Science Has No End!

Professor Wang Xi spread his hands. "And the claim online that Einstein studied theology in his later years is even less credible."

"Einstein made it clear on many occasions that he did not believe in any religion. You can look it up online. Before his death, he wrote a letter about religion and philosophy."

"In that letter, Einstein explained his consistent view of God, which was later dubbed Letter on God!"

"And the word 'God' used by Einstein did not refer to the God of religion, but to Spinoza's God—the physical laws of the entire world."

At this point, the professor's expression gradually turned serious.

"Not only Newton and Einstein. While browsing online, I also came across a widely circulated survey called the Gallup Poll."

"The survey claimed that among the three hundred most famous scientists of the past three hundred years, aside from thirty-eight whose beliefs could not be determined, 242 of the remaining 262 scientists believed in God, while only twenty did not!"

"I believe everyone here who has been online has heard of this survey. But when I went back to consult the literature, I could never find its source. This so-called Gallup Poll was a survey that no one in academia had ever seen..."

"Besides, modern science did not even exist three hundred years ago. True modern science has only a history of a little over one hundred years. Why didn't this survey use scientists from the past hundred years as its sample, instead choosing scientists from the old era three hundred years ago?"

"Forget three hundred years ago—even two hundred years ago, religion still held enormous influence. Even if some scientists were atheists, in the extreme social atmosphere of the time, would they have dared to openly express their true feelings?"

Professor Wang Xi paced as he spoke, rebutting each point one by one until the audience fell utterly silent.

"With that question in mind, although I never found that Gallup Poll, I did find a survey in the opposite direction..."

"That survey showed that in 1914, 27% of members of the North American Academy of Sciences still believed in 'god,' but by 1998, the proportion had dropped to only 7%. That's a pretty rapid decline, isn't it?"

"Of course, even if only 7% of academy members believed in 'god,' that would still make for quite a long list, hehe..."

Professor Wang Xi chuckled. "I know some people must be unconvinced, saying, 'You claim the survey about scientists believing in religion is fake, so why should your survey be real?'"

"Sorry, but my survey really is real!"

As he spoke, Professor Wang Xi switched on the projector, and a screenshot of a paper immediately appeared on the enormous screen.

"This paper was published on July 23, 1998, in one of the world's top scientific journals, Nature, in Volume 394, page 313. Its title was—Leading scientists still reject God!"

At once, enthusiastic applause erupted from the audience.

"Now, let's return to the original question."

Professor Wang Xi strode about proudly. "Since the phrase 'the end of science is theology' was said neither by Einstein nor Newton, then who exactly said it? I searched through a great deal of scientific literature, but found no answer."

"So, I came up with a bold guess..."

Professor Wang Xi's gaze gradually grew solemn. "That sentence was definitely said by silly netizens!"

"HAHAHAHA!"

The audience burst into laughter, and many people began applauding again in unison.

"In fact, there are many similar rumors. For example, 'Scientists spent thousands of years climbing to the mountaintop, only to discover that theologians and Buddhist scholars had already been waiting there,' or, 'Religion without science is blind, but science without religion cannot move forward,' and so on."

Professor Wang Xi was so angry that his beard quivered and his eyes bulged. "If you search these keywords online, you'll find that the entire internet is filled with this kind of rumor. The rumor-makers have even fabricated countless seemingly profound quotes from famous figures. And because these rumors are so 'positive,' some authoritative websites have even reposted them. There are enough to make one shudder!"

"Yet the posts debunking these rumors are few and far between, drowned in an endless ocean of misinformation..."

With a sigh, Professor Wang Xi continued, "I do not deny that there are still many things in this world that modern science cannot explain—for example, the 'soul.'"

"I don't know whether souls truly exist. But even if they do, a soul would merely be a yet-undiscovered 'form of life' or 'natural phenomenon.'"

"Modern science being unable to explain the existence of the soul does not mean that the soul lies beyond science. It simply means science is not advanced enough to explain the principles behind its existence."

Professor Wang Xi chuckled. "I know that after hearing this, some people will offer what they believe to be an objective warning: don't 'blindly believe in science.' And I find that strange—why should there be such a thing as 'blindly believing' or 'not blindly believing' in science? Do you perhaps think science is a religion?"

"I am not asking everyone to hate religion. Religion, as a form of belief, attributes humanity and all things to an omnipotent god. Although it has many flaws, it did indeed bring prosperity and stability to humanity during ignorant and backward times, providing fertile ground for the birth of scientific thought."

Professor Wang Xi explained patiently, "But science and theology truly are two different things..."

"The reason science differs from theology is that it does not require anyone to believe in it. Nor does it merely put forward its own viewpoints; instead, it directly proves itself through observational data and experimental results."

"Our attitude toward science should be completely objective, detached from subjective consciousness, because experimental results do not change according to people's perceptions."

"Whether you believe or disbelieve, love or hate, persist or give up, the results of scientific experiments remain right there!"

Professor Wang Xi's voice gradually rose, filled with strength.

"Science is not a religion. It is the operating laws of this world, the microscopic particles that make up this world, and the way of describing the world that has ultimately emerged from the conclusions of countless experiments!"

"It is something completely objective. Whether or not you have discovered it, it has always been there and has never changed!"

The applause below grew even more fervent. Countless students rose to their feet and clapped with all their might.

In the old professor, they seemed to see the shadows of those scientific pioneers of the past, who had devoted themselves without hesitation to defending the truth.

Ascoli, the first to discover that the Earth was spherical; Copernicus, who upheld Heliocentrism; Servetus, discoverer of pulmonary circulation; and Galileo, the founder of modern experimental science...

At that moment, everyone came to an understanding.

The end of science would not be theology, because...

Science had no end!

Dog Bear wrote this passage because Dog Bear had seen far too much of this charlatan nonsense online about "the end of science is theology." Dog Bear was furious, but being insignificant and unheard, could only do this small part to remind everyone: when someone tries to feed you that nonsensical "chicken soup" about "the end of science is theology," please retort righteously: "Science has no end."