Re: Patriarchy: Re: What Matriarchy?
Stuart Yeates (stuart@cosc.canterbury.ac.nz)
5 Aug 1996 06:31:22 GMT
Stephen Barnard (steve@megafauna.com) wrote:
: Bryant wrote:
: >
: > Unlike faith-based systems of knowledge, scientific knowledge is filtered
: > through hypothesis-testing, statistical analysis subjecting rigor that
: > lends a degree of objectivity. Hence, atomic theory is not a
: > political statement, and cell theory represents no social bias.
I beg to differ. Faith-based systems of knowledge are filtered though
hypothesis-testing, but at a courser level. Scientific knowledge is
is tested `atomically,' one axiom at a time. In general faith-based
systems of knowledge are subjected to a single hypothesis-test - does
the society sink or swim ? A descent into chaos or violent over-throw
are likely to result in a major shift in systems, while falling birth
rates (or similar) invite extinction: both imply the failure of the
system to cope with situation which confronted it.
The problem is that as cultures, we're changing faster than we're
approaching equilibrium, and so we're unlikely to every be in a
state to test things like this.
loam
--
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