In a recent episode of the Increments Podcast, the host explores a fundamental pitfall in scientific thinking: the search for the "essence" of things. The video argues that essentialism—the belief that every entity has an inherent, unchanging core—has historically misled scientists and philosophers.
Drawing on examples from physics and biology, the podcast explains that essentialism leads to oversimplification and resistance to new evidence. Instead, science progresses by focusing on relationships, mechanisms, and observable behaviors rather than imagined essences.
The full episode, which contrasts the views of Berkeley and Newton on gravity, delves deeper into how abandoning essentialism allows for more dynamic and accurate models of reality.