The presumption of naturalness is the principle that any natural phenomenon should be considered artificial if and only if all natural / known explanations have been exhausted; one of the manifestations of Occam's razor in astrophysical studies [1] .
Offered by astrophysicist Joseph Shklovsky at the Soviet-American symposium, which took place at the Byurakan Observatory of the Academy of Sciences of the Armenian SSR in the fall of 1971 , as a principle that should be strictly observed in the study of any object and phenomenon in Cosmos, and accepted by all participants [2] .
Content
Support
Proponents of the presumption of naturalness argue that it serves as a defense of that part of science that is associated with the problem of extraterrestrial civilizations , from projection and myth-making [3] .
Criticism
The presumption of naturalness has been repeatedly criticized for the fact that the natural explanations of a phenomenon cannot practically be exhausted (for example, an immediate meeting and communication with a representative of an extraterrestrial civilization can be explained by hallucination , the origin of the “EC representative” from the human “secret laboratory”, the mystification and the like). To opponents of the hypothesis of the existence of extraterrestrial life, this makes it possible for any object / phenomenon in the Universe to find an explanation that would “prove” that this object / phenomenon is of natural or human origin [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] .
The basic principles giving the right to introduce new entities is a social necessity and the impossibility to do without introducing new assumptions. Both of these principles are interrelated and interdependent.
So in jurisprudence the presumption of innocence is based on the principle of humanism of justice.
The presumption of artificiality, the opposite of the presumption of naturalness, is only justified if its introduction is based on social necessity, on the fact that it is impossible to do without it. And this social need was justified by N.S. Kardashev in his article “On the strategy of search for extraterrestrial civilizations”. What is the social necessity of the presumption of artificiality? In that it gives the necessary optimism for the survival of humanity in the future. Sufficient level of optimism is more difficult to achieve due to the uncertainty of the future.
In this regard, it is logical to say that the presumption of scientifically based optimism of new knowledge is more necessary for society than the presumption of naturalness.
Penetration of culture
The presumption of naturalness was considered in the works of science fiction writers such as Pavel Amnuel [10] , Ray Bradbury [11] and others.
See also
- SETI
- Anthropocentrism
- Extraterrestrial civilization
Sources
- Ок “Occam's razor and the structure of the solar system”, S. Yazev, Ph.D., senior researcher at the Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Irkutsk
- ↑ Shklovsky I. S., “On the possible uniqueness of intelligent life in the Universe.” - M .: [IKI Publishing House], 1976. - 30 p.
- ↑ Chernyshova T. A. Fantastic and modern natural philosophy myth-making. // Artistic creation. Collection. - L. , 1983. - P. 58-76.
- “The problem of extraterrestrial civilizations. Philosophical and methodological aspects. ”, V. V. Rubtsov, A. Ursul, D., Chisinau: Shtiinets, 1984.
- ↑ Lem Stanislav. The amount of technology. - M .: Mir, 1968. - p. 85.
- Пр “The Charm of Mystery 2”, Furdui R.S., Kiev, “Libid”, 2001.
- ↑ “Silence of the Universe?” L. M. Gindilis, Ph.D. Sciences, employee GAISH , a member of EAAS , Delphis. 1999. No. 3 (19). Page 70-77; No. 4 (20). WITH.
- ↑ “On the criteria for the correctness of scientific criticism” , Polykovsky Lev, October 3, 2008
- Возмож “Possible causes of short-term lunar phenomena” (TLP) , Arkhipov AV, Radio Astronomy Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kharkov.
- "I can not sacrifice principle"
- Мар "Martian Chronicles" / chapter "Earthlings" , Bradbury R., 1950 - a parody of the presumption of naturalness.
Literature and sources
1.N.S.Kardashev. On the search strategy for extraterrestrial civilizations / Astronomical Journal, M .: Nauka, 1979. P. 252-274
2.L.A.Polykovsky. On the criteria for the correctness of scientific criticism. https://www.proza.ru/2011/04/23/1103 3.10.2008
3.L.A.Polykovsky. On the presumption of optimism. https://www.proza.ru/2019/04/17/504