Subject Area: History and Philosophy of Science

Science is a major 'player' in modern society—which is why there are significant intellectual and cultural struggles over its image, and why public understanding of science matters. A very important aspect of these struggles is contestation about how science works. This course examines contrasting accounts of how science works as a system of knowledge production, as a social system, and as a basis for manipulating the world through technology. Both philosophical and sociological accounts are considered. In particular, the course will canvass: empiricism and Logical Positivism, falsificationism, Kuhnian normal and revolutionary science, research programs and traditions, epistemological anarchism, philosophical naturalism, scientific realism, Mertonian sociology of science, sociology of scientific knowledge, actor-network theory, technologism, cultures of expertise, public understanding of science, and the supposed automation of scientific research through the development of ‘sci-bots’.