Great Ideas of Philosophy IV -- Empiricism vs Reason

Two great ideas that underlie the methodology of Science are empiricism and reason.  In the days of Descartes and Newton, some thought these were in conflict.

My view is that they are complementary -- empiricism tells us what to observe, and reason tells us first what we may expect as observable and second how to make sense of the observable.

Empiricism -- "the theory that all knowledge is derived from sense-experience. Stimulated by the rise of experimental science, it developed in the 17th and 18th centuries, expounded in particular by John Locke, George Berkeley, and David Hume."

Reason (or Rationalism) -- "a belief or theory that opinions and actions should be based on reason and knowledge rather than on religious belief or emotional response"