Confusion of sign and object is original sin coeval with the word.
Willard Van Orman QuineRead
Science is not a substitute for common sense, but an extension of it.
Interpretation
Science enhances our understanding but should complement rather than replace common sense.
This quote by Willard Van Orman Quine suggests that while science is an essential tool for exploring and understanding the world, it cannot replace the innate understanding and practical judgment that come from common sense. It emphasizes the importance of integrating scientific knowledge with practical wisdom in decision-making and daily life.
In practice
During a lecture on critical thinking, a teacher could use this quote to emphasize the importance of relying on both scientific evidence and common sense.
Confusion of sign and object is original sin coeval with the word.
It is one of the consolations of philosophy that the benefit of showing how to dispense with a concept does not hinge on dispensing with it.
For me the problem of induction is a problem about the world: a problem of how we, as we are now (by our present scientific lights), in a world we never made, should stand better than random, or coin-tossing chances changes of coming out right when we predict by inductions. . . .
Language is conceived in sin and science is its redemption.
Meaning is what essence becomes when it is divorced from the object of reference and wedded to the word.
Creatures inveterately wrong in their inductions have a pathetic but praise-worthy tendency to die before reproducing their kind.
I was always interested in figuring things out. I'd do experiments, like combining things I found around the house to see what would happen if I put them together.
I simply go with what works. And what works is the healthy skepticism embodied in the scientific method. Believe me, if the Bible had ever been shown to be a rich source of scientific answers and enlightenment, we would be mining it daily for cosmic discovery.
There could be more to the universe than the three dimensions we are familiar with. They are hidden from us in some way, perhaps because they're tiny or warped. But even if they're invisible, they could affect what we actually observe in the universe.
The greatest gain from space travel consists in the extension of our knowledge. In a hundred years this newly won knowledge will pay huge and unexpected dividends.
Science cannot solve the ultimate mystery of nature. And that is because, in the last analysis, we ourselves are a part of the mystery that we are trying to solve.
The danger is that the compromises and special interests inherent in Kyoto-style targets and cap-and-trade will be accepted because of bureaucratic momentum.
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