True or False that scientists?

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Is it true of false that birds have wings?

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False. We understand that the idea of "sound judgement derived from experience rather than study" has exceedingly limited applications in the sciences. We understand that what is often claimed to be common sense is merely popular opinion, superstition, or faith-based "sense". We understand that it is often dead wrong, because there's so much out there that runs counter to our experience. We understand that there are some things that we simply can't have prior experience with, particularly when exploring. We understand that the term is used as an ideological cudgel by the anti-intellectuals; "my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge." We understand that it is lazy and lacks rigour. We understand that idealizing it serves as an excuse to be stupid and ill-informed....Show more

false. in order to do Proper scientific discovery, you have to SUSPEND common sense, as well as any and all other preconceptions and expectations. You MUST be open to the ACTUAL results, no matter what common sense has told you to expect.

In 1911 Ernest Rutherford proposed a model of the atom based on experiments by Geiger and Marsden. Geiger and Marsden had directed a beam of alpha particles at a thin gold foil. Most of the particles passed the foil more or less as expected, but about one in 8000 bounced back as if it had encountered a much heavier object. In Rutherford's own words this was as incredible as if you fired a 15 inch cannon ball at a piece of tissue paper and it came back and hit you. After analyzing the data collected by Geiger and Marsden, Rutherford concluded that the diameter of the atomic nucleus (which contains over 99.9% of the atom's mass) was less than 0.01% of the diameter of the entire atom, and he suggested that atomic electrons orbit the nucleus much like planets orbit a star.


In Rutherford's own words this was as incredible as if you fired a 15 inch cannon ball at a piece of tissue paper and it came back and hit you

common sense tells you a cannon ball CANT bounce off a piece of tissue paper and hit you.... Does that mean Rutherford LACKED common sense? or that he was able to "suspend " it in the face of "new evidence"?...Show more

Common sense often applies across a broad range of subject areas. Scientists probably have common sense in a narrower area since they tend to specialize significantly in their area of research....Show more

Maybe....
Really - what you would consider to be "common sense" might be nonsense to someone else. Everybody has their own perspective on the world and what "makes sense" to them.

In any event, as Voltaire said in 1764, "Common sense is not so common."...Show more