“Science is a body of knowledge and understanding generated by reason. As such, it is properly the fluid, since it is the whole thing that is science.”
I think we need to acknowledge that the aim of science is to discover facts, or particulars. That is, logic (reason) exists prior to facts, and is used as a medium to obtain and to propagate those facts.
Clearly, the analogy portraying science as the raft (particular, concrete, a posteriori facts) carried by the current of logic is more accurate. (It’s best not to try to hijack an analogy, because one’s familiarity with it is not likely to be as extensive as that of its author.)
“Reason is a logical process that stands on it’s own. It is not dependent on any being, or any premise for validity.”
Any particular line of reasoning must have a premise. But particular reasoning does not give general validity to reason itself. As I have stated, reason can be considered valid ultimately through faith alone.
"I think we need to acknowledge that the aim of science is to discover facts, or particulars."
No. The purpose is to know and understand the world.
"That is, logic (reason) exists prior to facts"
No. reason is a process and facts are simply beliefs. There is no validity to any temporal ordering of reason and any set of beliefs.
"science... is used as a medium to obtain and to propagate those facts.
No. It's as I said, Science is a body of knowledge and understanding generated by reason; it is the whole thing that is science. You are thinking of the scientific method, which is not science itself. Science itself includes everything.
"Clearly, the analogy portraying science as the raft (particular, concrete, a posteriori facts) carried by the current of logic is more accurate."
No. That's not clear at all. Also, a current represents a flow of something in time and is represented by: things/t. Logic is a process, which is not similar in any way to a flow. A body of knowledge and understanding with a commonality of having the property of being validated by the scientific method does have a similarity to flow and can be modeled mathematically as a flow: things/t.
"It’s best not to try to hijack an analogy, because one’s familiarity with it is not likely to be as extensive as that of its author."
Logic, reason and science are independent of any author. Either the analogy is a true representation, or it's not.
Re: "Reason is a logical process that stands on it’s own. It is not dependent on any being, or any premise for validity."
"Any particular line of reasoning must have a premise.
No.
" ...particular reasoning does not give general validity to reason itself.
Yes it does. Example: A=A.
" As I have stated, reason can be considered valid ultimately through faith alone."
Faith is simply belief in what someone has said, regardless of one's justifications for doing so. Reason requires rational justifications for it's validity, and as I said, it is author independent.