Author: Jan De Winter
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1498529348
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 197
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Book Description
Scientific research is often influenced by financial interests, political interests, or personal career interests of the scientists involved. For instance, the pharmaceutical giant Merck manipulated clinical trial data in order to make sure that data confirmed the safety of one of its products, Vioxx, in order to serve the company’s short-term commercial interests. This case is obviously unacceptable. But why exactly is it unacceptable? One way to account for this judgment is on the basis of the ideal of purity. According to this ideal, scientific decision-making should be pure— that is, unaffected by financial interests, political interests, career interests, and so on. Although this ideal is questionable, many people (including philosophers of science) still hold on to it. In Interests and Epistemic Integrity in Science: A New Framework to Assess Interest Influences in Scientific Research Processes, Jan De Winter first argues that it is better to fully abandon the ideal of purity, then proposes an alternative ideal to assess interest influences in science: the ideal of epistemic integrity. He spells out and systematically defends a new concept of epistemic integrity, using it not only to analyze the Vioxx debacle, but also to identify unacceptable interest influences in aerospace science, climate science, and biology, and to explain exactly why these interest influences are unacceptable. These analyses make a compelling case for the new concept of epistemic integrity which will be interesting and useful for philosophers of science, scientists, engineers, science policymakers, and anyone else concerned about the integrity of science.
Author: Linda C. Gundersen
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119067685
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 344
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Book Description
Science is built on trust. The assumption is that scientists will conduct their work with integrity, honesty, and a strict adherence to scientific protocols. Written by geoscientists for geoscientists, Scientific Integrity and Ethics in the Geosciences acquaints readers with the fundamental principles of scientific ethics and shows how they apply to everyday work in the classroom, laboratory, and field. Resources are provided throughout to help discuss and implement principles of scientific integrity and ethics. Volume highlights include: Examples of international and national codes and policies Exploration of the role of professional societies in scientific integrity and ethics References to scientific integrity and ethics in publications and research data Discussion of science integrity, ethics, and geoethics in education Extensive coverage of data applications Scientific Integrity and Ethics in the Geosciences is a valuable resource for students, faculty, instructors, and scientists in the geosciences and beyond. It is also useful for geoscientists working in industry, government, and policymaking. Read an interview with the editors to find out more: https://eos.org/editors-vox/ethics-crucial-for-the-future-of-the-geosciences
Author: Heather E. Douglas
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Pre
ISBN: 082297357X
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 227
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Book Description
The role of science in policymaking has gained unprecedented stature in the United States, raising questions about the place of science and scientific expertise in the democratic process. Some scientists have been given considerable epistemic authority in shaping policy on issues of great moral and cultural significance, and the politicizing of these issues has become highly contentious. Since World War II, most philosophers of science have purported the concept that science should be "value-free." In Science, Policy and the Value-Free Ideal, Heather E. Douglas argues that such an ideal is neither adequate nor desirable for science. She contends that the moral responsibilities of scientists require the consideration of values even at the heart of science. She lobbies for a new ideal in which values serve an essential function throughout scientific inquiry, but where the role values play is constrained at key points, thus protecting the integrity and objectivity of science. In this vein, Douglas outlines a system for the application of values to guide scientists through points of uncertainty fraught with moral valence.Following a philosophical analysis of the historical background of science advising and the value-free ideal, Douglas defines how values should-and should not-function in science. She discusses the distinctive direct and indirect roles for values in reasoning, and outlines seven senses of objectivity, showing how each can be employed to determine the reliability of scientific claims. Douglas then uses these philosophical insights to clarify the distinction between junk science and sound science to be used in policymaking. In conclusion, she calls for greater openness on the values utilized in policymaking, and more public participation in the policymaking process, by suggesting various models for effective use of both the public and experts in key risk assessments.
Author: Roman Z. Morawski
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 3111180034
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 566
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Book Description
Unlike the bulk majority of publications on philosophy of science and research ethics, which are authored by professional philosophers and intended for philosophers, this book has been written by a research practitioner and intended for research practitioners. It is distinctive by its integrative approach to methodological and ethical issues related to research practice, with special emphasis of mathematical modelling and measurement, as well as by attempted application of engineering design methodology to moral decision making. It is also distinctive by more than 200 real-world examples drawn from various domains of science and technology. It is neither a philosophical treaty nor a quick-reference guide. It is intended to encourage young researchers, especially Ph.D. students, to deeper philosophical reflection over research practice. They are not expected to have any philosophical background, but encouraged to consult indicated sources of primary information and academic textbooks containing syntheses of information from primary sources. This book can be a teaching aid for students attending classes aimed at identification of methodological and ethical issues related to technoscientific research, followed by introduction to the methodology of analysing dilemmas arising in this context.
Author: Catherine Z. Elgin
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262341387
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 351
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Book Description
The development of an epistemology that explains how science and art embody and convey understanding. Philosophy valorizes truth, holding that there can never be epistemically good reasons to accept a known falsehood, or to accept modes of justification that are not truth conducive. How can this stance account for the epistemic standing of science, which unabashedly relies on models, idealizations, and thought experiments that are known not to be true? In True Enough, Catherine Elgin argues that we should not assume that the inaccuracy of models and idealizations constitutes an inadequacy. To the contrary, their divergence from truth or representational accuracy fosters their epistemic functioning. When effective, models and idealizations are, Elgin contends, felicitous falsehoods that exemplify features of the phenomena they bear on. Because works of art deploy the same sorts of felicitous falsehoods, she argues, they also advance understanding. Elgin develops a holistic epistemology that focuses on the understanding of broad ranges of phenomena rather than knowledge of individual facts. Epistemic acceptability, she maintains, is a matter not of truth-conduciveness, but of what would be reflectively endorsed by the members of an idealized epistemic community—a quasi-Kantian realm of epistemic ends.
Author: Hans Radder
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780822962267
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
Selling science has become a common practice in contemporary universities. This commodification of academia pervades many aspects of higher education. This volume offers the first book-length analysis of this disturbing trend from a philosophical perspective and presents views by scholars of philosophy of science, social and political philosophy, and research ethics.
Author: Kevin C. Elliott
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1009059548
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 138
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Book Description
This Element introduces the philosophical literature on values in science by examining four questions: (1) How do values influence science? (2) Should we actively incorporate values in science? (3) How can we manage values in science responsibly? (4) What are some next steps for those who want to help promote responsible roles for values in science? It explores arguments for and against the “value-free ideal” for science (i.e., the notion that values should be excluded from scientific reasoning) and concludes that it should be rejected. Nonetheless, this does not mean that value influences are always acceptable. The Element explores a range of strategies for distinguishing between appropriate and inappropriate value influences. It concludes by proposing an approach for managing values in science that relies on justifying, prioritising, and implementing norms for scientific research practices and institutions.
Author: Martin Carrier
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9048190517
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 483
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Book Description
We increasingly view the world around us as a product of science and technology. Accordingly, we have begun to appreciate that science does not take its problems only from nature and then produces technological applications, but that the very problems of scientific research themselves are generated by science and technology. Simultaneously, problems like global warming, the toxicology of nanoparticles, or the use of renewable energies are constituted by many factors that interact with great complexity. Science in the context of application is challenged to gain new understanding and control of such complexity—it cannot seek shelter in the ivory tower or simply pursue its internal quest for understanding and gradual improvement of grand theories. Science in the Context of Application will identify, explore and assess these changes. Part I considers the "Changing Conditions of Scientific Research" and part II "Science, Values, and Society". Examples are drawn from pharmaceutical research, the information sciences, simulation modelling, nanotechnology, cancer research, the effects of commercialization, and many other fields. The book assembles papers from well-known European and American Science Studies scholars like Bernadette Bensaude-Vincent, Janet Kourany, Michael Mahoney, Margaret Morrison, Hans-Jörg Rheinberger, Arie Rip, Dan Sarewitz, Peter Weingart, and others. The individual chapters are written to address anyone who is concerned about the role of contemporary science in society, including scientists, philosophers, and policy makers.
Author: Terence Critchlow
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1439881391
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 449
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Book Description
Data-intensive science has the potential to transform scientific research and quickly translate scientific progress into complete solutions, policies, and economic success. But this collaborative science is still lacking the effective access and exchange of knowledge among scientists, researchers, and policy makers across a range of disciplines. Bringing together leaders from multiple scientific disciplines, Data-Intensive Science shows how a comprehensive integration of various techniques and technological advances can effectively harness the vast amount of data being generated and significantly accelerate scientific progress to address some of the world’s most challenging problems. In the book, a diverse cross-section of application, computer, and data scientists explores the impact of data-intensive science on current research and describes emerging technologies that will enable future scientific breakthroughs. The book identifies best practices used to tackle challenges facing data-intensive science as well as gaps in these approaches. It also focuses on the integration of data-intensive science into standard research practice, explaining how components in the data-intensive science environment need to work together to provide the necessary infrastructure for community-scale scientific collaborations. Organizing the material based on a high-level, data-intensive science workflow, this book provides an understanding of the scientific problems that would benefit from collaborative research, the current capabilities of data-intensive science, and the solutions to enable the next round of scientific advancements.
Author: K. Brad Wray
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139503464
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 245
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Book Description
Kuhn's Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962) has been enduringly influential in philosophy of science, challenging many common presuppositions about the nature of science and the growth of scientific knowledge. However, philosophers have misunderstood Kuhn's view, treating him as a relativist or social constructionist. In this book, Brad Wray argues that Kuhn provides a useful framework for developing an epistemology of science that takes account of the constructive role that social factors play in scientific inquiry. He examines the core concepts of Structure and explains the main characteristics of both Kuhn's evolutionary epistemology and his social epistemology, relating Structure to Kuhn's developed view presented in his later writings. The discussion includes analyses of the Copernican revolution in astronomy and the plate tectonics revolution in geology. The book will be useful for scholars working in science studies, sociologists and historians of science as well as philosophers of science.
