Some Thoughts on "Accepted Science" and Paradigm Shifts

"Accepted Science" serves a commendable purpose by ensuring a full exploitation of human knowledge to date. A new world view requires a "paradigm shift" to replace the power structure keeping the "accepted science" entrenched." As the term implies, "entrenched" means that the currently accepted viewpoint has "dug in" and fortified its lines of defense. Historically that meant locking in the schools and universities to a single "discipline" on the topic. In the modern world, this means also controlling inputs to the book publishing industry and, more recently, the mass media and the Internet.

The process by which new ideas replace old ideas has been documented in many places ("The Structure of Scientific Revolutions," - Kuhn, "The World of Ideas," - Moyers). Even a modern story of how ideas have been effectively crushed rather than disproved have been documented ("The Velikovsky Affair"). There are times, however, when a new world view refuses to go away.

"Facts are very stubborn things, overruling all theories ."
Jules Verne, Journey to the Center of the Earth.

The evolution of a paradigm shift flows from a notional vision, to a model, to a mathematical codification, to an uphill battle against the entrenched "accepted science", to victorious validation, to official entrenchment. The cycle repeats, as it must. The truth is always more complicated than our current mental models.

And now, consider How Gravity Works...

(Embrace the paradigm shift...)

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