this post was submitted on 27 Dec 2025
478 points (93.6% liked)

Science Memes

20668 readers
3227 users here now

Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!

A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.

Meta Post Tags

Rules

  1. Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
  2. Keep it rooted (on topic).
  3. No spam.
  4. Infographics welcome, get schooled.

If you are here asking: "Is this a science meme?"

Probably, yes. We use the Dawkins definition of meme: a replicating idea, not just an image macro with a fact on it. A good post here doesn't need to teach you something. It needs to make you ask something: who, what, where, when, and especially why or how.

Science isn't a filing cabinet of facts, it's a conversation. For example, a photo of an eel or other localized wildlife counts because most people never see one, and wonder is the first step of inquiry. A car meme counts if it makes you curious about what's under the bonnet. If you want to talk about something you noticed in the world, chances are someone else wants to talk about it too.

We moderate for vibe, not category. Pruning is light, especially where a post creates interesting discussion. Experimenting is encouraged.

See the pinned paper on Shitposting as Public Pedagogy if you want the academic case for why this works.

Research Committee

Other Mander Communities

Science and Research

Biology and Life Sciences

Physical Sciences

Humanities and Social Sciences

Practical and Applied Sciences

Memes

Miscellaneous

founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
Sal@mander.xyz
fossilesque@mander.xyz
SciBot@mander.xyz
fossilesque@lemmy.dbzer0.com
478
We wouldn't listen, anyway. (mander.xyz)
submitted 6 months ago by fossilesque@mander.xyz to c/science_memes@mander.xyz
109 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] theneverfox@pawb.social 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

But that's exactly what I'm saying. There are elephants out there contemplating morality. Even dogs do it, even if it's massively based on the rules we impose on them

Not math though. Math exists in the minds of humans, it doesn't even exist in the universe. There is no two of anything, there's one object and another similar object

What does exist are ratios and harmonics, and animals have no problem understanding them

[–] yeahiknow3@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 children)

Math exists in the minds of humans, [not animals].

This is incorrect. Every animal we’ve ever researched, including insects like bees, can do arithmetic.

Anyway, not a single one of the examples you’ve given involves second-order reasoning. These are all prosaic interactions with the environment, which is how most animas (yes, including dumb humans) experience the world.

First-order reasoning: “What is moral?” Second-order reasoning: “Do moral beliefs constitute knowledge claims?”

First-order reasoning: “One plus one is two.” Second-order reasoning: “number theory is either inconsistent or incomplete.”

First-order reasoning: “What does this word mean?” Second-order reasoning: “How do words connect with their meanings?”

The examples I gave you are extreme, but to be fair so is your confusion.

[–] theneverfox@pawb.social 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I believe that orcas are out there having philosophical debates and singing stories of their history and mythology that dates back even further than our own. I don't think they're doing math proofs, but if they are I'd be curious what base they use

All the cutting edge science suggests we're not special. We are not different in kind from animals

Since science became a thing, we've been drawing lines between us and animals since we could no longer gesture to the soul. We've progressively disproven every single one. I've had this debate over various lines so many times

It's human arrogance