I disagree - I think that although science ought to be practiced like that, it often isn't - people frequently go into experiments with a very clear idea of what they'd like out of them (indeed, to develop an experimental hypothesis is to make a fairly fundamental statement about the desired outcome).
I think you, or possibly Chiang, are putting the consciousness in the wrong place. Magic works if the universe has a consciousness that can respond to the magic user's request. Superstition works if the universe recognises and processes symbols, although it needn't necessarily do so consciously. Science works even though the universe has no symbol processing capability at all, at least at present (Ubiquitous Computing Power may change that, see Stross et al.)
Add me to the list of people surprised that Chiang's distinctioin is new to Niall: the above is how I define fantasy. For instance, some have said Groundhog Day could be science fiction; I say no, it's fantasy, because the Bill Murray character finds himself in a universe that responds to actions according to moral criteria. That only works if the universe in question can understand morals.
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Date: 2005-12-01 03:00 pm (UTC)I think you, or possibly Chiang, are putting the consciousness in the wrong place. Magic works if the universe has a consciousness that can respond to the magic user's request. Superstition works if the universe recognises and processes symbols, although it needn't necessarily do so consciously. Science works even though the universe has no symbol processing capability at all, at least at present (Ubiquitous Computing Power may change that, see Stross et al.)
Add me to the list of people surprised that Chiang's distinctioin is new to Niall: the above is how I define fantasy. For instance, some have said Groundhog Day could be science fiction; I say no, it's fantasy, because the Bill Murray character finds himself in a universe that responds to actions according to moral criteria. That only works if the universe in question can understand morals.