“Our science is a drop, our ignorance a sea.”
William James, Is Life Worth Living?
We are told to trust the science and to follow the science, and most people willingly obey any command that comes from those who claims to speak for science. But what is science and how are the truths of science arrived at? Can science answer all our questions and guide us in all realms of life? In this video, relying on volume 1 of Iain McGilchrist’s masterful book, The Matter With Things, we are going to explore these questions by identifying three common misconceptions about the scientific endeavor. This information will help us better evaluate when we should heed the call to follow the science and when we should not.
“Science is a guiding light: if we put it out, we are in the dark. And precisely because it is so precious, we should be careful to guard it from ever-present dangers – exaggerated claims, models that distort, and institutional pressures, which effectively destroy its power and lead us into error.”
Iain McGilchrist, The Matter With Things
