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Why did Pascal question whether human beings could
achieve scientific certainty?

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Answer/Explanation:

After his vision and newfound purpose of pursuing religion, Pascal tried to convert rationalists to Christianity by appealing to both their reason and their emotions. Humans were, he argued, frail creatures, often deceived by their senses, misled by reason, and battered by their emotions. And yet they were beings whose very nature involved thinking: "Man is but a reed, the weakest in nature; but he is a thinking reed."

Despite his own background as a scientist and mathematician, Pascal refused to rely on the scientist’s world of order and rationality to attract people to God: "If we submit everything to reason, there will be no mystery and no supernatural element in our religion."

Thus, Pascal believed that humans were swayed by their own emotions, morals, etc. that they could never completely achieve scientific certainty without having bias.

Hope this helped you in any way!

User Derric Lewis
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