quote:
Originally posted by babayada:
DS,I have to say it is very convenient that people have better things to do than perform experiments that would confirm or eradicate their beliefs. That is, put their rhetoric to a real test. I understand you're busy believing what makes you feel comfortable and just don't have time to see if those beliefs really reflect reality or not. The truth hurts sometimes.
And I have to say, it is very ignorant for someone to assume that they could scientifically establish the truth-validity of a general proposition, which in this case is "Can the mind, to any degree, affect objective reality"....
by setting an arbitrarily high standard for the "proof" of the proposition, and then proposing to test it with one individual case.
Not a very good method for evaluation.
That is like a cancer researcher saying.."Oh yeah? Your cancer drug works, eh?? Well, if it works, then I want to see it completely cure all 1000 patients! Otherwise I don't believe you!"
The way theories like this are tested, is statistically, i.e., by means of a p-test, over many cases, to establish the probability that the results observed are consistent with the null hypothesis, i.e., the hypothesis that NO CORRELATION exists between the two variables.
THAT is how you correct for and eliminate blind error, and individual variations, etc; and actually establish a definite and mathematical level of confidence about the BASIC PROPOSITION, i.e., does mind or intention have ANY EFFECT AT ALL on the results achieved in the realm of objective reality.
[This message has been edited by garics (edited September 02, 2005).]
