first science
the missing science, the theory of everything, and the arrow of time
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Confusing Scientific Method with Scientific Outcome
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – 14 November 2008 – The scientific method makes the a priori assumption that everything about the universe is knowable. Using this assumption, scientists have made breathtaking discoveries about the universe. However, whilst the belief in the knowability of the universe underlies the scientific method, it is important not to impose this a priori belief on the outcome of science.
When scientists examine the outcome of their experiments and observations, they need to be open to the possibility that not all of the universe is knowable. A case in point is the structure of space and time. Given historical successes, most physicists today make the a priori assumption that the internal constituents of space and time are, in principle, knowable. However, there is not a single experimental result or observation to support this assumption. In fact, all the empirical evidence to date suggests that the internal constituents of space and time are not, in principle, knowable. However, rather than build a consensus theory around this empirical evidence, most physicists continue to hold on to their a priori belief that the structure of space and time is knowable.
"We need to open our eyes to what the empirical evidence is telling us," researcher Dr Spencer Scoular said. "If the evidence suggests that some part of the universe is unknowable, then we should accept this scientific outcome until such time as the scientific method produces empirical evidence to the contrary."
A recently released book, called First Science, shows that not all of the universe is knowable. If the empirical principle "laws of nature exist" is true, then the processes that maintain the constancy of these laws of nature must be inaccessible to us. Otherwise it would be possible to interfere with these processes thereby changing the laws of nature - a contradiction. Now if these processes are inaccessible then they are, in principle, unknowable. Therefore, there exists an unknowable domain of the universe. Between the knowable and unknowable domains of the universe is an interface. Empirical evidence suggests that this interface is space, time and energy. Consistent with an interface, we know of space, time and energy but we do not know what they are made of.
About the author
Spencer Scoular holds a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge and resides
in Auckland, New Zealand.
About the book
Spencer Scoular (2008), First science: The missing science, the theory
of everything, and the arrow of time. Boca Raton, Fl.: Universal
Publishers. ISBN: 1-59942-991-8.