Interesting thoughts about "truth" and the tolerance for an unstable basis for your reality to be built upon. Coming from a scientific background, the best science historically have come from people who could accept the basis of reality they were taught was Truth, just might not be so.
I think the being too caught up in it is not so much science per se (I know nothing about philosophy so I will take your word on it :-) but about society, and perhaps the interplay of media, science (historically a discipline with very little wider-media savvy) and the general populace who DO tend to think our basis for reality IS stable.
No idea why they feel that way. Or why the interpretation of science generally has led to that belief. Maybe it is how science was taught for a long time - that of "We know everything".
But the best teachers in science I have emphasise the body of knowledge and understanding of the world is always growing and changing, being challenged and disproved or unable to be disproved.
They reveal it to be an exciting and dynamic area of study, not staid and boring and ... kinda finished off. Passe. Nothing else needed to be understood. (BORING!!!)
Your comment " even people who say "truth is relative" really usually just mean that other people's truths are relative but that theirs is still absolute. " Really cracked me up. So true!!!
What you say about "fear of the unknown" it is kinda the diametric opposite to science as I know it. I remember some dude saying to me "The trick is to learn to be comfortable in your lack of certainty" So it is really quite ironic that science has come to symbolise a rigid truth of reality.
Regarding writing the horror blog, I think that is why I was drawn to writing fantasy, myself. It is so obviously "fiction" that within it there is a LOT of scope to write truths, and even truths that conflict so long as you can convince the reader to swallow it. That isn't so hard in fantasy or sci-fi because part of the reader "contract" is. "I will suspend belief for this story".
I don't really know enough about horror to intelligently discuss the pros and cons of that style of storytelling, but I do know what you mean about "unethical" to present fiction as fact.
no subject
I think the being too caught up in it is not so much science per se (I know nothing about philosophy so I will take your word on it :-) but about society, and perhaps the interplay of media, science (historically a discipline with very little wider-media savvy) and the general populace who DO tend to think our basis for reality IS stable.
No idea why they feel that way. Or why the interpretation of science generally has led to that belief. Maybe it is how science was taught for a long time - that of "We know everything".
But the best teachers in science I have emphasise the body of knowledge and understanding of the world is always growing and changing, being challenged and disproved or unable to be disproved.
They reveal it to be an exciting and dynamic area of study, not staid and boring and ... kinda finished off. Passe. Nothing else needed to be understood. (BORING!!!)
Your comment " even people who say "truth is relative" really usually just mean that other people's truths are relative but that theirs is still absolute. "
Really cracked me up. So true!!!
What you say about "fear of the unknown" it is kinda the diametric opposite to science as I know it. I remember some dude saying to me "The trick is to learn to be comfortable in your lack of certainty"
So it is really quite ironic that science has come to symbolise a rigid truth of reality.
Regarding writing the horror blog, I think that is why I was drawn to writing fantasy, myself. It is so obviously "fiction" that within it there is a LOT of scope to write truths, and even truths that conflict so long as you can convince the reader to swallow it. That isn't so hard in fantasy or sci-fi because part of the reader "contract" is. "I will suspend belief for this story".
I don't really know enough about horror to intelligently discuss the pros and cons of that style of storytelling, but I do know what you mean about "unethical" to present fiction as fact.