Magical Realist
Valued Senior Member
"Scientism is the view that science and the scientific method are the best or only way to render truth about the world and reality.
While the term was defined originally to mean "methods and attitudes typical of or attributed to natural scientists", some scholars, as well as political and religious leaders, have also adopted it as a pejorative term with the meaning "an exaggerated trust in the efficacy of the methods of natural science applied to all areas of investigation (as in philosophy, the social sciences, and the humanities)".--- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientism
The round peg of scientism fits snugly in the round hole left by religion. All the former needs and questions are met. The reliance on authority figures for the truth. The explaining of the universe in terms of a lawful and absolute order. The utopian anticipation of a future where all problems of humanity are solved. The grandiose smugness of knowing THE truth behind everything. The desire to evangelize others about a way of life and infallible thinking (the scientific method) that saves them from deception and error. And the demonization of dissenters who will not accept its dogmatic tenets. Scientism simply stands in as a surrogate gospel or "good news" that is not to be questioned and must be accepted by everyone in order to be "saved".
“The public has a distorted view of science because children are taught in school that science is a collection of firmly established truths. In fact, science is not a collection of truths. It is a continuing exploration of mysteries.”
― Freeman John Dyson
“Science, at its core, is simply a method of practical logic that tests hypotheses against experience. Scientism, by contrast, is the worldview and value system that insists that the questions the scientific method can answer are the most important questions human beings can ask, and that the picture of the world yielded by science is a better approximation to reality than any other.”
― John Michael Greer
While the term was defined originally to mean "methods and attitudes typical of or attributed to natural scientists", some scholars, as well as political and religious leaders, have also adopted it as a pejorative term with the meaning "an exaggerated trust in the efficacy of the methods of natural science applied to all areas of investigation (as in philosophy, the social sciences, and the humanities)".--- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientism
The round peg of scientism fits snugly in the round hole left by religion. All the former needs and questions are met. The reliance on authority figures for the truth. The explaining of the universe in terms of a lawful and absolute order. The utopian anticipation of a future where all problems of humanity are solved. The grandiose smugness of knowing THE truth behind everything. The desire to evangelize others about a way of life and infallible thinking (the scientific method) that saves them from deception and error. And the demonization of dissenters who will not accept its dogmatic tenets. Scientism simply stands in as a surrogate gospel or "good news" that is not to be questioned and must be accepted by everyone in order to be "saved".
“The public has a distorted view of science because children are taught in school that science is a collection of firmly established truths. In fact, science is not a collection of truths. It is a continuing exploration of mysteries.”
― Freeman John Dyson
“Science, at its core, is simply a method of practical logic that tests hypotheses against experience. Scientism, by contrast, is the worldview and value system that insists that the questions the scientific method can answer are the most important questions human beings can ask, and that the picture of the world yielded by science is a better approximation to reality than any other.”
― John Michael Greer
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