Charming But Irrational
I thought religions were comprised of Paladins and Clerics.
In either case, you are wrong. The true Wizards of this world are politicians, my friend. Case in point: by waving their hands and screaming random gibberish (Freedom! Liberty! Justice!) they can make other people explode, even on a different continent.
That's one hell of an Extended Fireball.
edited 30th Sep '11 9:40:39 AM by Korochun
When you remember that we are all mad, all questions disappear and life stands explained.
Fwomph
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Horrible delay though.
Must Keep The Web Intact
Is that cake frosting?
What about subclasses?
Some choices are obvious:
- Chemists are alchemists.
- Physicians are all about healing magic.
- Biologists and the like are nature mages.
- Engineers are artificers.
- Psychologists are experts in mind magic.
Some are harder, but here's my attempt:
- Computer Scientists are golem-makers and summoners.
- Physicists are a bit all over the place, but they tend to deal with raw energies and with the very matter of creation. Perhaps I'd say that they are elementalists — the name would fit chemists better, but the metaphysical role of the traditional four elements is closer to that of elemental particles than to that of chemical elements...
- Mathematicians are diviners and meta-mages — their powers do not affect the world directly, but they allow them to infer information and to increase the power of other kinds of magic.
One huge difference between Science and Magic: Would most people enjoy learning magic? Yes. Do most people enjoy learning Math and Science? No.
This is a signature. It is not interesting. Please continue whatever you were doing, it is surely more fascinating.
Is that cake frosting?
I dunno. Given the relative scarcity of spellcasters in most universes, I'd guess that learning magic to a passable level would require a non-trivial amount of effort too.
One thing that Science has over most magic systems is that it is far more democratic.
It could not care less on whether you are the seventh son of a seventh son or if you have a small amount of dragon blood in your ancestry or if the planets were aligned properly at the time of your birth: all it requires is willpower and intelligence, and more of the former than of the latter.
Oh, and it also requires enough money and health to pursue these studies without too many distractions. That's nowhere as common as it should be.
Oh, and returning to the theme of subclasses: logicians —especially set theorists and the ones who study non-standard logics — are clearly alienists, messing haphazardly with Things Man Was Not Meant to Know and Going Mad From The Revelation with distressing frequency.
Have I ever said that I love my job? 
edited 18th Jan '12 1:42:10 PM by Carciofus
But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.
Undersea Badass
Mathematics, especially statistics, is basically divination if you squint. That realization was what fueled my math and comp-sci geekery as a kid.
Spooky Scary Boneheaded Man
Oh my God, it makes too much sense.
No wonder I roll Battlemage every time I try to play Skyrim...
"The Stick has sentimental value. It's like an enormous, hideous teddy bear we can kill things with." -rikalous
Great, I'm an NPC 
So does that means the world's only some life simulation?
And does that means the world in Dinosaurs era were rendered in 8-bit?
GENIUS!, THE EVIL
No. Clearly the dinosaurs were textbased. Adoi.
The Fantabulous
Physicians aren't really scientists though - Their doctorates are actually honorary as they don't need to submit a thesis for it.
Maybe physicians are Clerics and surgeons are Paladins (They do more of the dirty work/are hands on), who use magic/scientifically derived treatments but aren't in the business of understanding it like wizards/scientists. The specialists are just members of different sects and hence don't communicate very well.
As for learning science, I love it and I know a lot of people in science course who do - not everyone has the right mindset to enjoy the study, kinda like how not everyone becomes a wizard in most fantasy settings. Studying science also follows the Linear Warriors, Quadratic Wizards model of leveling - You start of learning very little about science (In primary/secondary school) which seems to have little to no use in the real world. But if you persevere and enter university level study, suddenly the world is at your finger tips.
edited 16th Apr '14 12:58:13 AM by Lt.BGob
“Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?”
Think about it - wizards spend hours figuring out complex spells written in esoteric languages which allow them to control the universe.
Tell me, exactly, how this is any different at all from the formulas that chemists and physicists use. I'm waiting.
Heck, just take a look at the origins of all our science - astronomy and alchemy. Both were originally just branches of mysticism, and treated with the same regard in early cultures as all other magical rituals.
We even have a "white magic vs. black magic" thing going on, at least going by the fact that religion and science haven't exactly gotten along.
I dunno, I just sort of had an epiphany about this, and had to share. I mean, I've just discovered that my chosen profession makes me a real-life wizard, and that's kind of exciting.