Here are some examples of scientism or scientistic beliefs:

1. The belief that scientific knowledge is the only genuine knowledge, and that other ways of knowing (such as moral, aesthetic, or religious knowledge) are not valid or as valuable. This strong form of scientism claims that science is the only path to truth and understanding.

2. The idea that everything can and should be understood through natural laws and scientific methods, excluding supernatural or non-empirical explanations. For example, explaining all complexity in life solely through evolution and genetics while dismissing other perspectives.

3. Reductionism, where complex phenomena such as human emotions or social behaviors are reduced entirely to physical or biochemical processes, ignoring psychological, cultural, or social contexts.

4. Pure technocracy, the belief that scientific and technical experts should govern or make decisions on all societal issues, based solely on empirical evidence, assuming that science can optimize all aspects of life including ethics and economics.

5. The claim that science does not have boundaries and will eventually solve all human problems and answer all important questions, often coupled with an uncritical faith in continuous scientific progress.

6. Over-reliance on scientific methods and data to the exclusion of other approaches, sometimes described as the "law of the instrument" where science is seen as the only tool to understand and solve a problem.

These examples illustrate how scientism extends scientific principles beyond their appropriate scope, often dismissing other ways of knowing or human experience.

Perplexity