Intuition and Logic are two strategies for prediction and problem solving. We hear so much about the virtues of logic that we'd be excused to believe that
logic was somehow the superior method, but a quick analysis shows that most
actions we perform on a daily basis mainly use intuition. Logic is not better, just different. Both strategies have their advantages and
apply in different situations. Sometimes we need to use both. Sometimes we can
use either one, because the problem is so simple it doesn't much matter how we
solve it. Sometimes it matters; if we happen to choose the wrong approach, it
may prevent us from solving our problem.
Logic is used a lot in the hard sciences, such as Mathematics, Physics, and
Chemistry. We can think of most of mathematics, including things like the rules
of Algebra, as part of a framework that is anchored in Logic. Physics and
related sciences use logical and mathematical models to describe the
world. These models are what allows the hard sciences to be so accurately
predictive.
Intuition is what we use to handle everyday problems such as predicting limb
positions and controlling muscle movement, to understand and generate speech, to
read, to analyze what we see, to drive a car, etc. In short, all the things we
do that we take for granted and which we do "without thinking". Many of these
are non-trivial and hard or impossible to do using current computer
technology.
I think in most major decisions it's important to use both. And definitely as you said some questions can only be answered with logic. Answering chemistry questions with intuition isn't going to give you many correct answers. My herbal teacher stressed the importance of having a strong knowledge base as a foundation and then using intuition to choose between multiple good choices. He told us stories of people who wanted to use herbs with intuition alone consuming poisonous plants. It is impossible to know all that is to be known, but it makes good sense to learn facts from books and other people and apply the known knowledge to make logical decisions. Intuition saves us from making decisions that are less than the best or even wrong, though there is no known logical reason that it's not the best choice. For example I was making a cream for a man with a bad skin rash once. I wanted to put plantain in as it's a cooling antiinflammatory herb and it just made a lot of logical sense to use it. But i had this sixth sense that i shouldn't, so I didn't put it in the cream. Then when i saw the man i was trying to show him that he can simply mash up certain herbs, such as plantain, and put them on for relief. When I put the plantain on he said it felt as though it was making the inflammation worse. I knew then that my earlier intuition not to put it in the cream was correct.
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