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Scientism and Scientific Knowledge of Things and God

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Book cover Mathematical Undecidability, Quantum Nonlocality and the Question of the Existence of God

Abstract

What is scientism? It may be defined as a philosophical interpretation of modern science. In other words, scientism is not science but a philosophical view of science. It is based on the assumption that one day, in the future, science will be able to understand everything. One day human beings will enjoy absolute and total knowledge of the world. And this knowledge will imply an unlimited power and would finally lead to complete happiness. As a consequence, the idea of God is of no further help for man, because hope for a better future will have become obsolete.

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Notes

  1. Louis de Broglie: “Les idées qui me guident dans mes recherches”, Albin-Michel, Paris, 1966, in Un itinéraire scientifique, p. 149, Editions La Découverte, Paris, 1987.

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  2. Plato, Timaeus 90 a-e.

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  3. Aristotle, De philosophia, Fr. 10 R.

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  4. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica I, quaest. 2, art. 3.

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  5. The Bible, Psalm 18.

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  6. Thomas Aquinas, op. cit., I, quaest. 2, art. 3.

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  7. Laplace, Essai philosophique sur les probabilités, p. 3, Gauthiers-Villars, Paris, 1921.

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  8. Auguste Comte, op. cit., Lesson 2, p. 64.

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  9. Auguste Comte, op. cit., Lesson 3, p. 76.

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  10. Auguste Comte, op. cit., Lesson 1, p. 39.

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  11. Auguste Comte, op. cit., Lesson 1, p. 39.

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  12. W.A. Mozart, “The Magic Flute”, Act two, Scene. 7, No. 21 Finale.

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  13. Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, Les objets fragiles, pp. 231–232, Plon, Paris, 1994.

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  14. Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, op. cit., p. 232.

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  15. Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, op. cit., pp. 232–233.

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  16. Cf. Plato, The Republic, Book VII.

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  17. Pierre-Gilles de Germes, op. cit., p. 14.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Paris, France

    Jacques Laeuffer

Authors
  1. Jacques Laeuffer
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Physics, University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands

    Alfred Driessen

  2. The Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, Geneva and Zurich, Switzerland

    Antoine Suarez

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© 1997 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Laeuffer, J. (1997). Scientism and Scientific Knowledge of Things and God. In: Driessen, A., Suarez, A. (eds) Mathematical Undecidability, Quantum Nonlocality and the Question of the Existence of God. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-5428-4_12

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-5428-4_12

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-6283-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-011-5428-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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