When I was a young kid - over 30 years ago! - I read all the Encyclopedia Brown books (by Donald J. Sobol), and I always tried to solve the mysteries before Encyclopedia Brown did. What I didn't realize at the time was that these books were giving me an introduction to the scientific method - always listen closely, pay attention to ever little detail, and make deductions based on facts, not on guess work.
Ever since then, I've always been very punctilious (precise, demanding; careful, conscientious) when it comes to believing what people tell me - whether it is friends, acquaintances, strangers, or what I read in the newspapers.
Take the case of Global Warming, for example. For decades the public - around the world- have been told that man-made Global Warming (as opposed to natural global warming) will cause oceans to rise, polar bears to die, and so on. Within the last year, however, evidence has come to light which shows that the global warming data had been falsified, mis-represented, and even suppressed, in order to bring us where we are today - with companies having to spend millions of dollars to "green" themselves.
With what result? The new "spaghetti" light bulbs that are supposed to last longer than our current lightbulbs have dangerous chemicals in them, and have to be disposed of in a hazardous landfill! Electric bikes are propelled by batteries made out of lead, and since batteries only hold a charge for so long, dead batteries have to be thrown away... in hazard landfills because they too have dangerous chemicals in them!
The job as a scientist is to evaluate all the evidence, and come to a conclusion. A real conclusion, not one that fits a theory that you have formed in advance. As time goes on, you will find more evidence. If it fits your theory - it strengthens your theory. If it doesn't fit your theory, it must not be discarded, but rather put in a place of prominence until it can be explained.
No comments:
Post a Comment