Think critically. Don't live an illusion.

Do I believe in science?

Of course I believe in science. But let me explain what do I believe about science: The scientific method is the best way of getting experimental knowledge of issues that can be tested. Science is a style of inquiry that attempts to understand nature in a rational, logical manner. Normally, the results of a scientific investigation are given by scientists involved in the study.

The results of a scientific study are provisional (it means that it can be improved later by new findings or it can become obsolete when new evidence shows the first study to be wrong). The results of a scientific study are "good for now". New studies confirming the first conclusion make the conclusion more credible.

Is public opinion based on science?

No. Most people base their opinion on what they hear from people they regard as important: friends, family members, teachers, political leaders, religious leaders, news commentators, singers, actors and so on.

Public opinion is formed by the opinions of other people, not by scientific findings. This is understandable because regular people don't see themselves as qualified to analyze scientific findings critically, and we tend to think that our leaders should have an "informed opinion" about what they talk about. But what is more shocking to me, is that people base their opinion on fiction films and fiction books in the same way as historical documents.

Public opinion is drawn by popular songs, political slogans, marketing messages, and novelists' imagination. The limit between facts finding and fiction is blurry. Many people don't care to make the distinction.

What about Scientists?

Because we are used to hear about scientific discoveries coming from scientists, when a scientist gives his opinion about something, we tend to regard his opinion as a "scientific opinion".

Scientists have to think not only in terms of scientific findings. They have to be able to generate hypothesis. Hypothesis is an assumption based on probabilities, which motivates a scientific study. It is a proposed explanation of a phenomenon. It is a theory that requires further testing to be confirmed or rejected. Nobody cares if the hypothesis is truth or not when it is proposed, because it is just a hypothesis that had to be examined later. It is valuable because it generates an investigation which can lead to the confirmation of the hypothesis or to generate more hypotheses.

Thesis or Hypothesis?

Hypothesis can become Thesis when it is proven by a scientific study.  Hypothesis is what you suppose without confirmation. Thesis is the result of an investigation that proves your theory. For regular folks, the difference between thesis and hypothesis is blurry. When a scientist talks about a hypothesis or a thesis, most people give it the same value.

Fiction or evidence, theory or facts can have the same impact on uninformed people: "If a scientist says it, it must be scientific". That is the reason why when a scientist expresses a personal opinion about something, even if it is not proven or not possible to be proved, people still regard his opinion as scientific.

The fact that scientists give “non scientific opinions” sometimes, it doesn't make scientific findings unreliable. Reliability depends on the quality of the method used, not just on the person carrying the news of the discovery.

We do not like to prepare all things by ourselves. It is easier to buy things other people processed for us. This is not a good attitude when applied to our convictions in life. Let´s look for facts. It requires work, but it is worth the effort.  Distinguish between reality and fiction. Think critically. Don't live an illusion.