Feynman on the social sciences

Summary

The speaker expresses skepticism towards social sciences, viewing them as pseudoscience due to the lack of universal laws and concrete findings. They emphasize the rigorous process required to truly know something, questioning the credibility of experts who claim to have knowledge without undergoing thorough verification. The speaker acknowledges their limited understanding but maintains a deep suspicion that much of the so-called expertise is unfounded and potentially misleading.

Takeaways

• 🧐 The speaker views social science as pseudoscience, suggesting it lacks the rigorous methods and laws associated with 'real' science.
• 🔍 They criticize social science for following scientific forms but not achieving significant discoveries or laws.
• 🤔 The speaker expresses skepticism about the expertise presented in various fields, doubting the depth of their knowledge.
• 🧐 They question how these experts have acquired their information, given the speaker's own experience with the difficulty of truly understanding something.
• 🔬 The speaker emphasizes the importance of careful experimentation and the ease of making mistakes in scientific endeavors.
• 🤨 There is a suspicion that experts may not have conducted the necessary checks and care to claim true knowledge.
• 🏛️ The speaker acknowledges the intimidation that pseudo-expertise can exert on people, implying a potential for misuse of authority.
• 🤷‍♂️ Despite their skepticism, the speaker admits to not knowing everything and leaves room for the possibility of being wrong.
• 🔮 The speaker hopes that social sciences may develop more rigorous methods in the future, similar to established sciences.
• 📚 The speaker's own experience with the scientific process informs their skepticism about the claims of experts in other fields.

Q & A

What is the speaker's view on social science as a discipline?

The speaker considers social science to be a pseudoscience, suggesting that it follows scientific forms but has not yet established any definitive laws or made significant discoveries.

Does the speaker believe that social science will ever become a 'real' science?

The speaker is uncertain but leaves open the possibility that social science may develop into a more established science in the future.

What does the speaker think about experts in various fields who claim to have scientific knowledge?

The speaker is skeptical of such experts, doubting the validity of their claims and suggesting that they might not have conducted the necessary rigorous checks and careful work to truly know something.

Why is the speaker doubtful about the knowledge claims made by some experts?

The speaker's own experience with the difficulty of obtaining true knowledge and the meticulousness required in scientific experiments leads to a skepticism about the claims of those who have not shown such rigor.

What does the speaker imply about the process of gaining true knowledge?

The speaker implies that gaining true knowledge is a difficult process that requires careful checking of experiments and a meticulous approach to avoid mistakes.

How does the speaker's perspective on knowledge affect their view of other people's claims to knowledge?

The speaker's perspective leads them to be skeptical of others' claims to knowledge, as they believe that true knowledge is hard to attain and requires a level of careful work that they doubt others have achieved.

What is the speaker's stance on the intimidation factor of experts?

The speaker suggests that experts may be using their claims to knowledge to intimidate people, despite potentially not having the solid foundation of understanding that the speaker believes is necessary.

What does the speaker value in the pursuit of knowledge?

The speaker values rigor, carefulness, and a thorough checking process in the pursuit of knowledge.

Why might the speaker's views be considered controversial?

The speaker's views might be considered controversial because they质疑 the validity of social science and the expertise of many professionals, which challenges established authorities and disciplines.

What advice might the speaker give to someone seeking to verify the claims of experts?

The speaker might advise seeking evidence of rigorous research methods, careful experimentation, and a history of accurate predictions or successful applications of the knowledge claimed by experts.