http://stayfree.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/sciencestamps2.jpg

Let me to quote Vitrubius for a good example of this:

The precepts of the ancients, in this respect, should ever be observed. They always, after sacrifice, carefully inspected the livers of those animals fed on that spot whereon the city was to be built, or whereon a stative encampment was intended. If the livers were diseased and livid, they tried others, in order to ascertain whether accident or disease was the cause of the imperfection; but if the greater part of the experiments proved, by the sound and healthy appearance of the livers, that the water and food of the spot were wholesome, they selected it for the garrison. If the reverse, they inferred, as in the case of cattle, so in that of the human body, the water and food of such a place would become pestiferous; and they therefore abandoned it, in search of another, valuing health above all other considerations.

Well, perhaps the translator exagerates by upgrading “experÄ«rÄ«” into a modern “to experiment”, but the thing is that even the activity of a seer can happen to be scientific. Then, what about mathematical operations such as looking for orbit periodicities or even to decide about a notation to divide the sky in equal parts?

Secondary questions for a good discussion could be why Physics is shown against Magic instead of, say, Aristotelism? Surely Magic as a whole is closer to Medicine. Mythology could be related to physics, but mostly to astrophysics… And what about alchemy? The failure in alchemy are quantitative aspects, but the main postulate of alchemy is the use of dualities to classify reactions, and this is still taught in chemistry courses.

(If you are going to tell me that alchemy has also qualitative failure because the transmutation from mercury to gold is not exothermic, please check again the table of stable isotopes before clicking the Submit button)

Last, Risa, are you sure that the guy in the first square dress as a scientific? Er what university do you work in? I’d like a position there!

Ahh… Catholic school. I completely forgot about those. My brain associates Christian with evangelical (which is the type of school I attended). My mistake…

It is my understanding that many Catholic schools are top-notch in their curriculums.

Zero

Do you remember which curriculum was used (e.g. ACE, A Beka)? I actually had no teachers using the ACE curriculum. I sat at a desk with work booklet in hand. This was a great way to learn Maths (for me anyway), but it didn’t go far enough. I didn’t know what an integral was until my second year of college.

I’m currently only a Senior working on my B.S. in CS (PHYS minor). So mayhap there is still hope for me…

Zero

This is all to say that this is painfully humourous to me.

Zero