Quoting from my favourite encyclopaedia:
Fringe science is a phrase used to describe scientific inquiry in an
established field that departs significantly from mainstream or orthodox
theories. Fringe science can be a field of inquiry which is not yet
considered a real "science" (known as a protoscience), but which
nevertheless bears some resemblance to the norms of the scientific
method. Fringe science is, by definition, at the fringes of an already
accepted discipline. Based upon the merits of the hypothesis and methods
of the inquiry, specific instances of fringe science may or may not come
to be included in the canon of actual science.
Fringe science can be distinguished from some similar sounding, but
pejorative in nature, categories as follows:
* Pseudoscience - Pseudoscience is notoriously lax in rigorous
application of the scientific method. Reproducibility is typically a
problem. This is not so in fringe science.
* Junk science - Junk science is used to describe agenda-driven
research that ignores certain standard methodologies and practices in an
attempt to secure a given result from an experiment. Fringe science, as
in standard methodology, proceeds from theory to conclusion with no
attempt to direct or coax the result.
* Bad science - Bad science might more properly be labeled "poor
science" in that it is typically characterized by substandard or
"sloppy" methodology. Fringe science maintains the normal standards of
methodology.
Steve
-----Original Message-----
From: wikien-l-bounces(a)Wikipedia.org
[mailto:wikien-l-bounces@Wikipedia.org] On Behalf Of Fastfission
Sent: Friday, 16th December 2005 4:54 AM
To: English Wikipedia
Subject: Re: [WikiEN-l] SPOV threatens NPOV
On 12/15/05, David Gerard <fun(a)thingy.apana.org.au> wrote:
This resembles a circular argument.
Is there any word or phrase in *common usage* (i.e., we
can't coin a
Wikipedia-only neologism) that covers what is
meant by
"pseudoscience"?
"Not considered science by the mainstream scientific
community though it presents itself in scientific terms." I
don't know if any simple way to do it, though.
FF
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