Oh, I agree with you that nature vs. nurture is a false dichotomy, but I was actually cheered to see this exchange. As terrible as it is by our epistemic standards, it’s actually quite sophisticated by Star Trek standards. (So much of what gets called science fiction is actually technology fantasy.) I was similarly cheered to see the other exchange that I posted from that episode: he actually used the word hypothesis! Real philosophy of science! On Voyager! I love it! Best episode ever!
And you can see how this is still a rationality quote despite the conceptual confusion. Janeway is trying to break through Harren’s contempt, but Harren resists her cliches and insists on (what he erroneously thinks is) accuracy.
So which of the two characters exemplifies rationalist virtues? It seems to me we’ve got one who’s trying to use clichés to “break through” to the other, and one who’s just stubbornly wrong.
Oh, I agree with you that nature vs. nurture is a false dichotomy, but I was actually cheered to see this exchange. As terrible as it is by our epistemic standards, it’s actually quite sophisticated by Star Trek standards. (So much of what gets called science fiction is actually technology fantasy.) I was similarly cheered to see the other exchange that I posted from that episode: he actually used the word hypothesis! Real philosophy of science! On Voyager! I love it! Best episode ever!
And you can see how this is still a rationality quote despite the conceptual confusion. Janeway is trying to break through Harren’s contempt, but Harren resists her cliches and insists on (what he erroneously thinks is) accuracy.
So which of the two characters exemplifies rationalist virtues? It seems to me we’ve got one who’s trying to use clichés to “break through” to the other, and one who’s just stubbornly wrong.