4 ms·
“Many hypotheses proposed by scientists as well as by nonscientists turn out to be wrong. But science is a self-correcting enterprise. To be accepted, all new i
by avancemos 6y ago
“Many hypotheses proposed by scientists as well as by nonscientists turn out to be wrong. But science is a self-correcting enterprise. To be accepted, all new ideas must survive rigorous standards of evidence. The worst aspect of the Velikovsky affair is not that his hypotheses were wrong or in contradiction to firmly established facts, but that some who called themselves scientists attempted to suppress Velikovsky's work. Science is generated by and devoted to free inquiry: the idea that any hypothesis, no matter how strange, deserves to be considered on its merits. The suppression of uncomfortable ideas may be common in religion and politics, but it is not the path to knowledge; it has no place in the endeavor of science. We do not know in advance who will discover fundamental new insights.”
Carl Sagan, Cosmos
- cooper12 6y agoYour quote doesn't even make sense here since they're not suppressing his COVID ideas. Regardless, the scientific community considered it and responded: https://www.johnsnowmemo.com/ https://www.johnsnowmemo.com/
- nickff 6y agoWhile I'd agree that he took some controversial and unpopular positions, I don't think it's accurate to say: "the scientific community considered it and responded". The John Snow Memo was not a specific reply to Levitt's ideas, and I am not sure what the 'scientific community' is. That memo had a relatively small number of signers, so claiming that they represent any large and diverse community is a bit hyperbolic.
- avancemos 6y agoThey are suppressing the scientist behind the Covid ideas; ie the desired outcome is the same.
- dekhn 6y agoAre you confusing Battacharya and Leavitt?
- cooper12 6y agoLevitt was also a signatory: https://www.aier.org/article/aier-hosts-top-epidemiologists-authors-of-the-great-barrington-declaration/ https://www.aier.org/article/aier-hosts-top-epidemiologists-...
- sp332 6y agoOk but that doesn't mean he has to be invited to give a keynote at a conference.