Re: The End of Science

[dykstrad@varney.idbsu.edu (Dewey Dykstra, Jr.)]

Leigh Palmer wrote:

> > > Yes  -  ironically notable in claiming this was Albert A. Michelson!
> >
> > Just because a person can make some interesting, and even important,
> > measurements, it does not mean that this person is necessarily at the
> > cutting edge of thought about their significance.
>
> I think you miss the point. Michelson was so sure of the completeness
> of physics at the end of the nineteenth century that he died believing
> that his interferometer result was somehow in error. He didn't believe
> in relativity to the very end even though he had contributed its most
> convincing demonstration.

Jim Green wrote:
> > > Yes  -  ironically notable in claiming this was Albert A. Michelson!
>
> George, it would be interesting to have a citation for this.
>
> Was there any other notables who claimed this??
>
> > Just because a person can make some interesting, and even important,
> > measurements, it does not mean that this person is necessarily at the
> > cutting edge of thought about their significance.
>
> Dewey, your meaning is not clear here -- but mox nix -- isn't it reasonable
> that there might be some "interesting, and even important" questions which,
> upon careful consideration, will lead to a new "paradigm" -- just as Plank's
> work with the thermal emission (a pretty humdrum measurement at the time)
> lead to QM??
>
> All, are there other times (other than Aristotle's time) when the end of a
> science was assumed and the a new "paradigm" blossomed???
>
> At the turn of the century, when the likes of Mickelson thought physics was
> complete, were there any other "incidental" questions which turned out to be
> as important as the above?
>
> I suppose the aether (or lack thereof) might be considered -- but I don't
> think Einstein even knew about this experiment. (???)

I was indirectly raising the issue that at certain points in time, in spite
of what we like to say of ourselves, the fact that who says something can
be more important than what is said in science/physics, has practical and
significant implications for the lives and work of others, not always for
the better and impede progress in developing new views and paradigms.

So, Michelson's position as a conserva(i?)tor of a complete, precise, and
final science is part of what I am pointing at.  It is ironic in the sense
that he seems to have 'provided some of the ammunition' for the breakdown
of classical physics even though he never admitted or recognized it.  In
the context of Kuhn's notion of paradigms, it is not surprizing and thus
not so ironic.

It is also interesting to note that there is apparently a chance that the
results of the Michelson-Morley - Morley was apparently not so
insignificant a player in the work - (M-M) experiment were good support,
but only after the fact, for the theory of relativity on the part of
Einstein.

I was not really commenting so much on the significance of the M-M results
as on our tendency to hero worship and to kind of ignore, or overlook, the
effects at the time of the acts of the 'heros' and potentially heightening
the perception of the irony.  All of this points back to Kuhn's realization
that the strange appearing 'physics' of seemingly intelligent people in the
past actually does not appear so strange when looked at from the 'position'
of the ancients.  It also strongly suggests to me that we ought to think
and act carefully concerning the knowledge in which we deal with our
students; namely that the nature of what we 'know' about nature is not what
we sometimes make it out to be, especially to our students and especially
to those at introductory levels.

Dewey

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Dewey I. Dykstra, Jr.                   Phone: (208)385-3105
Professor of Physics                    Dept:  (208)385-3775
Department of Physics/SN318             Fax: (208)385-4330
Boise State University                  dykstrad@varney.idbsu.edu
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