This week we talked about feminist philosophy of science, diversity arguments, and the history of science. We read about other knowledge communities, e.g. polynesian navigators, and used this to discuss what we mean by "science". Are polynesian navigators scientists? We came up with the following list of attributes often used to describe, or even define, western science.
How Scientists would define Science
After discussing what it means to be a "scientist", we spent a significant amount of time writing down our most recent goals for the course (also known as the GISP, short for Group Independent Study Project).
GISP Goals
How Scientists would define Science
- Massive amounts of discrete information
- Not dependent on context
- Defined process
- Empirical, testable predictions
- Generalizable
- Certification program (apprenticeship training)
- Intellectual Authority
- Models (equations, etc.)
- Value Neutral
After discussing what it means to be a "scientist", we spent a significant amount of time writing down our most recent goals for the course (also known as the GISP, short for Group Independent Study Project).
GISP Goals
- Critical self-reflection from those in the scientific community
- Convince scientists to see themselves as a community
- Convince scientists to acknowledge that subjective knowledge has validity
- Distinguish visibility versus invisibility among scientists
- Make concealed narratives more visible
- Transform educational structure