Scientific Thinking in Business

in #data6 years ago

Today's lesson was simple but powerful.

"Sometimes the only true answer is that we just do not know."

Even here, though, the scientific method is instructive, not for eliciting answers but rather for highlighting the limits of what can be known. We can’t help asking why Apple became so successful, or what caused the last financial crisis, or why “Gangnam Style” was the most viral video of all time. Nor can we stop ourselves from coming up with plausible answers. But in cases where we cannot test our hypothesis many times, the scientific method teaches us not to infer too much from any one outcome. Sometimes the only true answer is that we just do not know.

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/523661/scientific-thinking-in-business/