Should possibility without evidence be explored, and would it lead to new evidences.

[osgart]

Do beliefs and convictions prior to evidence, lead anywhere.

Imagination being used in a science endeavour.

I know most people seem to need evidence of everything before they embark on something.

I see how hopes get smashed when something is refuted convincingly.

I like to think there is other ways of reasoning, besides logic, and evidence.

I mean was today's society built on dreams of what could be, instead of only the scientific method.

it seems to me geniuses always go against the grain of entrenched thinking.

I have always been motivated by going against the grain unless something is established as 100% fact.

it seems to me that Newton, Einstein, and Darwin took big leaps of imagination against the grain, before anything was established, and many others did so too.

The problem with entrenched thinking is that the more mainstream the thinking, the more people are afraid to step out of line and lose credibility.

Of course I'm not advocating abandoning good reasoning, and becoming dangerous and too risky with life projects.

I just don't like conformity in all matters.

and conversely, I don't like being too unpredictable.

so I put it to ya, are there unexplored ways of thinking out there that can serve a purpose?, or, is the pursuit of knowledge covering all bases already?

 

[Evangelicalhumanist]

Explore anything you'd like, but if there is -- as you posit -- no "evidence" to your "possibility" -- how on earth are you going to explore it?

I could consider exploring an idea like "Thursday might be heavier than Wednesday," because I could imagine such a question -- but how on earth would I approach the problem? How much does Thursday weigh (or Wednesday), and where's the scale I'd put them on?

 

[sayak83]

Do beliefs and convictions prior to evidence, lead anywhere.

Imagination being used in a science endeavour.

I know most people seem to need evidence of everything before they embark on something.

I see how hopes get smashed when something is refuted convincingly.

I like to think there is other ways of reasoning, besides logic, and evidence.

I mean was today's society built on dreams of what could be, instead of only the scientific method.

it seems to me geniuses always go against the grain of entrenched thinking.

I have always been motivated by going against the grain unless something is established as 100% fact.

it seems to me that Newton, Einstein, and Darwin took big leaps of imagination against the grain, before anything was established, and many others did so too.

The problem with entrenched thinking is that the more mainstream the thinking, the more people are afraid to step out of line and lose credibility.

Of course I'm not advocating abandoning good reasoning, and becoming dangerous and too risky with life projects.

I just don't like conformity in all matters.

and conversely, I don't like being too unpredictable.

so I put it to ya, are there unexplored ways of thinking out there that can serve a purpose?, or, is the pursuit of knowledge covering all bases already?

Maybe read good biographies of Darwin, Newton and Einstein for a more evidence based assertion on how they engaged in creative thinking?

 

[osgart]

Explore anything you'd like, but if there is -- as you posit -- no "evidence" to your "possibility" -- how on earth are you going to explore it?

I could consider exploring an idea like "Thursday might be heavier than Wednesday," because I could imagine such a question -- but how on earth would I approach the problem? How much does Thursday weigh (or Wednesday), and where's the scale I'd put them on?

well where's the possibility in asking such a question?

 

[osgart]

Maybe read good biographies of Darwin, Newton and Einstein for a more evidence based assertion on how they engaged in creative thinking?

I am still of the conviction that they looked at the possibility before the evidence came in.

but, ok, I will try better books on those guys.

 

[sun rise]

Given the long history of humanity, I doubt there are unexplored ways of thinking.

 

[Father Heathen]

Nothing wrong with speculation, nor is there anything wrong with searching for any possible evidence that might support such speculation. What's important is that such a search be done objectively and that no assertions are made without substantial evidence.

 

[Altfish]

Maybe read good biographies of Darwin, Newton and Einstein for a more evidence based assertion on how they engaged in creative thinking?

Scientists usually observe a phenomenon, make further investigation, postulate in a hypothesis what might be happening, what is the cause and then make further experiments to try to prove or falsify the phenomenon. After a while and a degree of confidence they publish their findings, these are then scrutinised by the scientific community and either confirmed which leads to more experiments trying to falsify it or chucked out.

It is creative thinking only in such as it attempts to explain something that has been observed.
It is not, as has previously been said, trying to weigh Thursday.

 

[Laika]

Do beliefs and convictions prior to evidence, lead anywhere.

Imagination being used in a science endeavour.

I know most people seem to need evidence of everything before they embark on something.

I see how hopes get smashed when something is refuted convincingly.

I like to think there is other ways of reasoning, besides logic, and evidence.

I mean was today's society built on dreams of what could be, instead of only the scientific method.

it seems to me geniuses always go against the grain of entrenched thinking.

I have always been motivated by going against the grain unless something is established as 100% fact.

it seems to me that Newton, Einstein, and Darwin took big leaps of imagination against the grain, before anything was established, and many others did so too.

The problem with entrenched thinking is that the more mainstream the thinking, the more people are afraid to step out of line and lose credibility.

Of course I'm not advocating abandoning good reasoning, and becoming dangerous and too risky with life projects.

I just don't like conformity in all matters.

and conversely, I don't like being too unpredictable.

so I put it to ya, are there unexplored ways of thinking out there that can serve a purpose?, or, is the pursuit of knowledge covering all bases already?

There is a danger of a confirmation bias in exploring ideas without evidence. That's especially true outside of Natural Science where people like Newton and Einstein could develop hypotheses and test them in experiments. Darwin was able to derive observations from things human beings were able to do (i.e. the "domestic selection" of cattle, poultry, dog and pigeon breeds) and came up with an explanation for the origin of species which didn't require human intervention.

When your dealing with philosophical, political and religious questions (which are really difficult to prove in controlled experiments if at all), it is often a good idea to read the other side of the argument. You may not agree with it but it typically be very useful to clarify your ideas in much greater detail and know the most common obstacles for you to assert that it's true.

Never be afraid to steal other people's ideas by the way. If they are good, true and work in practical situations, it doesn't really matter who the source is because they have been proven to work in practice. Most ideas, even the most radical and extreme, have a social context and it is worth being aware of other people who have come up with similar ideas in the past. If you are lucky, you may find an online community where you can discuss it with people and learn from their experience.

The "fear" factor is an issue, and taking a more non-conformist position typically requires certain personality traits that make you think "I know better than everyone else". You have to be selfish enough to keep fighting for "my theory" whilst also being open to new evidence and expanding and developing it. However, if you spend long enough with controversial ideas or reading about very "taboo" subjects, yes it can be pretty awkward, but it does get easier with time and you become more comfortable with it.

never be afriad to admit you're wrong or if you've made a mistake. genuine growth requires accepting that we aren't always going to get it right and we have to learn from our mistakes. The best thing to do is not to buy into the idea that there are a special class of humans who are "genuises" and who were born that way. Don't aim to be a genius overnight- do your best and it will keep adding up. They made mistakes and they had failures. Newton was interested in Alchemy, Einstein picked the wrong side of the debate on quantum mechanics when he said "God doesn't play dice" and Darwin chose the idea of inheritance of acquired traits which was superseded/dis-proven by the existence of DNA. Being creative means being willing to make mistakes and not feel too upset by them.

And most importantly of all; have fun! If you enjoy what your doing, even if everyone else thinks you are nuts, you will keep doing it and eventually all the effort and work will build up to a level of expertise and skill. A love and passion for the subject may lead you down the wrong road from time to time, but it will give you the ability to try again. You won't always get it right, but if you keep trying you will have quite an adventure exploring other places people never knew were even possible. And that's where the big ideas come from- questioning the limits of what you think is possible. you may be crazy, you may be right; go find out.

 

[HonestJoe]

There isn’t really such a thing as belief without any evidence. We can’t think of something without some basis for it either from our senses or memories of previous sensations, all of which is essentially evidence. It might not be very good evidence and we may not assess it in very good ways but it’s still evidence all the same.

Essentially every decision we make follows some form of logical reasoning (again, however flawed). Something as simple as crossing the road involves seeing and hearing any vehicles to judge their speed and direction, estimating our own walking speed and the distance to the other side all to determine if we can safely cross. All of that is done relatively instinctively but it’s still a basic scientific process.

The leaps of logic you talk about made by great scientists aren’t made without any evidence. They all had the basic information and existing conclusions in their fields so their leaps has a basis in logic. They were really just coming up with new hypotheses which they’d go on to test. Lots of similar hypotheses would turn out to be completely wrong and those are all forgotten about, only the successful ones are remembered. That’s all a valid part of the scientific process too.
I disagree that people are afraid to “step out of line”. I think people are all too willing to come up with new hypotheses (even if they don’t realise that’s what they’re doing), the problem is that people are often unwilling (or unable) to take the next step of properly assessing those hypotheses rather than blind assuming they’re true, even to the point of aggressively rejecting any challenges or questions.

 

[Guy Threepwood]

Do beliefs and convictions prior to evidence, lead anywhere.

Imagination being used in a science endeavour.

I know most people seem to need evidence of everything before they embark on something.

I see how hopes get smashed when something is refuted convincingly.

I like to think there is other ways of reasoning, besides logic, and evidence.

I mean was today's society built on dreams of what could be, instead of only the scientific method.

it seems to me geniuses always go against the grain of entrenched thinking.

I have always been motivated by going against the grain unless something is established as 100% fact.

it seems to me that Newton, Einstein, and Darwin took big leaps of imagination against the grain, before anything was established, and many others did so too.

The problem with entrenched thinking is that the more mainstream the thinking, the more people are afraid to step out of line and lose credibility.

Of course I'm not advocating abandoning good reasoning, and becoming dangerous and too risky with life projects.

I just don't like conformity in all matters.

and conversely, I don't like being too unpredictable.

so I put it to ya, are there unexplored ways of thinking out there that can serve a purpose?, or, is the pursuit of knowledge covering all bases already?

Newton and Darwin, Einstein also to some extent, extrapolated what limited evidence they had, to attempt to produce larger comprehensive explanations for things without direct evidence- which is always a very tempting thing to do

But the problems begin when imaginative theories become so popular, entrenched, they still persist while the new direct evidence points elsewhere...
So I think imagination is great as long as we recognize it as such, and don't start declaring it 'immutable' or 'undeniable fact' and admonishing others for having different ideas

But I think it all gets sorted out in the end, - barking up the wrong tree helps us identify the correct one in the long run!