Quote:
|
Originally Posted by xepherys
Also, as Hain noted, architecture/engineering of buildings isn't really the same. If a doctor or psychiatrist misdiagnose, they are often not negligent. If a company builds a skyscraper and it crashes out of the blue killing people, they are ALWAYS at fault. There aren't really unknown variables these days when constructing a building. You can do ground xray testing and verify the solidity of the ground, take core samples to verify it's material makeup and other such tests. You cannot do an MRI of the brain and look at symptoms and be assured of making a correct diagnosis. They aren't remotely the same.
|
To be sure, the human mind is considerably more complex that a skyscraper. However, considering the greater complexity of the mind versus the skyscraper or even considering a comparison of what we know about building a skyscraper versus what we know about the mind does not offer any heuristic value in the assignment of scientific merit.
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by xepherys
Definition of science as listed on Merriam-Webster:
1: the state of knowing : knowledge as distinguished from ignorance or misunderstanding
2 a: a department of systematized knowledge as an object of study <the science of theology> b: something (as a sport or technique) that may be studied or learned like systematized knowledge <have it down to a science>
3 a: knowledge or a system of knowledge covering general truths or the operation of general laws especially as obtained and tested through scientific method b: such knowledge or such a system of knowledge concerned with the physical world and its phenomena : natural science
Definition of theory as listed on the same:
1: the analysis of a set of facts in their relation to one another
2: abstract thought : speculation
3: the general or abstract principles of a body of fact, a science, or an art <music theory>
My conclusion from the above information is that science > theory. Speculation or analysis of one thing related to another is not the same as knowing something factually. That's why theory begets knowledge (science) and not the other way around.
|
Generally, I don't rely on merriam-webster if I'm trying to define terms in a specialized area of knowledge, but even with the colloquial definition offered you can see at least the "the general or abstract principles of a body of fact, a science, etc." In the definition of "science" above, theory is what creates that system of knowledge described in definition 3. Even that does not adequately cover the role of theory in science. I refer again to my description of theory and the scientific method above.