Friday, August 20, 2010

The Value of Experience

I was thinking earlier today about the value of experience. By this, I mean the value that an individual places on a particular experience. If this sounds a bit metaphysical, hang in there...there is a science angle.

You see, there is a certain inherent arrogance in rejecting the value of another's experience. In order to keep this reasonably non-controversial, take the example of bungee jumping. I have not bungee jumped and likely never will. It simply doesn't appeal to me. Now, should I look down on or think less of someone who loves bungee jumping? I know this may seem a bit silly, but it not a far stretch from the same type of thinking that some folks actually engage in. Is it correct for me to dismiss that person's enjoyment simply because I don't understand it?

How does this refer to science? Well, remember that one of the key parts of the scientific method is publishing one's results for others so that can attempt to replicate and so on and so forth. There are many implications. For one, the most obvious is that the answer to this question could affect which experiments one chooses to replicate. If one is not disposed to like the implications of an experiment and to not value other's experiences, that may lead one to exclude the published research as valuable. This possibility is not necessarily a problem, but it does fall into that category of factors that influence scientific decisions that may well not be getting taken into account.

Another aspect of the denial of experience is embodied in the consumer of science - the nonscientists. Let us say as an example (an unlikely one, but that is not important), that science were to somehow establish as factual that after 39 days, a fetus is always viable and not before. Would someone who is predisposed to think of life as beginning at conception reject this scientific conclusion? Is it not improper to deny the experience of the various people who would have conducted the experiments to establish this conclusion? Would it not be equally incorrect to dismiss this experience if the conclusion were different (say, that life does indeed begin at conception). The point here is not the conclusion, it's that someone might choose to reject as invalid the experience of others simply because it is convenient to do so.

Denial of the validity of another's experience is a valid choice but a dangerous one, as it limits the possibilities that one can explore. If one is on a quest for truth, as many scientists are and many fancy themselves to be, denying another's experience as valid is arguably a very poor choice. However, if you agree that all experiences are valid, then the choice to deny another's experience is also valid.

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