I have heard that some anthropologists now have a more complicated view of the cargo cults. They argue that, even if there was some notion of making cargo appear, their main purpose was more political and social. It was an opportunity for the locals to move around in organized groups, even march around doing military drills, without causing the colonial leadership to panic and retaliate. It would bind people together socially and get them used to coordinating under a leader, whose legitimacy would be enhanced.
Sometimes people now claim that "cargo cult science" is not really a good analogy and should be abandoned.
However, I think this newer understanding of cargo cults may actually make it an even better analogy.
Even if a line of scientific ideas is mostly fake and its research practices can't possibly lead to truth, participating in this ritual of fake research, giving talks about it, and other science-shaped activities, still does bind the participants together. It lends prestige to the leaders of the field. It gives everyone a way to coordinate politically around securing funding and legitimacy from higher powers for their fake research area. And we've seen you really can keep a field going this way for a very long time even if the planes never land.
Sometimes people now claim that "cargo cult science" is not really a good analogy and should be abandoned.
However, I think this newer understanding of cargo cults may actually make it an even better analogy.
Even if a line of scientific ideas is mostly fake and its research practices can't possibly lead to truth, participating in this ritual of fake research, giving talks about it, and other science-shaped activities, still does bind the participants together. It lends prestige to the leaders of the field. It gives everyone a way to coordinate politically around securing funding and legitimacy from higher powers for their fake research area. And we've seen you really can keep a field going this way for a very long time even if the planes never land.