bfisk,
could you explain your reasoning for flat plates and cambered airfoils existing in different worlds from an aerodynamical point of view?
I don't quite see how my previous post would lead to such a conclusion, perhaps my post was ambiguous.
My reason for bringing up the two as examples, is that the flat plate disproves the common misbelief that "air has to meet at the trailing edge"/"longer way" way of thinking, and the fact that a cambered wing will produce lift at 0 angle of attack disproves the other common misbelief that the underside of the wing has to deflect air downwards in order to produce lift. Thus both theories are equally valid.
The question remains, to which extent are these phenomena responsible for the creation of lift on a modern airfoil; I think the general consensus is that the lower pressure above the wing/pressure gradient (ref Bernoulli) is stronger than the reaction from the downward displacement of mass (ref Newton).
As I wrote:
But one does not exclude the other.
I think we agree in general.