Cargo Cult Science – Feynman's 1974 Caltech commencement address

Re:Cargo Cult Science – Feynman's 1974 Caltech commencement ... by orgels_revenge on Monday March 06, 2023 @10:38AM (#35042285)

Well said. For me, a person who admittedly has some pretty far-out beliefs/theories, it’s because there is generally no penalty for having these beliefs. Sure, at work where things count, I make sure my theories adhere to reality. But when I’m out chilling in nature? My goal then is to have fun, and entertaining crazy ideas is my idea of a good time. People who have to be correct all the time are kind of missing out and expending a lot of useless energy.

Plus, the universe is so wild that even modern science probably doesn’t cut as deep as we think it does.

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Re:Cargo Cult Science – Feynman's 1974 Caltech commencement ... by anonymous_sorry on Monday March 06, 2023 @11:55AM (#35043307)

But surely there's a difference between entertaining crazy ideas, which can be fun and an exercise in creativity, and elevating them to beliefs?

I wonder if it stems from discomfort at the admitting, even to ourselves, that there are things we don't know.

For me, it's not so much about being correct all the time, as just avoiding being wrong.

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Re:Cargo Cult Science – Feynman's 1974 Caltech commencement ... by themodelplumber on Monday March 06, 2023 @11:56AM (#35043329)

I noticed that generally, people who describe themselves like you don't use the "believe/not believe" phrasing, at least not with so much intensity.

At the same time, a lot of cargo cultists are looking to relax and turn on the "just believe in something whole-hog" autopilot.

They don't even like exploring details that are interesting, because it muddies the waters around the big Belief question.

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