There are indeed remarkable breakthroughs happening out there but, as the study showed, the relationship between hope and hype is often not as advertised.
Science
Neurosurgeon asks, Do we have free will or not?
Michael Egnor: Determinism at the quantum level is not true. Nature is not deterministic.
Researchers: Double down on theory like “natural selection” to solve replication crisis
At Nature Human Behaviour, we are told that the replication crisis is due to lack of rigid adherence to such a theory: Science, he explains, is about accumulating sets of observations that occur reliably—the Sun appears at different places in the sky depending on the season and time of day; finches have different shaped beaks […]
Are philosophical proofs for God better than science ones?
From a philosophy prof and chaplain: Let’s now look at an example of a scientific proof and contrast it with an argument from philosophy. An argument from natural science goes something like this (there are even some philosophical moves here, such as the move from effect to cause): “Everything that has a beginning has a […]
Science today: Apologies required for stating the obvious about numbers
A Japanese official has been forced to apologize for stating the obvious. Japan’s population is shrinking because people aren’t having enough children.
John Lennox vs Peter Atkins: Can science explain everything?
From Unbelievable?: Can we answer all life’s questions using the scientific method? Unbelievable? presenter Justin Brierley chairs a live dialogue between Oxford professors John LennoxJohn Lennox and Peter Atkins followed by audience Q&A. See also: Where Did The Laws Of Nature Come From?: Astrophysicist Hugh Ross vs Chemist Peter Atkins (2018) and Mathematician John Lennox […]
Why neither weak nor strong scientism can ground ethics
Paul Copan: Science has built-in limitations, but some moderns have placed a burden on science that it cannot—and was never meant to—bear. Theology, philosophy, and other sources of knowledge not only help supplement what science can show, but they can also enrich our study of science.
Scientific quest for morality ends in moral nihilism
One outcome of morality becoming an uninspiring talkshop is that massive breaches of ethics are more difficult to address except in terms of the commotion they create, as opposed to the truths they violate or the individuals they harm.
Philosopher of science Mike Keas: Artificial intelligence (AI) as an emergent religion
Many Singulatarians hold that their soon-to-be-realized technology will be indistinguishable by the rest of us from magic. Are they serious? Well, in 2005, Kurzweil said that the magical Harry Potter stories “are not unreasonable visions of our world as it will exist only a few decades from now.” when, due to AI, “the entire universe will […]
Is a philosophical defence of truth in science possible any more?
But in a world of intelligent people who believe they are Darwinian animals seeking survival, fine words will not, of course, be any use.
Neil deGrasse Tyson’s Cosmos and “the artistic license to lie”
One thing readers may not know is that, in a series that leaned heavily on the supposed conflict between religion and science, obvious and widely noted misrepresentations were excused in the service of a “greater truth”
Women’s March falling apart before the anti-Semitism gets to science?
They’re all busting up, quarrelling.
Some Indian scientists nix Newton and Einstein
The BBC is now reporting on a trend in India to identity politics in science: The 106th Indian Science Congress, which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, runs from 3-7 January. The head of a southern Indian university cited an old Hindu text as proof that stem cell research was discovered in India thousands […]
Heard at The Conversation: Enough with the “war on science” rhetoric!
A group of communications profs says it has the opposite of its intended effect: National Geographic’s March 2015 cover story provided a thoughtful discussion around the question of “Why Do Many Reasonable People Doubt Science?” The actual cover, however, simply said “The War on Science.” That article never actually uses the term “war on science” […]
Michael Shermer’s Case for Scientific Naturalism
Shermer’s piece, in which he is looking back on his years as a Scientific American columnist, feels like an elegy. The reality today is that, however people may universally seek freedom, China is dedicated to using the high tech born of science to stamp it out and enlisting many other natures to do the same. And science, as opposed to technology, is coming under serious assault from those who demand that nature itself do their social justice bidding.