tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post112805506392073444..comments2023-10-31T03:18:26.963-07:00Comments on Great Guys Weblog: Evolutionary EtherBrethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15063508651955739056noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post-1128184884837146742005-10-01T09:41:00.000-07:002005-10-01T09:41:00.000-07:00johnt,Regarding "following the herd." I think tha...johnt,<BR/><BR/>Regarding "following the herd." I think that's partially it, but I think it's also that each incremental addition to the theories surrounding the luminiferous ether made sense. Prior to Maxwell's discovery, all waves required a medium, thus it was a small and sensible step to assume that electromagnetic waves would too. Everything else followed incrementally. In my younger days, before I became so skeptical, I would have fallen for it, not necessarily because of following the herd, but because it would've kinda made sense. That's why now, even when I "think freely" I don't necessarily assign a high probability to the conclusions I reach.<BR/><BR/>Regarding "worry about the new priesthood." The Left seems to buy their statements unquestioningly (they are, of course, part of the Left). I think that's hurting the Left badly, which in turn hurts the political discourse in the United States, which in turn hurts the country. I think that's worth worrying about.Brethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15063508651955739056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post-1128173529559333432005-10-01T06:32:00.000-07:002005-10-01T06:32:00.000-07:00Bret, it's called following the herd. One of the ...Bret, it's called following the herd. One of the reasons you have scientific breakthroughs is because everybody went along with everybody else. The claptrap about brave explorers for the truth ignores the arguments and resistance from other brave explorers. Much of the opposition to Gallileo came not from the Church,where he did have some supporters, but from the then scientific community,and this after Copernicus. Whether it's Kuhn,s paradigm shifts'Peirce's fallibilsm, or Poppers conjectures and refutations doesn't matter as much as some think. It may have been Feyerabend who said there is no single or valid overarching process. The man did write "Against Method" which I guess would place him,that book being somewhere in that chaotic mess I call a library. BTW,as you know we now have dark matter,son of Ether, to fill in for some trouble spots relating to mass and gravity. Don't know if my response is precisely connecting to your post but the bottom line is; you have a free mind,think freely. Don't worry about the new priesthood,they're to busy following the bandwagon and collecting their grants.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com