Re: Expelled: If you don't believe in holy physics dogma ; you're fired!

"Bill Miller" <billmillerkt4ye@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message 
news:tu97k.122628$SV4.74177@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> "Timo A. Nieminen" <timo@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message 
> news:Pine.WNT.4.64.0806211103400.656@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> On Fri, 20 Jun 2008, Bill Miller wrote:
>>
>>
> Timo... you make a number of fine points and my reply to any of them
might 
> be considered as a "quibble."
>
> Taken overall, the ossifiaction in textbooks has benn compounded by 
> generations of engineers and scientist -- many at th PhD level -- that
did 
> not pay attention to the "tweaks" that you point out in your post.
>
> From personal experience, I have been vilified personally by PhD level 
> folks for suggesting that Maxwell's Equations are descriptive rather
than 
> causal.
----------------
You shouldn't have been vilified as you are right. Any set of equations or

"laws" tries to describe, mathematically, what has been observed.
-------
>
> BTW a Law, in my NTBHO is always universally applicable. Anything else
is 
> a theory or a hypothesis (or occasionally wild-ass guess!)
----------
Part of the problem is that back in the 1800's the term "Law" was applied
to 
many expressions based on observations- without consideration of  (unknown

at the time) exceptions.   This strict interpretation has hung on. It's
the 
law, don't question it. They are theories and are acceptable until proven 
wrong, and are often acceptable within limits, even then.  The problem
with 
"Laws" is that they are made to be broken.
However, until proven otherwise, and many have tried to do so,
conservation 
of energy, appears to be holding up pretty well :).

Just an opinion on a lazy afternoon.
-- 

Don Kelly dhky@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 the X to answer
----------------------------

 >
> For example, for many years, Newton's Law fell into the "Law" category.
> 
> Bill
>>
>> -- 
>> Timo Nieminen - Home page:
http://www.physics.uq.edu.au/people/nieminen/
>> E-prints: http://eprint.uq.edu.au/view/person/Nieminen,_Timo_A..html
>> Shrine to Spirits: 
>> http://www.users.bigpond.com/timo_nieminen/spirits.html
>>
>
>