Science of Life
"Conversations" by Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle (1686)
In the XVIII century the telescope and the microscope were changing how we view our world. The microscope had uncovered microorganisms in water and the telescope had revealed the disks of other planets and the similarity of celestial objects to Earth. Fontenelle was an important figure in the transition between the "Scientific Revolution" and the "Age of Enlightnment". In his Conversations, Fontenelle advocated for the plurality of worlds:
"There are as many species of invisible animals as visible. We see from the elephant down to the mite; there our sight ends. But beyond the mite an infinite multitude of animals begins for which the mite is an elephant...Even in very hard kinds of rock we've found innumerable small worms, living in imperceptible gaps and feeding themselves by gnawing on the substance of the stone...Even if the Moon were only a mass of rocks, I'd sooner have her gnawed by her inhabitants than not put any there at all." (pp. 44-45)
What is science?
"careful, disciplined, logical search for knowledge, obtained by examination of the best available evidence and always subject to correction and improvement upon discovery of better evidence"
- Unprejudiced (it doesn't matter if you like it or not)
- Falsifiable (can be tested)
- Explain current observations and predict new ones
1. Is Fontenelle's conclusion scientific? Why or why not? Explain
Logical Fallacies
A logical fallacy is a flaw in logical reasoning. The ability to detect logical fallacies and to avoid them is essential to critical thinking. Logical arguments can bring you closer to the truth and protect you from manipulations by others. These are some Logical Fallacies:
'Ad Hominem': you don't like the person and discard their argument. For example, "Al Gore was saying that the world was warming, but Al Gore is an idiot, he is not even a scientist, so the world is not warming"
'Appeal to authority': you believe the person is reliable, so their argument must be true. For example, "Einstein did not believe black holes were real, so why should I?"
'Appeal to believe': If most people believe X is true, then it must be true. For example, "Everyone knows that lightning doesn't strike the same place twice"
"Division/Composition": If the parts of a whole have a property, then the whole must also have that property OR if a whole has a property, then it would follow that all parts have the property. For example, "The brain is composed of unconscious neurons; therefore, the brain itself is unconscious"
2. Can you find a logical fallacy in Fontenelle's argument? Explain
When asked about extraterrestrial aliens in Jupiter looking down at us, Fontenelle replied:
"There'll be astronomers on Jupiter who, after taking great pains to construct excellent telescopes...will finally discover in the heavens a tiny planet that they've never seen before...[but] they wouldn't have the faintest suspicion that it could be inhabited. If anyone were to think of it, heaven knows how all Jupiter would laugh at him. It's possible we're the cause of philosophers being prosecuted there who have tried to insist we exist." (p. 57)
3. Using what you have learned about the distances in the universe, if you were to assume that an alien civilization populated Jupiter and its moons and had the technological advancements of our society in the XVII century, would you agree with Fontenelle? Explain
4. What other social and religious impacts is Fontanelle mentioning?
5. Is our society beyond these conflicts today? Give an example.