According to Hilary Lawson, science is a fiction that cannot achieve because he believes there is going to come a time in future when new theories will replace the old ones. The old assumptions will be regarded as superstitious myths by the future generation. She concludes that the things we contemplate to be true might be completely false, and for this reason, we can never be sure about what we know (Lawson). Since Science is based on the objects we see and feel in the surrounding and relate them to current theories, Lawson argues that science might seem indisputable, but in the real sense, it could be wrong. Arguably, Lawson believes that a scientist can present an idea, data, thesis, or evidence, that is practical, and people adopt it in their everyday life, and it becomes part of them until they cannot question it anymore (Sayer 14). But it does not mean that the scientific finding was right.
New Insights about Pursuit of Scientific Knowledge that I have gained
Reading through Hilary Lawson’s The Fallacy of Scientific Objectivity, I have come to realize that not everything based on science is correct. I have understood that previous scientists, like historians, made information available to the world but there is still a lot to be proved (Lawson). Most scientific theories that we base our modern research and debates on are as a result of some views that some people or a group of people imposed on the world. Even though some of these theories are facts, we should not dwell too much on them when making clear decisions that have an impact on present and future life. This is because there are possibilities that some scientists might have taken a path they believe is right forgetting other tracks that the modern society has ignored yet they might be the paths of truth (Sayer 31). Since we cannot do most scientific things without theoretical concepts, the best way is to try as much as possible to prove what you have borrowed from the theory.
Apparently, life changes with time. We had religion, and people believed in faith, which was replaced by science and scientific theories (Lawson). Today people are coming up with scientific fictions in an attempt to explain and prove that those theories made in the past were true. On the contrary, Lawson wants modern scientists to come up with original hypothesis that they can have scientific proofs for them. As opposed to using of science to tell us what to do and predict future occurrences, people should use science to prove things that are happening today such as natural calamities and climate change. The bottom-line is that we should not believe in everything that scientific institutions support, however, people should endeavor to support their hypothesis with facts rather than previous studies and theories (Sayer 22). According to Lawson, we can only protect the relevance of science if we feed it with scientific facts that can be proven (Lawson).
Impact of The Fallacy of Scientific Objectivity on my Preconceptions
Most of my preconceptions about science have been confirmed by Lawson. In my third grade when I started learning about scientific facts, I used to ask myself how scientists like Galileo never offered evidence when he stated that the world turned around on its axis yet many people believed him. Today we have all accept that the earth rotates on its axis and that is why we have daytime and nighttime (Lawson). I agree with Lawson when she says that we should only ascertain those phenomena that we have witnessed, as opposed to accepting them to be true due to a specific conviction. I believe that a scientist should have evidence to support his or her hypothesis to make it right. For example, I think that there is a particular force that pulls objects back to the center of the earth as was suggested by Isaac Newton (Sayer 49). When you throw something in the air, it comes down meaning there is a force that opposes the thrust force by pulling the object down.
However, I have never believed that science might lose credibility someday in future as it happened to religion. With the advancement of technology, science is making significant strides with people coming up with new scientific innovations that are causing the field of science grow. In fact, technology is making science to gain more relevance with time. Information technology has made it easier for people to share knowledge and conduct research which is giving birth to more sophisticated scientific projects (Sayer 67). Some of these projects can be proved scientifically and therefore; they cannot lose relevance in future.
- Lawson, Hilary. The Fallacy of Scientific Objectivity. 2015. Retrieved from https://docslide.com.br/documents/the-fallacy-of-scientific-objectivity-hilary-lawson.html
- Sayer, Andrew. Why things matter to people: Social science, values and ethical life. Cambridge University Press, 2011.
