10 DEC 2013 by ideonexus
Appreciate the Beauty of Wrong Ideas
Pinker tiresomely rehearses the familiar triumphalism of science over religion: “the findings of science entail that the belief systems of all the world’s traditional religions and cultures ... are factually mistaken.” So they are, there on the page; but most of the belief systems of all the world’s traditional religions and cultures have evolved in their factual understandings by means of intellectually responsible exegesis that takes the progress of science into account; and most of...
1 
1 Argument that just because an idea is overcome by events, does not mean we cannot appreciate it for its elegance and beauty.
04 JAN 2013 by ideonexus
Mark Lynas Admits His Error Concerning GMOs
I want to start with some apologies. For the record, here and upfront, I apologise for having spent several years ripping up GM crops. I am also sorry that I helped to start the anti-GM movement back in the mid 1990s, and that I thereby assisted in demonising an important technological option which can be used to benefit the environment.
As an environmentalist, and someone who believes that everyone in this world has a right to a healthy and nutritious diet of their choosing, I could not hav... 1 
notes
notesFormer anti-GMO crusader admits that with a scientific understanding of GMOs, he came to understand how they can benefit the environment.
08 JUN 2012 by ideonexus
The Myriad Reasons for Untruths
Untruth naturally afflicts historical information. There are various reasons that make this unavoidable. One of them is partisanship for opinions and schools... Another reason making untruth unavoidable in historical information is reliance upon transmitters... Another reason is unawareness of the purpose of an event ... Another reason is unfounded assumption as to the truth of a thing. ... Another reason is ignorance of how conditions conform with reality... Another reason is the fact that p... 1 notes
notesThe main reason for historical errors are ignorance.
04 JAN 2012 by ideonexus
Give Up Untenable Positions
But at the same time, there must never be the least hesitation in giving up a position the moment it is shown to be untenable. It is not going too far to say that the greatness of a scientific investigator does not rest on the fact of his having never made a mistake, but rather on his readiness to admit that he has done so, whenever the contrary evidence is cogent enough. 1 notes
notesThe greatness of the scientific investigator is in the ability to admit mistakes.
31 AUG 2011 by ideonexus
An Early Incorrect Assumption About Plate Tectonics
Though the theories of plate tectonics now provide us with a modus operandi, they still seem to me to be a periodic phenomenon. Nothing is world-wide, but everything is episodic. In other words, the history of anyone part of the earth, like the life of a soldier, consists of long periods of boredom and short periods of terror. That they occur dramatically and infrequently; as opposed to our modern understanding of them being gradual and perpetual.
01 JUL 2011 by ideonexus
Two Examples of Leaping to Conclusions without the Facts
Let me give you two examples of leaping to conclusions without
the full facts. Back in the 1890’s, a certain California newspaper
was apprehensive about the harmful effects the railroads would
have on the environment. If the trains crossed the Mojave to get
to the Pacific, this newspaper editorialized, “the huge iron rails
will reverse the Earth’s magnetic field with catastrophic effects.”
Now that’s real science! One hundred forty years ago, the Royal
Society in England warned agai... 1 notes
notesPeople, even scientists, thought the train would come apart and asphyxiate its passengers at speeds of 35 MPH, and the rocket was disregarded by the military until the Germans adopted it.
15 JUN 2011 by ideonexus
French Encyclopedists Disparage Wildlife in the New World
We formerly remarked, as a singular phaenomenon, that the animals in the southern provinces of the New Continent, are small in proportion to those in the warm regions of the Old. There is no comparison between the size of the elephant, the rhinoceros, the hippopotamus, the camelopard, the camel, the lion, the tiger, &c. and the tapir, the cabiai, the ant-eater, the lama, the puma, the jaguar, &c. which are the largest quadrupeds of the New World: The former are four, six, eight, and...Buffon states that mammals of North America are smaller and its Native Americans less developed than European life, owing to the continent's lack of resources and cold climate. Reptiles and insects thrive, however.
