Quote:
Originally Posted by orchidsarefun
surely the reverse also applies ? it can't be a myth without the empirical data to support that conclusion ?
|
Myths do not necessarily have to hold up or be real at all.
Could they?
Some of them could end up being true if we searched out whether they are true or not. Many myths are not true.
A good example of a claim ending up to become true would be, (keep in mind this is a way over-simplified story here, and I could be getting some of the details a bit off):
A long time ago, when Western Europeans decided they wanted to colonize and explore Africa. Some explorers started seeing an animal they didn't recognize, but the Africans living in the jungle did. When these Europeans came back to Europe to tell their story of an oversized monkey without a tail, many people laughed at them and thought they were fabricating a story.
For years, this animal was considered a myth.
Well, somebody had the guts to say, "I'm tired of the ridicule", and finally prove that this animal existed.
What is this animal?
We now know this animal as the gorilla.
On the flip side, we have:
(I'm going to keep this example local, because I don't really know how this relates to other countries. Again, the story is way over-simplified and could have some details missing.)
Lobotomies...
There was a time in the US, all the way up to our recent past, (probably up till as early as the 1980's, if I'm not mistaken), lobotomies were a popular surgical procedure to treat mental patients with severe psychological disorders.
The reasoning behind this procedure was that it "calmed the mental patients down".
The reality is that many people who had lobotomies didn't really survive them. The procedure was crude and the results did not coincide with the claim. It didn't necessarily "calm them down".
Somewhere down the line, something happened, (I really don't know what, but I assumed someone challenged this convention). And guess what, this convention was proven wrong somehow, (like I said, I don't know the details)!
Quote:
Originally Posted by orchidsarefun
As far as I am aware there is no scientific research to disprove the effects, real or imagined, of the impact of moon phases. I have asked, and until there is some presented, then you can only be presenting your opinion.
The correct answer to the OP is therefore that nobody has proved or disproved it - but there ARE a lot of opinions.
|
Yes, I would have to agree.
Quote:
Originally Posted by orchidsarefun
Well, despite the absence of scientific fact, I do still believe there is something to it.
|
That's fair. There could be something to it, I just don't know what that really is.
Quote:
Originally Posted by orchidsarefun
So, if I understand you correctly you are saying its plausible but because its not scientifically proven, their conclusions are doubtful ? Or invalid ?
|
I'm saying it's plausible, but because there's no scientific evidence to back the claim up and make it stand, then their conclusions are doubtful or
could be invalid.
Quote:
Originally Posted by orchidsarefun
If the purpose is to get a pod to successfully set, then who cares whether there is a scientific basis?
|
Imo, I think you should. It can greatly affect your understanding of things. It can vastly change your strategies based on your understanding of how an orchid really works.
Quote:
Originally Posted by orchidsarefun
I ask that seriously. I have read tips - never remove the pollen from the recipient's bloom, pollinate more than one bloom on the stem, pollinate at a week old, pollinate at 2 days old, pollinate only in the mornings...and so on. Its up to me to try them out or not. I don't start out by thinking - well where's the scientific proof and if there is none, its a myth. You have to take into account it may have worked for them.
|
Some things like what you're mentioning are not necessarily worth the time to do an experiment on. You've even expressed it yourself, and I'm going to agree with you.
However, in all honesty I don't think any of those claims about pollen hold up, but whatever,
this is my opinion...
Quote:
Originally Posted by orchidsarefun
As it is there are so few people who propagate orchids, I would like to encourage everyone to at least try. Its not that complicated and shouldn't be made out to be.
|
Well, the point of proposing the experiment was that somebody wanted to know if it was fact or myth. I honestly don't know whether it is fact or myth. To test it out and validly come up with a strong explanation that stands, an experiment is in order, otherwise all you'll be getting are opinions.
Linear Mode
