In an article in The New York Times Magazine Sunday, Freeman Dyson—best known for his work in theoretical physics—discussed his belief that climate change is an issue that should be approached with skepticism. ScienceBloggers responded with thoughtful consideration. Dyson stated in the Times piece that while prevailing dogmas about climate change may be right, they deserve to be challenged. "That they do," conceded ScienceBlogger James Hrynyshyn from The Island of Doubt. "My only quibble is they are best challenged by those with a good grasp of the latest findings."
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Yesterday night I happened to listen to the BBC programme called The Bottom Line. Mr James Dyson was on. For those who are not aware, he is one of the finest engineers around.
Assigning any group to one of just two categories is usually little more than an exercise in stereotyping. What do you do with someone like Francis Collins, for example?
The department of Astronomy & Astrophysics is proud to announce a special colloquium by a distinguished visitor:
Like a lot of people I am more inclined to believe research that is in accord with my prior beliefs. Put another (Bayesian) way, I don't have to change my beliefs much on the basis of evidence. That means I don't question the evidence rigorously.