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I am going to be provocative and say that there are scientists that actively try to expand into the other realm. After all philosophy and religion are products

I am going to be provocative and say that there are scientists that actively try to expand into the other realm. After all philosophy and religion are products of the human brain activity, which is composed of cells, so why can't these functions be approached in a scientific way? To say that we will have to stop inquiring about it would be lazy

lutusp 14y ago
> philosophy and religion are products of the human brain activity, which is composed of cells, so why can't these functions be approached in a scientific way? That's easy to answer -- because they aren't subject to potential falsification, by way of comparison with reality. Scientific ideas, to merit the name, must be testable against reality, and if reality disagrees, the ideas must be discarded. Philosophy and religion don't have this property -- they (a) don't need to pass a reality test, and (b) in most cases they cannot pass a reality test. This is by design, not by accident -- if religion and philosophy had to meet this standard, their purpose (freedom to speculate about untestable things) would be undermined. > there are scientists that actively try to expand into the other realm. Perhaps, but not as scientists, only as individuals not doing science. And because science rejects authority, a scientist who philosophizes is just another philosopher, no better or worse than any other.
- zerostar07 14y ago
  We might, by studying the human brain, figure out that as it functions it starts philosophizing and asking "why", even generating religious ideas. To me that would be enough to demystify and explain them away in a scientific (and falsifiable) way. In this sense, philosophy, religion, and science itself is subject to empirical examination. That's also what i meant by "expanding to the other realm", i mean using brain research to explain the biological basis behind major philosophical concepts such as free will [1]. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroscience_of_free_will http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroscience_of_free_will
snowwrestler 14y ago
We can certainly examine the physical factors that lead to the human brain expressing and experiencing awe, morality, religious fervor, etc. But, that doesn't mean we should deny the power of those feelings in our human experience. After all they are the product of billions of years of evolution, and isn't that awe-inspiring in its own way?

lutusp 14y ago

> philosophy and religion are products of the human brain activity, which is composed of cells, so why can't these functions be approached in a scientific way? That's easy to answer -- because they aren't subject to potential falsification, by way of comparison with reality. Scientific ideas, to merit the name, must be testable against reality, and if reality disagrees, the ideas must be discarded. Philosophy and religion don't have this property -- they (a) don't need to pass a reality test, and (b) in most cases they cannot pass a reality test. This is by design, not by accident -- if religion and philosophy had to meet this standard, their purpose (freedom to speculate about untestable things) would be undermined. > there are scientists that actively try to expand into the other realm. Perhaps, but not as scientists, only as individuals not doing science. And because science rejects authority, a scientist who philosophizes is just another philosopher, no better or worse than any other.

zerostar07 14y ago
We might, by studying the human brain, figure out that as it functions it starts philosophizing and asking "why", even generating religious ideas. To me that would be enough to demystify and explain them away in a scientific (and falsifiable) way. In this sense, philosophy, religion, and science itself is subject to empirical examination. That's also what i meant by "expanding to the other realm", i mean using brain research to explain the biological basis behind major philosophical concepts such as free will [1]. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroscience_of_free_will http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroscience_of_free_will

snowwrestler 14y ago

We can certainly examine the physical factors that lead to the human brain expressing and experiencing awe, morality, religious fervor, etc. But, that doesn't mean we should deny the power of those feelings in our human experience. After all they are the product of billions of years of evolution, and isn't that awe-inspiring in its own way?