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The techniques of perspective have achieved invisibility through omnipresence. Filippo Brunelleschi's Florentine peep-show captured the world in two dimensions and made reality virtual.
Scientific good practice — disinterested, communal, universal — is not ‘blobby’ idealism, but a social framework to which researchers must conform if they are to prosper. Now, this contract with society is up for renegotiation.
The existence, or otherwise, of atoms was hotly debated for several centuries. In the early 1800s, Eilhardt Mitscherlich's descriptions of crystal structures enraged some, but struck a decisive blow for the 'atomist' cause.
The idea that viruses might cause tumours inadvertently led to the discovery of cellular growth genes that can promote cancer formation — but usually in the absence of viruses. This success rapidly outgrew the original idea.