Actually, this kinds of reminds me of Stanovich's Dysrationalia and also of Eliezer's "Outside the laboratory", if only more uncompromising and extreme than those two. Then again, I tend to have a charitable interpretation of what people write.
People also did this historically because some categories intuitively seemed more concrete than others. We're moving away from that because those categories have been explored thoroughly enough that we can see the links between them, and which new hybrid categories this points to.
But, yes, you're right, the frontier is moving, and cool stuff awaits beyond.
I think this is the best piece of advice overall. You are likely not going to convince your father, whose opinions probably even predate your birth. The real thing at stake here isn't scientific truth, and trying to convince him is to fight the wrong battle.
People have a lot of beliefs they don't feel the need to constantly justify to others, and I think it's an accepted social convention to seek shelter in that principle. Being evasive and using relativism can help : admitting you can't be sure about science and evolution is an acceptable compromise if y... (read more)
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