Otherwise, how do you explain this, from Cosmos remake star Neil deGrasse Tyson?
On a recent episode of the Nerdist podcast, Neil deGrasse Tyson dismissed philosophy as a useless enterprise, advising students to avoid it. It’s not the first time he’s made such remarks, prompting biologist and philosopher Massimo Pigliucci to write a must-read response.
“[The] offense is particularly egregious, for two reasons,” writes Pigliucci at his blog, “first, because he is a highly visible science communicator; second, because I told him not to, several times.”
de Grasse Tyson made his comments after a Nerdist host mentioned that he majored in philosophy.
“That can really mess you up,” countered NdGT. To which the host responded, “I always felt like maybe there was a little too much question asking in philosophy [of science]?”
Here’s the rest of the relevant dialogue (annotations via Pigliucci): More.
Everyone has a philosophy, even people who think they don’t have one. If you don’t have a philosophy, why do you think there should be laws against drunk driving, and that someone should be paid to enforce them?
Hat tip: Stephanie West Allen at Brains on Purpose
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