Snuffy's understanding of what I meant is right - the method of science is not wayward (in most cases - there's always one), but the speculations arising from the study of gathered data certainly can be, and often is.

I don't think this is a bad thing - some of the concepts physicists and mathematicians work with require a fair dollop of imagination and can be difficult to understand. When doing above mentioned degree (much to my lasting regret I never finished it due to work committments - one day though . . .) we looked a facies analysis. This is where you look a sequence of rocks and through interpretaion speculate how they came to be laid down. The books all say one thing - let nobody tell you how any specific sequence was laid down - decide gor yourself. Question, question, question - the basis of good science.

This is why I question Sedayne's interpretation of green men - although having thought about a fair bit since this thread started his theory is beginning to sway me a little more and I might change my point of view, I'll read up on it a bit more. His views on the survival of pre-christian fragments of belief I don't share - in my opinion the evidence for continuity is very strong, and I think he's wrong to dismiss the work of people like Ann Ross who is an academic of excellent reputation.

But then that's the way the process works. Get ten palaentologists in a room discussing the evolution of flight in avian dinosaurs and you'll get ten different opinions on how it happened (chuck in an ornithologist and he might even dispute the fact birds are dinosaurs). Plenty of hard evidence, lots of bones to study, lots of feathered dinosaurs, very little true consensus of opinion except on the broadest of issues.

I see no harm in speculating about the origin of many of our customs and beliefs. It's easy to sit on the sidelines and throw stones at people who are discussing theories, putting forward ideas etc without putting any of your own forward. Belittle away, but I'd rather be searching the woods for Jack-in-the-Green and treading in deer shit than sat at home rummaging through books. I'll never find evidence of his actual existence in the woods near my house, but something tells me he might just be there. If you stop and listen closely, you can hear his laughter amongst the rustle of the autumn leaves . . .