Social Issues in Science

Following up on the previous posts on science, we can identify at least three major issues with respect to science that science, as an epistemology, cannot answer for us. These are questions about science that cannot be answered by science and consequently can be thought of as limitations of science.

First of all, when can we treat knowledge that was acquired through scientific inquiry as truth? There are abundant examples of scientists changing their mind about things and this is a good thing. It would be terrible if scientists stuck steadfastly to old ideas despite new evidence or new thinking. However, at what point along the discovery process do we accept scientific truth as true enough for now? When do we teach it as truth and when do we use it in making decisions?

Second, if we think a bit of knowledge is true or true enough, what does it mean and what are the implications? For example, penicillin was discovered to be an effective antibiotic. That relationship between penicillin and microbes was discovered and validated scientifically. But what does that mean? Does it mean you can give people penicillin to cure bacterial illnesses? It would seem so. But it isn't quite that clear. Some people have allergies to penicillin. Using penicillin creates bacteria that are resistant to it. Saving lives means additional population and a greater strain on resources. What do we do about those things? Science is not quite as well equipped to give us answers there.

Third, what should we do about the knowledge we acquire scientifically. Let's say that a particular ethnic group is discovered to excel at a particular kind of work or prone to a particular kind of anti-social behavior. Should than information be used in public policy decisions? Science is prudently silent on that issue.

The problem here is that we take what science is good at - discovering reliable knowledge, over time, about the natural world - and extrapolate that to things science is not good at - implications, meaning, and possibilities.

This is a theme that Crichton returns to time and time again. We have almost a blind faith in science to answer all of our questions (beyond knowledge about the natural world) and this blind faith is seriously misplaced.