Adam Bosworth brings a historical context to an issue that has repeatedly caught my attention over the past year; namely, the erosion of scientific principles in public debate. It seems in certain regions/camps of the country religion, dogma, and tradition are winning over logic and reason. One of the most notable examples is the attack on evolutionary theory.
It is hard not to draw parallels with Galileo and his problems with the catholic church. Even as the centuries passed and scientific evidence mounted it was not until 1992, over 350 years later, that the Vatican admitted being wrong. It is hard to believe that even as the scientific community moved from the Ptolemaic paradigm, to the Copernican, to the formalization of Newtonian physics, to the new paradigm of modern physics that the catholic church was frozen in time. I though the world was over this type of behavior. However, as Bosworth points out, maybe it is not.
I am thankful to Carl Sagan for his sobering voice of reason, “The Demon-Haunted World – Science as a Candle in the Dark”. We need more people like him.
-abel