Science

I came across a post on Gab about making a vacuum wax (Faraday Wax) and got sidetracked looking into things high vacuum. I haven’t a clue why, but while looking at a paper on vacuum measurement, saw quantities everywhere expressed as power of ten (10^-5 torr) everywhere and was struck by how clumsy this is. I don’t have any practical experience with high vacuum, just the textbook knowledge I got in college and have pieced together from the internet, but I do have experience with a unit where something similar takes place if it weren’t used: the decibel.

Copenhagen: The Science Is Settled; The Policy And Politics Aren’t

• The Atlantic, Marc Ambinder, Journalist

Scientific knowledge is a body of statements of varying degrees of certainty — some most unsure, some nearly sure, but none absolutely certain.

• Richard Feynmann, Scientist

Science is uncertain. Theories are subject to revision; observations are open to a variety of interpretations, and scientists quarrel amongst themselves.

• Isaac Asimov, Science Fiction Author

This morning, this article at The Burning Platform popped into my feed, talking about “listen to the scientists”. Which got me to thinking about science in general, and hot-button science like anthropogenic (man-made) climate change and science-backed responses to viral pandemics (COVID-19). In short, my thoughts on the matter are this: