More crapy science from Fringe
I have made my feelings about the FOX show Fringe known already. And, as I previously said I like me some science fiction, so I do watch it for entertainment. Episode 3 rubbed me the wrong way. Why? Because of the following:
-Occam’s Razor! All other things being equal, the simple solution is the best
-And what is that?
-The man is phychic! Theoretically it is quite possible.
**Sigh**
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What is it about Occam’s Razor comment that makes you sigh?
Psychic? Elaborate.
The misuse or misunderstanding of it, pick whichever you think applies here. Occam’s razor, properly applied, says that the solution that introduces the least new assumptions is the one that we should favor. Psychic powers and supernatural powers are quite huge assumptions. Being psychic is the last think Occam’s razor will suggest. That’s why the way it is used here is crappy! And it’s not purely the number of assumptions, but also the magnitude of them that matters.
Usually people misinterpret Occam’s razor to mean “the simplest answer GRAMMATICALLY“. That’s why some people think Occam’s razor favors the answer GOD, it’s a 3 letter word! Simple does not mean the shortest sentence, the one that is easier to pronounce, nor the one that is easier to understand! Simple has to do with the assumptions one must make in order to support that hypothesis. Are the assumptions simple? Are they extraordinary? Are these assumptions already supported by evidence and thus not controversial?
I hope that clarifies my entry.
It’s a TV show, Scully. calm down. And psychic is theoretically possible IN FRINGE SCIENCE.