Page Four
Softball Intramurals
SCIENCE IS A
A few months ago a book which
should be of interest to all college
people was published. This book
pokes a bit of tongue-in-cheek fun at
all scientists and science in 'general,
and it tears each major field of sci
ence down separately. We feel that a
reading of this sort would be a re
freshing change from the dogmatic
teachings of these same sciences, and
that it might also provide some real
food for thought and tempering of
the acceptance of "scientifically
proven" facts.
The name of this bit of lit is "Sci
ence Is a Sacred Cow" and it was
written by Anthony Standen, a grad
uate of Oxford and M. I. T. Who is
better equipped to criticize scientists
but another scientist?
Generally Mr. Standen exposes the
"scientific method" as only the pa
tient use of horse sense. Every stu
dent has heard expounded the value
of "correlations," one of the re
searcher's favorite words. When a
scientist measures two things and
finds that when one of them changes,
the other does also, he has a high cor
relation. Often, then, he argues that
one thing caused the other. That line
of reasoning runs something like: a
man gets drunk on Monday on rye
and soda water; he gets drunk on
Tuesday on gin and soda water; on
Wednesday he gets drunk on Scotch
and soda water. What caused his
drunken condition? Obviously the
common factor—the soda water.
The author becomes specific in
pointing out to his fellow workers the
major discrepancies in each one's
field.
Physics
This oldest and most respected sci
ence has its own limitations. Physics
is extraordinarily indirect. There are
catches in it right from the start.
Example: Aristotle said the heavier
of two weights would fall faster; but
Galileo, by dropping two different
weights from the leaning tower of
Pisa, "proved" that Aristotle was
wrong, for the weights were found to
fall in exactly the same time. Yet Ar
istotle was right. Air resistance held
back the lighter weight •more than it
did the heavier. The difference was
very slight and not detectable; but
since scientists use words with such
great precision, we must hold them to
it. If you press the point, they will
readily admit that what is meant is
that the two bodies will fall equally
fast in a vacuum. If you press further
they will reluctantly admit that no
body has ever produced a complete
vacuum.
It turns out in the end, that Aris
totle, not the physicist, is talking
about the actual world in which we
Biology
Standen then asks, "Does Biology
have the virtues of science?" He says
that is questionable. Very little •can
be found in a course in Biology that
HAZLETON COLLEGIAN
SACRED COW
can be called scientific. To illustrate
The fundamental stuff of all living
matter is called protoplasm—all liv
ing matter is organized into cells (ex
cept slime molds) the lowest ani
mals have only one cell—the body of
any higher animal, including man,
shows many resemblances to that of
a cat anabolism and catabolism
stimulus and response—thallophytes,
bryophytes, pteridophytes, spermato
phytes—and so on and on until the
end of the course; and where in the
name of heaven is there anything
scientific in that? You can get full
marks in the course without encoun
tering any train of reasoning.
The Theory of Eivolution is a theo
ry that has by no means been tested
by experiment. Biologists have been
breeding banana flies for forty years;
they have produced many wierd flies.
But they have never succeeded in ev
oluting this fly into one of a different
species, much less into any more dis
tant creature. Just the same scientists
have been saying, "Scientists always
test their theories by experiment," so
often that by sheer dint of repetition
it has come to be believed by every
body else, and even by the scientists
themselves.
Psychology
Psychologists are the unhappiest
crowd of all. They like to believe that
they base their conclusions on fact
substantiated by scientific evidence
but they don't Two of their favorite
postulates are "All human behavior
has a cause" and "Potentially all ha
man behavior can be measured and
described." There is no experimental
proof of these interpretations. Some
human behavior may have a cause,
and some can be measured and de
scribed, but these sweeping state
ments about all human behavior are
nothing but a pious hope. Psycholo
gists pay lip service to the scientific
method, and use it whenever it is
convenient.
But when it doesn't suffice they
make wild leaps into cloudy theory,
sped only by their jet-propelled fan
cy.
There is little agreement in psy
chology either; there are many points
about which it is only possible to
say: "Freud and his followers see it
this way, the Alderians see it some
other way, while the Watsonian be
havorists don't see it at all. It is
probable that in the future people
will regard present-day psychologists
in the same way which we look back
at the medieval schoolmen who de
bated how many angels could dance
on the head of a pin.
The Social Sciences
There is a group of extremely busy
people who are zealously writing such
papers as "Sample of 1001 Remarks
Overheard in Manhattan." These peo
ple call themselves social scientists.
There are plenty of reasons why the
Social Sciences aren't sciences at all;
there are even some of these people
who will admit this. One of the
Top Sports Activity
Wreckers and Wheels Dominate
First Half Play
The chief topic of conversation and
interest in school activities this
spring season is the competition be
tween student teams in the intramu
ral softball league. There is really a
lot of spirit and enthusiasm gener
ated by these games, and it is carry
ing over in all phases of school life.
The Wreckers figure to be a top team
in the circuit due largely to the fact
that Zack Taylor began rounding up
talent early in the season and gar
nered himself a bunch of very good
boys. The Wheels pulled a mild upset
over the Dormers and have been
strong since.
These Dormers figure to give plen
ty of trouble to all corners with big
George Woods blazing in his under
hand slants. The Northsiders have a
lot of that Freeland spirit which al
ways, means a fight; Jack Sipple's
Mountaineers are another club with
the will to win. The Collegians figure
to surprise the experts with some hus
tle and sharpening. A seventh team,
the Deadenders, was admitted in the
second week of play. They got off to
a slow start but experience may bring
improvement.
We will not attempt to give won
lost records now for they are con
stantly changing and will be posted
on a chart which Syd is now prepar
ing. This will show a day-to-day rec
ord of league action.
Girls Team, Too
The Women's Organization has
formed a girls' softball team and ex
pect to compete with the boys' teams,
other girls' teams and perhaps a fac
ulty team in a game similar to the
basketball nightmare. The girls have
some real stars in their ranks and al
though they haven't played any
games against outside competition,
they figure to give any opponent no
tice that they are playing softball.
Miss Wood, coach, warns, "Don't un
derestimate us!"
biggest reasons is that there isn't
anything fixed or constant about
what the sociologist studies. Thus Dr.
Kinsey's celebrated report is mistitled
"Sexual Behavior in the Human
Male;' it should be "The Sexual Be
havior of 5,300 Men Who Were Will
ing to Talk About It."
In the same light, the sociologist
calls his investigations, "The testing
of a hypothesis." He will frame the
hypothesis that there is a positive
correlation between income and Re
publicans and then he goes out and
"tests" this theory. If a biologist
wishes to know how many toes a cat
has he simply gets a cat and counts.
A social scientist prefers the more
long winded expression every time
because it gives an entirely spurious
impression of science to what he is
doing.
These exerpts are a representative
sample of the author's message. We
have quoted liberally from Mr. Stan
den and Life Magazine's review of
his book—" Science Is a Sacred Cow."
HUC Students Will
Compete In Tourney
Mr. Syd Rudman announced that a
series of competitions in tennis, golf,
lacrosse, and soccer will take place at
the cr—pus on the week-end of May
19 and 20.
The azleton Center will be repre
sented in at least two of these catego
ries o.' competition. The competition
will be among the campus teams,
teams from the various centers, and
other colleges. If you are interested
in these matches as a spectator or
participant contact Syd as soon as
possible.
Table Tennis Elimination
The elimination to determine
HUC's best ping-pong paddler will
begin soon. All games will be played
on the second floor of Memorial
Dorm at the convenience of the con
testants. The regular play will be
conducted on a best out of three ba
sis. The finals will be a best out of
five arrangement. A chart of entrants
and their progress is posted on the
stairway bulletin board in Old Main.
May the best ping-ponger prevail!
BURT WRITES...
Nice People
By BURT MINKIN
PSC, US ARMY
I spent ten wonderful months in
the state of Pennsylvania, in the city
of Hazleton with the nicest people in
the world. I wish that every student
in the country could be in Pennsylva
nia because I am sure that each stu
dent and each graduate would be a
happier person. You students at HUC
are especially fortunate; for besides
having a beautiful school you also
have a good, young teaching staff—
young enough to realize the needs of
young people, because they them
selves are not too long out of
school.
And with wonderful fellows head
ing the administration, studying,
schooling, and playing should be an
easy task because of their closeness
to each student. Right now I'm a stu
dent of Uncle Sam in the state of
Texas but if and when I do go back
to school it will be back to "Dear Old
State."
FINE PAINTINGS
WILL BE HERE
The Hazleton Art League is spon
soring an exhibit of Modern Ameri
can Painting from the Corcoran Gal
leries in Washington, D. C. This ex
hibition will be free and open to all
interested people from May 10 until
May 30 at the Masonic Temple.
Mr. Carpenter tells us that this is
a rare and valuable opportunity to
see original works of famous Ameri
can painters.
May 12, 1950