Which Science is the Most Basic?

Physics might be considered the most fundamental of all sciences, for all other sciences derive from basic principles of forces, motion, electromagnetism and thermodynamics. And yet, physical laws are mathematical models of the world; however, mathematics itself is abstract, deriving from theoretical constructs of philosophy. But, philosophy arises out of theories of mind, or psychology. The mind itself depends upon the biology of the brain....which is nothing but chemical reactions of molecules, such as neurotransmitters and proteins. And of course, chemistry depends upon the behavior of atoms and forces, which is constrained by physics..... Physics, mathematics, philosophy, biology, chemistry, or physics -- the eternal loop.

David Brin's books include The Postman, Startide Rising,and The Uplift War, as well as his non-fiction work, The Transparent Society, dealing with issues of privacy and secrecy. For more information about David Brin, visit his website: http://www.davidbrin.com/
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[MrRichardQED]

@GoodScienceForYou You can stop a particle to a halt by cooling it down to 0 kelvin (well as close as you can get anyway), and store it under the right conditions. But that doesnt matter here, even if it wouldnt be possible in practice, that wont change the fact that some particles would have mass when you stopped thewm to a halt, and others wouldnt. Its just a matter of computing the amount of mass they have thanks to the energy f.rom moving, and see if there is a mass beside that.

[ProfessorDJINN]

@CyberFad Sounds like your talking about the fundamental laws of nature. That something exists, or something can be called a "science" are two different things.

[matchbox555]

@DeepBlueDJinn no, the physical world is real, and science is the study of physical principles that happen in the real universe. math is just a interpretation of that, a shadow of it. much like a digital instrument cannot replicate a physical instrument.

[mateo3470]

@DeepBlueDJinn

Metaphysics is a mental (brain) operation. In that case, it's observable in the brain. We have come full circle in our understanding, but at some level there are paradoxes to self-understanding. Platonism has perception backwards. God is just a word. I have not seen any agreed-upon definitions. Anyway, definitions never bottom out. When your only tool is a hammer, everything resembles a nail. This is the word "God".

[DeepBlueDJinn]

@mateo3470 Science is comprised entirely of observables. That which cannot be observed falls into some other category. Therefore by most people's definition science can neither prove or disprove the existence of a god. Unless this god is nice enough to appear in a laboratory for study. In which case it is a physical being. Perhaps super powerful, advanced, incredibly smart, but not a 'god'. Therefore Metaphysics is not a science. Its about the observables.

[DeepBlueDJinn]

@matchbox555 'Math is just a shadow of the physical world', 'Math is not real' . The same can be said of the science of physics, which, did I mention, is actually just applied math. If you cannot state a concept in the language of mathematics it is not physics. It is philosophy. You sound more and more like a philosophy major.

[matchbox555]

@ProfessorDJINN math is not real, its just a shadow of the physical world

[ProfessorDJINN]

@matchbox555 Physics is applied math. If it can't be expressed in the language of mathematics its not physics, its philosophy.

[mateo3470]

What really gets you caught in this hierarchy is anti-realism.

[mateo3470]

@metal87power

Who's metaphysics?