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1. Thou shalt not anthropomorphize.
2. Thou shalt be a critical thinker.
3. Thou shalt not think teleologically--not everything on this planet is for some purpose.
4. Thou shall be parsimonious in all of thy explanations for what you observe. That is, thou shalt not invoke a complex explanation of a behavior when a simpler explanation will do.
5. Thou shalt think of testable hypotheses to explain what thee observe. That means that what you propose should be ethically and practically "do-able," and that the result will indicate clearly that one and only one interpretation is possible.
6. Thou shalt extend your compassion to all living things, and endeavor to put species-ism aside.
*Anthropomorphism:
Attribution of human
motivation, characteristics, or behavior to inanimate objects, animals,
or natural phenomena.
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*Compassion:
Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve
it.
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*Critical:
Characterized by careful, exact evaluation and judgment: a critical reading.
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*Parsimony:
A rule in science and philosophy stating that the simplest of two or more
competing theories is preferable and that an explanation for unknown phenomena
should first be attempted in terms of what is already known.
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*Species-ism:
Human intolerance or discrimination on the basis of species, especially
as manifested by cruelty to or exploitation of animals.
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*Teleology:
Belief in or the perception of purposeful development toward an end, as
in nature or history.
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