reductionism vs holism

[AntonioLao]

Reductionists believe that all of physical reality is comprehensible by studying the parts that comprise the whole. On the other hand, holistic philosophers believe that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
When applying these philosophies to the study of the universe, quantum mechanics would represent the reductionist approach, while general relativity would represent the holistic approach. Reductionism is a particle formalism in contrast to the field formalism of holism. However, the combined approach would be represented by a quantum field theory. The approach that studies the interactions of particle and field. Nevertheless, the question remains: which is more fundamental? Vector field? Or scalar field? Vector field deals with magnitude and direction, while scalar field deals only with magnitude.

[jim barlow]

A general human psychological horizon of concern is delimited by pleasure and pain and their derivatives fear and longing. Scientific instrumentalism is ultimately within this perview although it seems to overcome it.
When however a mystery cannot be answered from where one stands it seems there is a need to step out into more complexity and have another look from a broader horizon. This is the response to mystery rather than the answers one may come up with from the new landscape.
The incompatibility of quantum and relativity theory seems to be such a stimulus. We must step into a larger picture. Spacetime perhaps will be the first to go from relativity but we will find "more" instead.
I can easily imagine more evolved creatures than humans (a little sci fi here) whose brain functions are powered by stars for example. Correspondingly the complexity "they" perceive will be correspondingly higher. Nor may it include ours as a subset but be totally different...