Science & Magic

Because of its irrationality, scientists for the most part reject the theories of magic. They dismiss magic as being "a practice of superstition" which is "founded in illusion" ("Magic," 1991, p. 1003). At best, the scientific view accepts theories of magic as being mere "pseudosciences." Even then, rational scientists complain about the irrationalities of pseudosciences. These irrationalities can be seen, for example, in the use of statements and hypotheses which cannot be refuted (Radner and Radner, 1982, p. 38). Arthur Koestler is a scientific writer who has claimed that the ESP experiments of J. B. Rhine provide evidence that psychic phenomena exist. Nevertheless, Koestler admits that much of the evidence in support of psychic phenomena is based on personal experience, and thus cannot be proved (Koestler, 197

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efore makes the idea of magic more credible to some scientists. In addition, recent discoveries in the field of physics have lent some credibility to the theories of magic and psychic phenomena. In particular, quantum mechanics and relativity are two areas of physical science which deal with nonrational occurrences in nature. Discoveries by physicists such as Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, and Werner Heisenberg show that the universe is more mysterious than previously believed by the scientific community. In this new physics, for example, it has been discovered that a photon (the smallest component in an atom) can paradoxically appear as either a wave or a particle under different circumstances. Thus, instead of the structured atomic world described by classical physics, modern scientists have discovered an "ambiguous wave/particle duality of atomic systems which are irrevocably disturbed by the act of observation" (O'Leary, 1989, p. 36). Thus, with the new physics, the old scientific models of the universe are crumbling. Scientists are no longer positive about what reality is comprised of, and therefore the world has become more mysterious and irrational than before. Many people agree that the new discoveries in science pr
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Approximate Word count = 1850
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)

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