos > in defending their more reasonable suppositions that they become 'facts', > and 'proofs' and are then used to base more fanciful suppositions on. > Eventually you have something that resembles complete fantasy because it's > no longer even remotely based on the record. > I don't think Mr. Diamond has gone that far yet, even though he is > apparently ignoring the biblical record. > Something else to consider on the sheep issue John is that we seem to be > the only group that understands that Adam lived here - I think that most > people assume that Eden was somewhere in what is now the mid-east, if they > think about it at all. > > ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// > /// ZION LIST CHARTER: Please read it at /// > /// http://www.zionsbest.com/charter.html /// > ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// > -- Marc A. Schindler Spruce Grove, Alberta, Canada -- Gateway to the Boreal Parkland Guns don’t kill people; people with guns kill people Note: This communication represents the informal personal views of the author solely; its contents do not necessarily reflect those of the author’s employer, nor those of any organization with which the author may be associated. ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// /// ZION LIST CHARTER: Please read it at /// /// http://www.zionsbest.com/charter.html /// ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// ${list_promo}
