Sorry for screwing up some of the statements (the earth revolves around the sun...) This is my first time posting and I'm still trying to figure out how to edit this rant...
Personally, I feel that the questions themselves represent very limited thinking and bad science.
Example #1: The question about the big bang. While the big bang has gained a lot of credibility over the last couple of decades, it is in no way a fact yet. It is nothing more than a best-guess based on very scant evidence. It's not unlikely that a better theory will be put out in the future as more evidence builds (one that changes the nature of how we percieve the big bang or one the discounts it entirely.) I believe at this time that the cosmological community does not completely agree that the big ban happened or what it means. (note: I'm not saying that it didn't happen, just that it's not even close to being conclusive, unlike Evolution.)
2) The questions about ESP, Alien Abduction, and Astrology were very closed minded. The truth is that we still do not know enough about the world we live in to throw this stuff out as pure fantasy, especially ESP (although not reproducible, there is substantial proof that something occurs that we do not understand... perhaps very rarely or commonly) It is very, very bad science to assume that something does not exist or can not occur... that's the same thinking that has held up most great scientific discoveries.
3) Asking yes or no questions treats them as simple facts, when they are not. It misses the point to putting out an hypothesis and developing it into a theory. Theories general get worked over for quite awhile before they are either discounted to evolve into more or less a fact. Once you can "build a car" out of it, then it truly has a tangible result (Evolution vs. Big Bang.) Each question has a different degree of truth. The fact is, the universe does revolve around the Earth (Einstien pointed out in the Theory of Relativity that it was just as true as saying that the Sun revolves around the Earth.)
4) Slashdot's reaction (especially those in Tech) has been it's usually self-centered "we know better" type of reaction. Slashdotters do not. In fact, I doubt if most of you can critically evaluate the survey based on social mythology, grammar/connotation, and scientific method (which never disproves anything, but does find "better" answers that can be built on.)
Many of the reactions mirror the standard Engineering reactions to anything that isn't already a well-used formula. In my experience, Engineers are very often the most closed minded and least likely to discover something new types.
5) Here's the ultimate example of why the survey doesn't work. Do you believe in ghost? Yes/No? Is yes/no a relevant answer to a phenonenom (excuse the spelling) that we can't properly place yet. Fact: We do not know if a ghost is a physical, psychological, or other type of occurance. It could all be in someone's head. It could be a strange particle effect related to the electrical signature of a previously living person and the way it interacts with the phsycial world on a quantum level, or it could be nothing at all. That wasn't exactly a Yes/No approach was it? Yet, it was a totally valid way to view the question.
Slashdot Mirror
Sorry for screwing up some of the statements (the earth revolves around the sun...) This is my first time posting and I'm still trying to figure out how to edit this rant...
Later,
James
Personally, I feel that the questions themselves represent very limited thinking and bad science.
Example #1: The question about the big bang.
While the big bang has gained a lot of credibility over the last couple of decades, it is in no way a fact yet. It is nothing more than a best-guess based on very scant evidence. It's not unlikely that a better theory will be put out in the future as more evidence builds (one that changes the nature of how we percieve the big bang or one the discounts it entirely.) I believe at this time that the cosmological community does not completely agree that the big ban happened or what it means. (note: I'm not saying that it didn't happen, just that it's not even close to being conclusive, unlike Evolution.)
2) The questions about ESP, Alien Abduction, and Astrology were very closed minded. The truth is that we still do not know enough about the world we live in to throw this stuff out as pure fantasy, especially ESP (although not reproducible, there is substantial proof that something occurs that we do not understand... perhaps very rarely or commonly) It is very, very bad science to assume that something does not exist or can not occur... that's the same thinking that has held up most great scientific discoveries.
3) Asking yes or no questions treats them as simple facts, when they are not. It misses the point to putting out an hypothesis and developing it into a theory. Theories general get worked over for quite awhile before they are either discounted to evolve into more or less a fact. Once you can "build a car" out of it, then it truly has a tangible result (Evolution vs. Big Bang.) Each question has a different degree of truth. The fact is, the universe does revolve around the Earth (Einstien pointed out in the Theory of Relativity that it was just as true as saying that the Sun revolves around the Earth.)
4) Slashdot's reaction (especially those in Tech) has been it's usually self-centered "we know better" type of reaction. Slashdotters do not. In fact, I doubt if most of you can critically evaluate the survey based on social mythology, grammar/connotation, and scientific method (which never disproves anything, but does find "better" answers that can be built on.)
Many of the reactions mirror the standard Engineering reactions to anything that isn't already a well-used formula. In my experience, Engineers are very often the most closed minded and least likely to discover something new types.
5) Here's the ultimate example of why the survey doesn't work. Do you believe in ghost? Yes/No? Is yes/no a relevant answer to a phenonenom (excuse the spelling) that we can't properly place yet. Fact: We do not know if a ghost is a physical, psychological, or other type of occurance. It could all be in someone's head. It could be a strange particle effect related to the electrical signature of a previously living person and the way it interacts with the phsycial world on a quantum level, or it could be nothing at all. That wasn't exactly a Yes/No approach was it? Yet, it was a totally valid way to view the question.
Thanks,
James