Uddhava108
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January 23rd, 2023 |
by Harmonist staff
By Superb Owl, originally published on SubStack.
In his book Where is Science Going?, Max Planck describes the tension between experimental and theoretical work in physics:
…there are two theorems that form together the cardinal hinge on which the whole structure of physical science turns. These theorems are: (1) There is a real outer world which exists independently of our act of knowing, and, (2) The real outer world is not directly knowable. To a certain degree these two statements are mutually contradictory. And this fact discloses the presence of an irrational or mystic element which adheres to physical science as to every other branch of human knowledge. [Emphasis mine.]
In Planck’s view, experimental evidence is primary, and yet each measurement is a product of a particular time, place, scientist, measuring device, etc. Any particular experiment can be discarded as fallible.
Conversely, all our theories are post-hoc constructions, derived from the primary knowledge of experiment. But they are largely unassailable, precisely because they’re supported by a wide variety of measurements.
The scientific theories we infer are generated by a deeper objective order, but we can never see that order directly. In order to see the existence of an objective reality, we need to step beyond the epistemic limits of Positivism. We need to make a leap of faith.
