uncertainty is not the enemy (carlo rovelli)

The scientist rambles about uncertainty, science, and changes in personal philosophy, all prompted by an essay by the physicist Carlo Rovelli. If you don't read on for my musings, I just really recommend reading the essay; it's about a 5-10 minute read. Or just the extract at the end, which is the really salient bit, but I think the musings on how mathematics and science lead to that point are lovely as well (though I'm a scientist and therefore biased).

( Science, uncertainty, and personal philosophy )

"There is a profound lesson to be learned from de Finetti’s ideas, one that I believe relates to us all – to our daily and our spiritual lives, and to our lives as citizens: we cannot get rid of uncertainty. We can diminish it, but we cannot make it disappear. Hence we should not experience it as some kind of nightmare. On the contrary, we should be reconciled to it as our lifelong companion. In the end, it is a kind and good one. It is probability that makes life interesting. It is because of probability that we can be touched by the unexpected. It
is probability that allows us to remain open to further knowledge. We are limited and mortal, we can learn to accept the limits of our knowledge – but we can still aim to learn and to look for the foundation of this knowledge. It is not certainty. It is reliability."
- Bruno Finetti: Uncertainty is Not the Enemy', Carlo Rovelli