5 ms·
Yes, if someone has a home remedy that gets great results, why switch to a substance from someone in a lab coat?
by sebleon 8y ago
Yes, if someone has a home remedy that gets great results, why switch to a substance from someone in a lab coat?
- JshWright 8y agoExactly, that's what I keep saying about my bear repellent rock I keep on my front porch. Haven't seen a single bear yet.
- narrowingorbits 8y agoPeople whose reactions when confronted with something new, unknown, and unexpected are to laugh at it or respond sarcastically, instead of to accept the surprise, approach with curiosity and humility, and question if there is something they're not understanding, are unlikely to ever discover anything new. Everything that we call science today was once alternately laughable or mysterious.
- asdff 8y agoBecause science isn't about belief, its about reasoning. One person having a good response to something doesn't say anything about that something, that person, or that good response. Only after things have been repeatedly tested, and alternative explanations thoroughly ruled out, can a claim be considered accurate. Everything was once alternately laughable or mysterious, until it was thoroughly proven to be true. There is a reason why we aren't letting your blood because you have a cold anymore.
- kd5bjo 8y agoYes, but one person repeatedly having a good response to a thing is good evidence that thing is helpful to that person. While it's good for society to find and recommend things that are beneficial to most people, we shouldn't prevent people from doing the things that they find helpful.
- brlewis 8y agoYour employer wins because you're spending less time worrying about bears. My employer wins because I spend less time thinking about whether I would benefit from a sit/stand desk...at the very least. I suspect I get a real productivity advantage from it at times.
- Retra 8y agoAnd both of you lose because you're purposefully dismissing the value of research and making decisions based on ritual and conformity.
- brlewis 8y agoI think you meant your reply to go to the homeopathy comment. Unless you have specific research into the effectiveness of bear-repellent rocks.
- sebleon 8y agoA closer analogy for a remedy to an illness would be: Whenever your yard gets overrun with bears, putting a rock on the porch makes them go away for an unknown reason. Don’t let yourself be limited by science, which is bounded by human intelligence.
- asdff 8y agoOne person randomly having a favorable outcome doesn't tell you if a result is great, let alone even exists.
- sebleon 8y agoFair - correlation does not mean causation. That being said, countless experiments show placebo can have empirical results; even the simple belief in a remedy can improve healthcare outcomes.