Of What Value is Skepticism?

Skepticism is demanding a logical proof and reason (cause, explanation or

justification) on a concept before believing it. It is undesirable to believe a
proposition when there is no ground whatever for supposing it true. said
Bertrand Russel. Skepticism broadens the view of the eye and allows one to
challenge the rights and the wrongs in a multitude of ways. Skepticism builds
a road of rational conclusions that leads to a definite destination. Skepticism
validates the veracity of our beliefs and claims; putting it to a grinding test. But
what value does scepticism hold in society today?
About a year ago Johannes Bohannon, Ph.D., research director of the institute of
diet and health claimed that people on a low-carb diet lost weight 10% faster if
they ate a chocolate bar every day. The article made the front page of Bild
(Europes largest daily newspaper) making news in more than 20 countries and
half a dozen languages. Soon after this, however, the author himself posted an
article on his blog titled How I fooled millions into thinking chocolate helps
weight-loss. He admitted on this blog that the study he carried consisted of
merely 18 people, 16 of which were controls. This completely de-validated his
conclusions since in theory there were only 2 test subjects that could have lost
weight due to several other factors which were left unconsidered. This
proposition however, not having been challenged, found millions of credulous
believers all over the world. Had publishers and reporters of any one of those
leading magazines and newspapers been more skeptical about accepting his
claim, there would have been no such deceiving theory in the first place. This
demonstrates the importance of skepticism in debunking the fibs of society
today.
Personally, I have been able to seize on the positive aspects of skepticism. While
writing conclusions based on science experiments in my lab reports, I make sure
to convince every skeptic. I try to answer every conceivable question that my
results might raise. This broadens my understanding of the subject I am
researching and allows me to arrive at coherent and logical conclusions about
my hypothesis.
Skepticism might well be aiding the revelation of truths and rationality of studies,
however, sometimes it can be looked down upon in society. Bertrand Russell says
that people hold those opinions more passionately for which no good ground
exists. He believes that passion is thus the measure of the holders lack of
rational conviction. Opinions in politics and religion are almost always held
passionately. People hate any skeptic challenging these beliefs. Therefore, the
more rational we are, the harder our social existence is. This is mainly because
skeptics demand rationality and logic and challenge the holy cows of the society.
Imagine anyone questioning the ethics and morals of his nation in its actions
against another country, especially during war. He or she will definitely be
condemned, socially boycotted and even be tried for sedition.
On the other hand, skepticism can also be held responsible for killing some
brilliant ideas moulded by intuition. One example could be Einsteins view of the
magnitude of deflection of light by gravitation that was solely based on his

intuition at first. Only later was it proved to be right. If it was today that someone
came up with a theory such as this with no concrete evidence, it would have
been considered preposterous, for all the skeptics would have questioned it to
death.
Skepticism can also kill creativity since sometimes creativity cannot be explained
in a logical fashion. Who would have thought that uploading videos on a website
would make the multibillion business that it is today, Youtube; or a platform for
sharing pictures would be such a successful business as Facebook. There might
not have been valid justifications for these creative businesses when they
started off but the energy of great ideas such as these would have definitely
been killed if they were exposed to skepticism.
When I chose creating a cupcake cookbook as my grade 10 personal project,
my dad did not like it. I was extremely excited to execute my idea but my dad
didnt quite think it would make a great high school project. He wanted me to do
something more valuable. I was convinced about the success of this project but
I couldnt answer his skeptical questions. I knew that my idea was great but I just
didnt have the right words to reason it then. In spite of my dads constant
questioning of my idea, I went ahead with it, unsure. I made the cookbook I
wanted and presented my product in the personal project exhibition. Not only did
my dad love the product but also did I receive a 7 for it. My dads skeptic
questions could have destroyed my project, thats the impious power of
skepticism.
In conclusion skepticism sure is a useful tool for better getting to know things
around us and questioning irrational convictions, however it can also have the
potential to kill brilliant, creative and intuitive thoughts and ideas. Thus we must
choose wisely where we use our skepticism and use it in limits when we do.

Bibliographies

Bohannon, J. (2015, May 27). I Fooled Millions Into Thinking Chocolate Helps
Weight Loss. Here's How. Retrieved September 28, 2015, from http://io9.com/ifooled-millions-into-thinking-chocolate-helps-weight-1707251800

Russell, B. (n.d.). On The Value of Scepticism. Retrieved September 29, 2015, from
http://www.positiveatheism.org/hist/russell4.htm