Bob,
Your essay by Dr. Joe Schwartz on the nature of science arrived immediately
after a note from a librarian at the University of Baltimore Law Library
which reported the following medical incident:
------- Forwarded message follows -------
A wild-eyed man dressed in a Napoleonic costume and hiding his
right hand inside his coat entered the psychiatrist's office and nervously
exclaimed, "Doctor, I need your help right away."
"I can see that," retorted the doctor. "Lie down on that couch and
tell me your problem."
"I don't have any problem," the man snapped. "In fact, as Emperor
of France I have everything I could possibly want: money, women,
power -- everything! But I'm afraid my wife, Josephine, is in deep mental
trouble."
"I see," said the psychiatrist, humoring his distraught patient. "And
what seems to be her main problem?"
"For some strange reason," answered the unhappy man, "she
thinks she's 'Mrs. Schwartz.'"
------- End of forwarded message -------
++++++ I seriously doubt that the two apparently Schwartz males are really
one and the same, but one can speculate.
Science is supposed to be knowledge obtained by careful observation and
study systemized into an orderly body of learning or discipline.
Unfortunately when error, whether intentional or accidental, is admitted
into the literature by a recognized authority, it can very difficult to
purge the system of that misinformation as more and more researchers
reinforce the error by making that error a part of their research premise.
Science is compiled by people, and people are fallible.
Will Johnnston
A.P.D.A. DelMarVA Chapter Pres.
4049 Oakland School Road
Salisbury MD 21804 USA 410-543-0110 .
----------
From: Robert A. Fink, M. D. <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Science
Date: Friday, March 31, 2000 5:38 PM
Eighteen thoughts on the nature of science
By Joe Schwartz, PhD
The following ideas can help you evaluate information you encounter
about science and health. Science is a truth-seeking process. It is not a
collection of unassailable "truths." It is, however, a self-correcting
discipline.
Such corrections may take a long time - the medical practice of
bloodletting went on for centuries before its futility was realised - but
as scientific knowledge accumulates, the chance of making substantial
errors decreases. Certainty is elusive in science, and it is often hard to
give categorical "Yes" or "No" answers to scientific questions.
**********************************************
Robert A. Fink, M. D., F.A.C.S., P. C.
2500 Milvia Street Suite 222
Berkeley, California 94704-2636
Telephone: 510-849-2555 FAX: 510-849-2557
WWW: http://www.dovecom.com/rafink/
mailto:[log in to unmask]
"Ex Tristitia Virtus"
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