--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Why is it that you guys are so…" description: "\"“Why is it that you guys are so conservative in your views, in the face of the almost complete lack of understanding of what is going on in your field?..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fd/per-bak-87214_lack-of-understandin_why-is-it-that-you-guys-are-so-conservat_761004.jpg" --- # Why is it that you guys are so conservative in your views… ![“Why is it that you guys are so conservative in your views, in the face of the almost complete lack of understanding of what is going on in your field?” I asked. The answer was as simple as it was surprising. “If we [cosmologists] don’t accept some common picture of the universe, however…” quote by Per Bak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fd/per-bak-87214_lack-of-understandin_why-is-it-that-you-guys-are-so-conservat_761004.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fd/per-bak-87214_lack-of-understandin_why-is-it-that-you-guys-are-so-conservat_761004.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fd/per-bak-87214_lack-of-understandin_why-is-it-that-you-guys-are-so-conservat_761004.jpg) > ““Why is it that you guys are so conservative in your views, in the face of the almost complete lack of understanding of what is going on in your field?” I asked. The answer was as simple as it was surprising. “If we \[cosmologists\] don’t accept some common picture of the universe, however unsupported by the facts, there would be nothing to bind us together as a scientific community. Since it is unlikely that any picture that we use will be falsified in our lifetime, one theory is as good as any other.” The explanation was social, not scientific.”” [Per Bak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/per-bak/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Scientists may accept a prevailing theory for social cohesion even without full evidence, because consensus holds the community together. **In simple terms:** Community often chooses a theory for unity, not just proof. Key Takeaway Recognize social dynamics in scientific agreement. Themes science community philosophy of science Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical skeptical When to use this quote - research groups - peer review - conference panels - grant proposals - policy making Key Concepts social cohesion theory acceptance epistemic humility Questions to Reflect On - What role should dissent play in science? - How can we balance unity with critical inquiry? A Different Perspective Overreliance on consensus can stifle novel ideas. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conservative Views](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservative-views-1373661/) [Cosmologists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cosmologists-1387675/) [Cosmologists Don](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cosmologists-don-5901699/) [Lack of understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lack-of-understanding/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Surprising Cosmologists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surprising-cosmologists-5901698/) [Universe Unsupported](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe-unsupported-5901700/) ## Related quotes > [Cosmologists have attempted to account for the day-to-day laws you find in textbooks in terms of fundamental 'superlaws,' but the superlaws themselves must still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-davies/cosmologists-have-attempted-to-account-for-the-day-to-day-laws-you/) [Paul Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-davies/) > [Cosmology is serious business and in our hearts we are nothing if not cosmologists, hanging in a cold cage sifting the ruthless jewels of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-overbye/cosmology-is-serious-business-and-in-our-hearts-we-are-nothing-if-not/) [Dennis Overbye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-overbye/) > [“There is actually a certain value in not finding anything,’ he said. ‘It helps cosmologists to work out the rate at which galaxies are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/there-is-actually-a-certain-value-in-not-finding-anything-he-said-it/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [You go to the cosmologists and ask how they tell the history of the universe; you go to the geologists, how do they tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-christian/you-go-to-the-cosmologists-and-ask-how-they-tell-the-history-of-the/) [David Christian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-christian/) > [“Cosmologists are often in error but seldom in doubt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-landau/cosmologists-are-often-in-error-but-seldom-in-doubt/) [Lev Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-landau/) > [Cosmologists are often in error, but never in doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-landau/cosmologists-are-often-in-error-but-never-in-doubt/) [Lev Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-landau/) > [“Because I personally met astronomer and Nobel laureate Robert Wilson, I very much enjoyed reminding the audience of his discovery, in conjunction with Arno…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/because-i-personally-met-astronomer-and-nobel-laureate-robert-wilson/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [A lot of the cosmologists and astrophysicists clearly had been reading science fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederik-pohl/a-lot-of-the-cosmologists-and-astrophysicists-clearly-had-been/) [Frederik Pohl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederik-pohl/) > [If you're a progressive, you can find lots of people who call themselves conservatives, but who agree with you on lots of things. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-lakoff/if-you-re-a-progressive-you-can-find-lots-of-people-who-call/) [George Lakoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-lakoff/) > [What Andrew Cuomo said is, truly, a scandal. It's a scandal if he actually thinks it - that those who hold conservative views on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/what-andrew-cuomo-said-is-truly-a-scandal-it-s-a-scandal-if-he/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Uncle Matheson and my father would frequently argue long into the night about politics. Like me, he was all about socialism, togetherness and investing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robson-green/uncle-matheson-and-my-father-would-frequently-argue-long-into-the/) [Robson Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robson-green/) > [Conservatives . . . may decide to join the game and seek activist judges with conservative views. Should that come to pass, those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bork/conservatives-may-decide-to-join-the-game-and-seek-activist-judges/) [Robert Bork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bork/) > [I'm not a Republican, but I have some conservative views on certain things. I'm not a Democrat, either. It's just very difficult that these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/i-m-not-a-republican-but-i-have-some-conservative-views-on-certain/) [Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/) > [I have a lot of conservative views on a lot of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-leary/i-have-a-lot-of-conservative-views-on-a-lot-of-things/) [Denis Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-leary/) > [There are consequences for just expressing generally conservative views. And if those views take on the more extreme dint, the judgment can be swift.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-domenech/there-are-consequences-for-just-expressing-generally-conservative/) [Ben Domenech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-domenech/) ## More by Per Bak > [“An unlikely event is likely to happen because there are so many unlikely events that could happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/per-bak/an-unlikely-event-is-likely-to-happen-because-there-are-so-many/) [Per Bak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/per-bak/) > [“Because of their composite nature, complex systems can exhibit catastrophic behavior.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/per-bak/because-of-their-composite-nature-complex-systems-can-exhibit/) [Per Bak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/per-bak/) [Explore all 3 Per Bak quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/per-bak/) ## More Lack of understanding quotes > [“I sighed, he sighed, the wind and flowers sighed too. I think those marble statues sighed along as well, in their lack of understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-c-andrews/i-sighed-he-sighed-the-wind-and-flowers-sighed-too-i-think-those/) [V.C. Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-c-andrews/) > [“He realized how easy it was to present an appearance of orthodoxy while having no grasp whatever of what orthodoxy meant. In a way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/he-realized-how-easy-it-was-to-present-an-appearance-of-orthodoxy/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“How was your day?” he asked. I faltered, unaccustomed to the question. The look on my face must have been strange because he laughed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaylynne-spauls/how-was-your-day-he-asked-i-faltered-unaccustomed-to-the-question-the/) [Kaylynne Spauls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaylynne-spauls/) > [“Children perceive frightening ghosts and monsters and dragons and they are terrified. Yet if they ask someone they trust for the meaning of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foundation-for-inner-peace/children-perceive-frightening-ghosts-and-monsters-and-dragons-and/) [Foundation for Inner Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foundation-for-inner-peace/) > [“By lack of understanding they remained sane. They simply swallowed everything, and what they swallowed did them no harm, because it left no residue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/by-lack-of-understanding-they-remained-sane-they-simply-swallowed/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“I suspect that if we can build such ultra-intelligent machines, then the first one will be severely limited by the software we’ve written for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-tegmark/i-suspect-that-if-we-can-build-such-ultra-intelligent-machines-then/) [Max Tegmark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-tegmark/) > [“In order to live a meaningful life, humans need answers, i.e., a certain understanding of basic existential questions. These ‘answers’ do not have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-fr-h-svendsen/in-order-to-live-a-meaningful-life-humans-need-answers-i-e-a-certain/) [Lars Fr. H. Svendsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-fr-h-svendsen/) > [When we enlarge our view of the world, we deepen our understanding of our own lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yo-yo-ma/when-we-enlarge-our-view-of-the-world-we-deepen-our-understanding-of/) [Yo-Yo Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yo-yo-ma/) > [Confusion and clutter are failures of design, not attributes of information. And so the point is to find design strategies that reveal detail and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-tufte/confusion-and-clutter-are-failures-of-design-not-attributes-of/) [Edward Tufte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-tufte/) > [Education, n.: That which discloses to the wise and disguises from the foolish their lack of understanding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/education-n-that-which-discloses-to-the-wise-and-disguises-from-the/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [My biggest problem with everything going on is the lack of understanding and the lack of respect in this world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-griffin/my-biggest-problem-with-everything-going-on-is-the-lack-of/) [Blake Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-griffin/) > [“The wonderful world of human relationships is a rich mixture of backgrounds, perceptions, habits, preferences, behaviors, and motivators. These differences can create barriers to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/the-wonderful-world-of-human-relationships-is-a-rich-mixture-of/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [“The secularizing 'values' and events that have been predicted would happen in the Muslim world have now begun to unfold with increasing momentum and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syed-muhammad-naquib-al-attas/the-secularizing-values-and-events-that-have-been-predicted-would/) [Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syed-muhammad-naquib-al-attas/) > [Birds... scream at the top of their lungs in horrified hellish rage every morning at daybreak to warn us all of the truth. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-cobain/birds-scream-at-the-top-of-their-lungs-in-horrified-hellish-rage/) [Kurt Cobain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-cobain/) > [Is my understanding only blindness to my own lack of understanding? It often seems so to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-wittgenstein/is-my-understanding-only-blindness-to-my-own-lack-of-understanding-it/) [Ludwig Wittgenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-wittgenstein/) [Browse all 138 Lack of understanding quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lack-of-understanding/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Why is it that you guys are so conservative in your views, in the face of the almost complete lack of understanding of what is going on in your field?” I asked. The answer was as simple as it was surprising. “If we [cosmologists] don’t accept some common picture of the universe, however unsupported by the facts, there would be nothing to bind us together as a scientific community. 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