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#1
07-22-2005, 07:10 PM
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Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction tool.
[ QUOTE ]
And although science can answer how things work, it does not answer why. This is beyond the natural realm that science works within. [/ QUOTE ] Well said Peter666. Although I am an agnostic and study science, I do believe that science is only an ESTIMATION of HOW the world works. It does not say why the rules of physics are there and why physical constants are whatever value they are. Somebody/somthing set those rules in the first place (or nothing set them in place). Science is only at TOOL which is used to predict the behaviour of energy and matter. In my field of materials science, everything is a theory that 'kinda' works. Nothing is an exact science. There is no such thing. Science doesn't really explain anything. It's only a prediction tool used to help people do things. 
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#2
07-22-2005, 07:16 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction tool.
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And although science can answer how things work, it does not answer why. This is beyond the natural realm that science works within. [/ QUOTE ] Why do you think this is? I think it's because Why is such a difficult question to answer because it is usually dependent on who is asking the question. Maybe we shouldn't even be asking why at all. What good has come of it? It seems like how is a much more useful question, overall unless you are actually able to confirm your guess of the originator's intention at some point, you are just wasting time and energy by asking why.
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#3
07-22-2005, 08:03 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction tool.
Science is an attempt to get closer to understanding the magic of life and nature from which we still only grasp a tiny part. Science will always only be a copy and will never come up with the final answers. As you point out, some of its approximations are useful in life.
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#4
07-22-2005, 08:09 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction tool.
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ] And although science can answer how things work, it does not answer why. This is beyond the natural realm that science works within. [/ QUOTE ] Well said Peter666. Although I am an agnostic and study science, I do believe that science is only an ESTIMATION of HOW the world works. It does not say why the rules of physics are there and why physical constants are whatever value they are. Somebody/somthing set those rules in the first place (or nothing set them in place). Science is only at TOOL which is used to predict the behaviour of energy and matter. In my field of materials science, everything is a theory that 'kinda' works. Nothing is an exact science. There is no such thing. Science doesn't really explain anything. It's only a prediction tool used to help people do things. [/ QUOTE ] I would attempt to measure the accuracy of your statement, but cannot do so without altering it.
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#5
07-22-2005, 08:12 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction t
[ QUOTE ]
Although I am an agnostic and study science, I do believe that science is only an ESTIMATION of HOW the world works. [/ QUOTE ] You're confusing science itself with the results of science. The world is full of claims or 'estimations' about the nature of reality. god, astrology, scientology, evolutionary theory etc are examples of these estimations. Science is the simplest and yet most sophisticated method of determining which of these claims fit with objective reality. You do believe in objective reality don't you? [ QUOTE ] And although science can answer how things work, it does not answer why...Science doesn't really explain anything. It's only a prediction tool used to help people do things. [/ QUOTE ] This is nonsense. These are just a few of the million 'why' questions science has answered or provided insight: 1. Why do people need air and food? 2. Why does the sun rise each day? 3. Why are plants green? 4. Why do animals behave that way? 5. Why do we have seasons? 6. Why do people get sick? 7. Why does food go off? 8. Why is one thing blue but another red? etc, etc...the list is nearly infinite. The post should have read: [ QUOTE ] And although science can answer how things work, it does not answer why in a way that I can easily understand or feel comfortable with. [/ QUOTE ] FHP.
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#6
07-22-2005, 08:17 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction t
[ QUOTE ]
This is nonsense. These are just a few of the million 'why' questions science has answered or provided insight: [/ QUOTE ] I think the OP's point is that there is always a deeper level of why that we aren't equipped to answer. I think he even explicitly mentions "Why gravity?" Science can explain a lot of why's, but there are going to be things at the roots that you can't really explain any deeper than "Well, that just seems to be the way it is."
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#7
07-22-2005, 08:42 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction t
[ QUOTE ]
I think the OP's point is that there is always a deeper level of why that we aren't equipped to answer. [/ QUOTE ] I disagree that this was OP's point: [ QUOTE ] Science is only a TOOL which is used to predict the behaviour of energy and matter. Science doesn't really explain anything. It's only a prediction tool used to help people do things. [/ QUOTE ] Seems to me that the deeper science delves into how things work, the more why questions it can answer...whatever field that's in. Can it answer every possible why question? No. But implied in OP's post (and posts like it) is the idea that science can never answer all the 'why' questions, and because of this, there's always room for faith, first cause arguments and answers that make us feel good. This I strongly disagree with.
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#8
07-22-2005, 08:52 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction t
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I disagree that this was OP's point: [ QUOTE ] Science is only a TOOL which is used to predict the behaviour of energy and matter. Science doesn't really explain anything. It's only a prediction tool used to help people do things. [/ QUOTE ] [/ QUOTE ] I prefer this quote from the original post: [ QUOTE ] Although I am an agnostic and study science, I do believe that science is only an ESTIMATION of HOW the world works. It does not say why the rules of physics are there and why physical constants are whatever value they are. [/ QUOTE ]
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#9
07-22-2005, 08:56 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction t
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In my field of materials science, everything is a theory that 'kinda' works. Nothing is an exact science. There is no such thing. [/ QUOTE ] Sorry for the second post, I missed something... I think the reason materials science is an approximation is because you're dealing with the limit of observable phenomena. Quantum issues come in when you get to the atomic level and make this inexact. In addition, things such as chemical bonding involve modelling highly complex situations mathematically, which requires idealised approximations for modelling and also numerical solutions for computers. It doesn't mean we don't/can't understand the underlying architecture very well. I didn't do much materials science in my physics/math degree but that seemed the case to me.
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#10
07-22-2005, 10:40 PM
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Re: Science doesn\'t really explain anything. It\'s only a prediction tool.
Science gives us metaphores in the form of scientific models and theories, which give us a Sense of understanding. However, as these metaphores become embedded in our conceptual framework we tend to forget they are metaphores and come to think of them as the reality. The truth of this statement can be partially measured by how much it pisses off the scientifically enamored.
PairTheBoard
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