Indeed, I was thinking of surgery as an exception in the back of my mind when I mentioned medicine. I wish we (society) could differentiate these fields better and be clearer about what we know and don't know. Why do we have to pretend all parts of medicine are as refined and effective as surgery? It's like some sort of society-wide tabo…
Indeed, I was thinking of surgery as an exception in the back of my mind when I mentioned medicine. I wish we (society) could differentiate these fields better and be clearer about what we know and don't know. Why do we have to pretend all parts of medicine are as refined and effective as surgery? It's like some sort of society-wide taboo to suggest otherwise. Usually one response is "but it's the best we got" (meaning: shut up, and follow their advice). But if you frame it in the "four elements make up the world is the best theory we got" sense, you realize that the statement might technically be true, but still following any advice from it is likely to be worse than nothing. It's so wrong and misguided that you're better off not knowing about it. And that's insane.
I suspect all the people who don't actually know what they're doing are highly motivated to associate themselves with those who do. If everyone thinks physics is great, dress & talk like a physicist and you'll get credibility by osmosis.
Indeed, I was thinking of surgery as an exception in the back of my mind when I mentioned medicine. I wish we (society) could differentiate these fields better and be clearer about what we know and don't know. Why do we have to pretend all parts of medicine are as refined and effective as surgery? It's like some sort of society-wide taboo to suggest otherwise. Usually one response is "but it's the best we got" (meaning: shut up, and follow their advice). But if you frame it in the "four elements make up the world is the best theory we got" sense, you realize that the statement might technically be true, but still following any advice from it is likely to be worse than nothing. It's so wrong and misguided that you're better off not knowing about it. And that's insane.
I suspect all the people who don't actually know what they're doing are highly motivated to associate themselves with those who do. If everyone thinks physics is great, dress & talk like a physicist and you'll get credibility by osmosis.