Science, Pseudoscience, and Historical Perspectives

Science

Science is defined as a set of rules and methodologies—based upon the empirical acquisition of facts and evidence through observation and experimentation—designed to learn about the abstract nature of the universe.

Pseudoscience

Pseudoscience is fake science; any intellectual endeavor or belief system which superficially looks like science, but is not.

Common Elements of Pseudoscience: Confirmation Bias

Favoring facts and opinions which tend to support our previously held position.

Common Elements of Pseudoscience: Selective Evidence Compiling

Selective Evidence Compiling: The belief that one piece of evidence which supports your position outweighs a thousand which undermines it.

Common Elements of Pseudoscience: Backfire Effect

Backfire Effect: When more evidence you are wrong makes you feel even more that you are right.

Common Elements of Pseudoscience: Knowledge Source Reversal

Knowledge Source Reversal: The belief that a trained scholar is not as smart as an untrained amateur.

Common Elements of Pseudoscience: Ipsedixitism

The dogmatic insistence that something is a 'fact' without providing any supporting evidence.

Common Elements of Pseudoscience: Baader-Meinhoff Effect

Baader-Meinhoff Effect (Frequency Illusion): When knowledge about something a person has no experience with suddenly seems to be everywhere.

Dealing with Fake News

When encountering potential fake news, you should: 1. What is the Source? 2. Attempt to Confirm 3. Is there Evidence for it? 4. Think before advancing. A rule of thumb is: if it sounds too outrageous it likely is false. Question everything.

The Enlightenment

The Enlightenment (1600s-1800ish) was a complex Western intellectual movement which generally stressed reason, evidence, and facts over belief and superstition. It questioned the Divine Right of Kings and emphasized the importance of the individual. The modern Western World is built largely upon Enlightenment ideals, not Biblical ones.

Rene Descartes

Rene Descartes (1596-1650) is considered the father of modern philosophy. His Cartesian Reasoning emphasized that doubt is what pushes you to understand and prioritized reason (clear thought) over experience.

British Empiricism

British Empiricism emphasized direct observation and experience to augment reason, also known as Experimental Philosophy (which has Islamic origins).

The Scientific Revolution

'Modern' science begins in the Islamic world and the introduction of Alchemy, which traces its origins back to ancient China and India.

Origins of Alchemy

The basic idea of alchemy formed in Egypt and Mesopotamia around 4000 BC with dye making and metallurgy. Medieval Islam added 'al' to 'kimiya' to form 'Al kimiya'.

Abu Musa Jabir ibn Hayyan (Geber)

Abu Musa Jabir ibn Hayyan (721-815?), known in the west as Geber, was a Persian figure considered the Father of chemistry, though his existence is questionable. He focused on practical experimentation.

Key Figures of the Scientific Revolution

Key figures include: Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543), Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), known for his telescope, Isaac Newton, who developed theories of motion and gravity, optics, and invented calculus.

Variolation

Variolation, the precursor to vaccination, had a long history in China and India and spread via the Silk Road. It involved introducing smallpox pus to induce a milder infection and prevent full-blown illness. Lady Mary Wortley Montagu popularized it in the West after observing it in the Islamic world.

Edward Jenner

associated with vaccination (mss 1789), building upon the earlier practice of variolation.

The Declaration of Independence

adopted on July 4, 1776. It asserts that all men are created equal and endowed with unalienable rights including Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. Governments derive their power from the consent of the governed.

Slavery in America

The sources present information on the reality of Slavery in America, contrasting with a 'nice' view and depicting slave ships, shackles, and torture devices.

The Confederate 'Battle Flag'

The Confederate 'Battle Flag' was not the official Confederate flag but was used by some army units. It became infamous in the 1950s when adopted by the KKK as a symbol against civil rights.

Key Amendments after the Civil War

13th Amendment: Slavery is abolished. 14th Amendment: Any individual born in the United States is automatically a full citizen. 15th Amendment: All males citizens have the right to vote.

The Rise of Fascism

Benito Mussolini (1883-1945) was the Dictator of Italy (1922-1943) and claimed he would make Italy great again. Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultranationalist, totalitarian ideology characterized by dictatorial power and suppression of opposition.

The Rise of Fascism: Adolf Hitler and Nazism

Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) was the Dictator of Germany (1933-1945) and leader of the NAZI party (National Socialist Workers Party). Nazism is an offshoot of Fascism with added racism, religious bigotry, and misogyny. The Nazis were conservative, right-wing Fascists who hated socialists and were White Supremacists.

The Holocaust

The Holocaust involved the extermination/murder of six million (mostly Jews) by the Nazis in camps across Europe, including Auschwitz, Bergen-Belsen, and Treblinka.

World War II and the Atomic Bomb

As Japan refused to surrender in World War II (1938 (?) - 1945), the US dropped the 'Little Boy' bomb on Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) and the 'Fat Man' bomb on Nagasaki (August 9, 1945).

The Cold War

The Cold War (1945-1991) was the ideological conflict between the 'Western' Democratic Countries and the 'Eastern' Communist Countries.

Capitalism

an economic and political system where a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit. The individual primarily looks out for themselves.

Socialism

Socialism is a political and economic theory advocating that the means of production should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole. The individual looks out for themselves and their community.

Communism

Communism is a political theory advocating class war leading to a society where all property is publicly owned and individuals work and are paid according to their abilities and needs.

NATO and the Warsaw Pact

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) included the US, UK, France, Canada, Holland, and West Germany. The WARSAW Pact included the Soviet Union and its Eastern European allies.

The Iron Curtain

The Iron Curtain was a term coined by Winston Churchill for the physical wall put up by the Russians to separate Europe into two halves. The Berlin Wall was a key part of this, built starting in 1961.

Nuclear Oblivion

During the Cold War, there was a pervasive fear of Nuclear Oblivion, leading to practices like 'Duck and Cover' drills and the development of fallout shelters. This theme was also present in pop culture.

The Fall of Communism and the Soviet Union

Communism and the Soviet Union fell on Christmas Day, 1991.

Worlds of History: Core Historical Facts

The 'Worlds of History' presentation emphasizes several core historical facts, including that the Holocaust really happened, humans did land on the Moon, the Earth is spherical, the American Civil War was about slavery, and vaccinations save lives.

Worlds of History: Things That Did Not Happen

The presentation also states that ancient aliens did not build the pyramids, there were no lost White Super Races or human giants in the past, and evolution is real.

Thinking Like a Historian

Historians study the past by analyzing texts, physical artifacts, and data to look for facts and meaning. They ask, 'What can we learn from this and how can we use that knowledge?'.

Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Primary sources are original writings by or about historical subjects, while secondary sources are texts written as an analysis of primary sources.

How to Read a Text Like a Historian

When reading a text, historians look for the Subject, Topic, Argument, Details, and try to understand what the author is trying to tell you. They don't just read words but 'LISTEN' to them.

What Historians Do

Historians examine the past as a way of seeing connections and explanations for the present, and a way of anticipating the future. They use texts, objects, artifacts, personal interviews, and site examinations as source material. Historians also fight against lies and fake news.

Indian Science

Ancient Indian science made advancements in math, science, and philosophy. Notably, they understood that the Earth is spherical, Earth is ancient, and Earth goes around the sun.

Origins of Monotheism

The sources mention the origins of Monotheism in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The Law Code of Hammurabi (around 792 BCE in Babylon) with its 282 rules of conduct is also noted, possibly inspired by earlier laws.

Judaism: Key Events (Early)

The Hebrews left Egypt in the mid 1400s BCE and arrived in Canaan (Israel). Solomon's Temple (First Temple) was built in 957 BCE.

Judaism: Babylonian Captivity and Later Events

The Babylonian Captivity occurred around 598 BCE.

Judaism: Babylonian Captivity and Later Events

The Babylonian Captivity occurred around 598 BCE. The Hebrews returned and built The Second Temple. The Romans destroyed the Second Temple in 70 BCE. The Bible, including the Old Testament and Torah, was likely written after the Babylonian captivity, around 540 BCE ish.

Islam: Origins

originated with Muhammad (570-632), who was born in Mecca and traveled to Medina. He was visited by the Archangel Gabriel (Jabril). Islam means submission to God, and a Moslem is one who submits. The holy text of Islam is the Koran (Quran, Qu'ran), which contains the conversations with Gabriel, and a chapter is called a Surah.

Islam: Key Beliefs and Practices

Allah is the God in Islam, considered the same as the Hebrew Yahweh and the Christian Jehovah. The Five Pillars of Islam are: 1. There is no God but God and Mohammad is his Prophet. 2. Pray 5 times a day and face Mecca. 3. Give Alms to the poor. 4. Observe Ramadan (the Holy month). 5. Make the pilgrimage to Mecca (the Haj).

Mecca and the Kaaba

located in Saudi Arabia and contains the Masjid al-Haram (Holy Mosque), the holiest site in Islam. The Kaaba (The Cube) is within this mosque. Originally an Arab pagan religious site with statues, Mohammad later removed these statues and turned the site into a Holy Moslem shrine.

Doubt

Doubt is defined as the feeling that something may not be 'true' or factual. It is often based upon an emotional response rather than known facts.

Skepticism

Skepticism is an approach to evaluating claims that emphasizes evidence and applies tools of science. It is most often applied to extraordinary claims that refute the current consensus view and shows a respect for verifiable evidence. Skepticism is not cynical disbelief or empty denialism.

Denialism

rejecting some idea, fact or conclusion (which is based upon evidence) simply because it conflicts with your worldview or belief system.

Hinduism: Origins

Origins roughly between 2300 & 1500 BCE around the Indus River Valley. It became formalized around 500 BCE (along with Buddhism and Jainism).

Hinduism: Holy Texts

Holy texts include the Vedas, Uppanishads (earliest texts around 500 BCE), Bhagavad Gita, and Mahabharata. The Kama Sutra, the book of virtue, is also mentioned in relation to Hinduism.

Hinduism: Key Deities

Hinduism is polytheist (has multiple gods). Some key deities include: Brahma: Creator of the cosmos, who creates the universe in a dream. Vishnu: Protector of the universe. Shiva: Destroyer, who dances the world into being in 180 poses which destroy the demon of ignorance. Krishna: Lord God, associated with compassion and love. Other figures mentioned are Ganesha, and Rama and Hanuman, who pursue Sita kidnapped by Ravana.

Buddhism: Founder and Time Period

Buddhism's founder was Siddhartha Gautama (5th - 4th century BCE). He became known as the Buddha, the Enlightened One.

Buddhism: Core Beliefs

A central belief in Buddhism is that all human's problems stem from desire. Key concepts include: Karma: the life force which controls the cycles of rebirth and suffering. Dharma: Virtue. Karma: Love (Note: the source lists 'Karma' twice here, likely intending different meanings or emphasis). Nirvana: the ultimate goal, which is to become part of the Brahma (universe). Atman: the part of the Brahma that resides in all.