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Great point! Just one quick question: how do you decide what is “garbage”? Would it be heliocentric models of the solar system? What about hand washing as a wa

Great point! Just one quick question: how do you decide what is “garbage”? Would it be heliocentric models of the solar system? What about hand washing as a way to prevent disease? Perhaps a bit more recently the sars-cov-2 lab leak theory?

epgui 5y ago
Not everything is black and white. Some things are, and that is what I'm talking about. It's not for me to decide which politician has the best or most honest character (though I'll give you my opinion if asked). But if you do a math exam wrong, you're going to score garbage grades. There are some things in life which for all practical purposes are clear cut. I'll take your examples. 1. Heliocentric model: Garbage. 2. Hand washing: Not garbage. 3. SARS-CoV-2 lab leak theory: Not garbage. Obviously the distinction between garbage and not-garbage is not just about the topic, it's about the actual information. For example, it's important to talk about the heliocentric model because it gives us perspective on the current state of human knowledge and it humbles us in the face of uncertainty é what we don't (yet) know. There's great pedagogical or even archival value in this. We could write a book about this, but I hope one example makes the point. If you ask me, and I'm a biochemist, about the third, I will say that I believe it to be less likely than natural occurrence, and I'd worry about how productive the question was. But it doesn't mean it's pollution. I can have an opinion about something, even a strong one, and still defend your right to express contrary or different ideas. I know this skill seems to be in short supply these years, but it's not that difficult really.
- deepnotderp 5y ago
  And why exactly is the heliocentric model of the solar system garbage compared to the geocentric model?
  - epgui 5y ago
    Because the overwhelming scientific consensus is that the Sun is not in the "centre" (whatever that means) of the universe. That idea, as originally conceived, is just incorrect.
    - deepnotderp 5y ago
      Except I said the solar system and the sun is quite close to the barycenter of the solar system

epgui 5y ago

Not everything is black and white. Some things are, and that is what I'm talking about. It's not for me to decide which politician has the best or most honest character (though I'll give you my opinion if asked). But if you do a math exam wrong, you're going to score garbage grades. There are some things in life which for all practical purposes are clear cut. I'll take your examples. 1. Heliocentric model: Garbage. 2. Hand washing: Not garbage. 3. SARS-CoV-2 lab leak theory: Not garbage. Obviously the distinction between garbage and not-garbage is not just about the topic, it's about the actual information. For example, it's important to talk about the heliocentric model because it gives us perspective on the current state of human knowledge and it humbles us in the face of uncertainty é what we don't (yet) know. There's great pedagogical or even archival value in this. We could write a book about this, but I hope one example makes the point. If you ask me, and I'm a biochemist, about the third, I will say that I believe it to be less likely than natural occurrence, and I'd worry about how productive the question was. But it doesn't mean it's pollution. I can have an opinion about something, even a strong one, and still defend your right to express contrary or different ideas. I know this skill seems to be in short supply these years, but it's not that difficult really.

deepnotderp 5y ago
And why exactly is the heliocentric model of the solar system garbage compared to the geocentric model?
- epgui 5y ago
  Because the overwhelming scientific consensus is that the Sun is not in the "centre" (whatever that means) of the universe. That idea, as originally conceived, is just incorrect.
  - deepnotderp 5y ago
    Except I said the solar system and the sun is quite close to the barycenter of the solar system