Throughout elementary and middle school
That does not strike me as an adequate basis for deciding what science is or is not.
you have to combine the data from many experiments into a subjective estimate
So, are you saying that the outcome of science is a set of subjective estimates that most people agree with?
That does not strike me as an adequate basis for deciding what science is or is not.
Words mean different things to different people... as I said, I'm not interested in arguing over the "proper" definition of this word. I'm interested in clarifying the process through which experiments lead to new knowledge about the world. You can call this process "not science" and I won't argue - it's not an interesting argument to me.
So, are you saying that the outcome of science is a set of subjective estimates that most people agree with?
I'm not sure... what do you mean by "the outcome of science?"
Cross-posted from my blog here.
One of the greatest successes of mankind over the last few centuries has been the enormous amount of wealth that has been created. Once upon a time virtually everyone lived in grinding poverty; now, thanks to the forces of science, capitalism and total factor productivity, we produce enough to support a much larger population at a much higher standard of living.
EAs being a highly intellectual lot, our preferred form of ritual celebration is charts. The ordained chart for celebrating this triumph of our people is the Declining Share of People Living in Extreme Poverty Chart.
(Source)
However, as a heretic, I think this chart is a mistake. What is so great about reducing the share? We could achieve that by killing all the poor people, but that would not be a good thing! Life is good, and poverty is not death; it is simply better for it to be rich.
As such, I think this is a much better chart. Here we show the world population. Those in extreme poverty are in purple – not red, for their existence is not bad. Those who the wheels of progress have lifted into wealth unbeknownst to our ancestors, on the other hand, are depicted in blue, rising triumphantly.
Long may their rise continue.