But science is fundamentally a fractious process. Not only is it possible to be scientific yet wrong, that is the usual state of affairs for most researchers. Only in stagnant fields is it otherwise. Sadly, it often seems that scientists and educators are ashamed to reveal this. These steps are so divorced from everyday life that people conclude they could never apply critical scientific thinking themselves.
Science seems like a difficult truth to be revealed by high priests, and then forgotten.
Yet the power of scientific reasoning derives from the fact that, in principle, anyone can apply it. Unlike magic, science does not endow individuals with special powers. Thus I trust, say, Stephen Hawkings' theorems even though I've never derived them myself. Since anyone should be able to reproduce scientific results, someone should eventually notice if the results were wrong. This trust in the social process of science saves us from paralysis.