zeteticism
Etymology
From zetetic + -ism.
zeteticism means A form of skeptical investigation into the pseudoscientific and paranormal, championed by Marcello Truzzi. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 100 out of 100.
Why “zeteticism” is a great word
ZETETICISM — [Noun] A method of skeptical inquiry, particularly into pseudoscientific and paranormal claims, that emphasizes active investigation and evidence-gathering over outright dismissal or acceptance. From zetetic (from Ancient Greek ζητητικός (zētētikós, "inquisitive, seeking")) + -ism (denoting a practice or system). Unlike skepticism, which can be a passive posture of doubt, or dogmatism, which is a rigid adherence to doctrine, zeteticism is the humble, perpetual practice of hands-on seeking. It is the investigator on a misty moor at dawn, measuring electromagnetic fields where a ghost was reported; the chemist in a home lab, methodically replicating the recipe for a perpetual motion machine; the astronomer pointing a telescope at the reported coordinates of a UFO, notebook in hand. This is the quiet work of testing the world's wonders—a pilgrimage toward a truth that may forever recede, found in the looking, not in the certainty.
noun
- A form of skeptical investigation into the pseudoscientific and paranormal, championed by Marcello Truzzi.