Science can explain everything?

Poll

Can science explain everything?

Do you think science can explain everything?

Please participate in the poll.

"The fundamental belief at the heart of science is that everything in the universe can be understood through scientific methods of investigation."

Let's discuss.

Reply 1

a_t

16

Well it can explain 99% of stuff, but that one last percent is key as I don't think science will ever explain how the universe was created. How can it?

Reply 2

Renal

17

It might. You never know.

I voted 'no' - there will always be questions.

Reply 3

o-e-s-j

2

i've put yes, because in theory everything that has occured can be explained, though may never actually be explained... if that make sense (?) :rolleyes:

Reply 4

NickNack

1

almost, but not things like conciousness, self awareness, the creation of existence from nothingness, or even the concept of nothingness. There is also not enough time in all of eternity for absolutely everything to be explained - every answer will lead to more questions being asked.

Reply 5

Psyk

16

I voted yes, but that's only a yes in theory. Everything that exists must have a scientific explanation. But our science will never be able to explain everything, even taken as a whole humanity probably doesn't have anywhere near the capacity to know everything.

Reply 6

Juwel

18

I would say eventually, but there will always be questions. The thought I'd like to register though is that science will go a damn sight closer to all the answers than religion will.

Reply 7

Sam Beckett

7

It can/will come very close to explaining 'everything'.

My argument for the religious types is that if God is real then why not Poseidon or any other Greek or pre-JC deities? They're all from storybooks and myths and legends yet somehow God is more believable? Either they are all real or perhaps its a common trait that humans since the beginning of time have attempted to explain the world around them, and used the supernatural/things that are not real to do so.

I grew out of believing in fairy tales but it seems a lot of people did not.

Science looks for natural causes to natural phenomena mostly. It is in many cases the truth. I refuse to believe in any god. Therefore, aside from that non-issue, science is doing a great job.

Reply 8

Mad Vlad

19

a_t

Well it can explain 99% of stuff, but that one last percent is key as I don't think science will ever explain how the universe was created. How can it?

I agree. It begrudges me to say it, but I'm going to have to vote "No". :frown:

Reply 9

Revenged

15

celeritas

Do you think science can explain everything?

Please participate in the poll.

"The fundamental belief at the heart of science is that everything in the universe can be understood through scientific methods of investigation."

Let's discuss.

The more you know, the less you understand...

Reply 10

daytona0

Renal

there will always be questions.

a question isn't a question without an answer :wink:

Reply 11

Juwel

18

The price of knowledge is faith.

[surferdude] Whoa that's totally deep man [/surferdude]

Reply 12

dan

11

This is like some TOK lesson lol :p:

It depends what you would consider science.. but I'd more than likely say no because you can never be 100% sure that science explains/will ever explain eveything :wink:

Reply 13

FreedomtoFascism

Science can never explain everything, simply because it has the motivation to conquer what it is trying to explain. If you didn't call it science, and instead refer to it as "the pursuit of truth", then maybe you mite be able to explain most things, but only if you think from a point of freedom.

If you believe that humans are simply genetic accidents, science can only go so far into proving this before it runs into a dead end. As my lecturer said the other day, "the mechanisms of evolution are pure speculation", yet we take Darwins theory to be "correct".

When it comes down to it, the answers are in plain view. Instead of pitting religion against science, god vs no god, combining the two will resolve the problem and provide answers.

IMO there is clear evidence for intelligent design, and some cyclical nature to every level of "creation" (atom to human to galaxy, to the whole).

Heres one for you..

Which came first, the single celled organism, or DNA?..

How could unintelligent life create its own code, without becoming a paradox? (if that made sense).

The truth should be called the truth, not science, and for that reason, science can never be the total truth, because it is naming itself after truth, which implies its trying to conquer it.

Reply 14

fiction

i say no, cause science cant explain why, we are here and have differnt personalitys.

Reply 15

LostRiot

14

Give science time and it will explain everything.

Reply 16

Pulse

10

Juwel

I would say eventually, but there will always be questions. The thought I'd like to register though is that science will go a damn sight closer to all the answers than religion will.

I would like to second that thought

Reply 17

toipot2

1

I think so, all we need is a handful of tools to explain how the universe works on a fundamental level and we can work up from there fairly easily. (well, we may never have the computing capacity to effectively simulate more complex phenomena from fundamental principles, but this doesnt mean its impossible) Of course, as FreedomtoFascsim states, we could never actually "prove" the theories to be true, but if the theories describe observation with accuracy, we can be happy with the result.

When it comes down to it, the answers are in plain view. Instead of pitting religion against science, god vs no god, combining the two will resolve the problem and provide answers.

I dont know how you can say that in certainty at all. From my perspective introducing something as ethereal and intangible as a god into science would hinder progress, science needs numbers, not gods.

Reply 18

Chumbaniya

17

Explaining "everything" is a logical impossibility. It might be possible to create a set of models which accurately represent all observable physical phenomena, and it is this goal which science aims for, but in matters of mental states scientific method breaks down. There's also the fact that every empirical fact (and science is built entirely on them) can be doubted, and so you can never say with certainty whether your explanation is correct. Finally, there's the issue that, given only a finite amount of data is ever obtainable, there will be a potentially infinite number of models which accurately explain any set of observations.

Reply 19

Kew

16

FreedomtoFascism

If you believe that humans are simply genetic accidents, science can only go so far into proving this before it runs into a dead end. As my lecturer said the other day, "the mechanisms of evolution are pure speculation", yet we take Darwins theory to be "correct".

IMO there is clear evidence for intelligent design, and some cyclical nature to every level of "creation" (atom to human to galaxy, to the whole).

Heres one for you..

Which came first, the single celled organism, or DNA?..

How could unintelligent life create its own code, without becoming a paradox? (if that made sense).

Look into biogenesis - that explains how the first life emerged. No-one's suggesting that DNA magically popped into existence fully formed.

All the biological evidence we have suggests that evolution is true, and all the geological and cosmological evidence we have shows that the Earth is millions of years old and that the universe is billions of years older than that. Bearing in mind the very nature of scientific methodology (ie. empiricism and conclusions drawn from observable evidence), evolution and natural selection wouldn't have any credibility as a solid biological theory if the evidence for it wasn't there.

Science can explain everything?

Can science explain everything?

Related discussions

Latest

Trending

Trending

Articles for you