Orac (a physician-researcher) on the difference between science and religion, and rebutting the anti-science fallacy that science is just like religion:
HIV/AIDS denialism versus science : Respectful Insolence.
Ah, yes, the comparison of science to religion and scientists and physicians to priests! ... I've read it on so many anti-science websites and blogs that I long ago lost count, and it's a common misconception (or outright lie) that frequently needs to be refuted. Religion, after all, requires belief in things that, by its adherents' own admission, can't be proven; indeed, religion is all about strong (or even absolute) belief without evidence. This is in marked contrast to science, which is all about tentative, provisional belief only after there is adequate evidence. More importantly, science is about subjecting those tentative beliefs based on evidence to further testing and overthrowing the ones that can't stand up to that testing. The difference between science and religion couldn't be more stark.
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