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Scientific Theory (scientific + theory)
Selected AbstractsReview article: The dangers of polemic: Is ritual still an interesting topic of historical study?EARLY MEDIEVAL EUROPE, Issue 4 2002Geoffrey Koziol Philippe Buc, The Dangers of Ritual: Between Early Medieval Texts and Social Scientific Theory. Gerd Althoff, Spielregeln der Politik im Mittelalter: Kommunikation in Frieden und Fehde. Frans Theuws and Janet L. Nelson (eds). Rituals of Power from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages. Joëlle Rollo-Koster (ed), Medieval and Early Modern Rituals: Formalized Behavior in Europe, China and Japan. [source] A Semantic View of Ecological Theories,DIALECTICA, Issue 1 2001David G.A. CastleArticle first published online: 23 JUN 200 Philosophical analysis of ecological theories has lagged behind the study of evolutionary theory. The semantic conception of scientific theories, which has been employed successfully in the analysis of evolutionary theory, is adopted here to analyse ecological theory. Two general problems in ecology are discussed. One arises from the continued use of covering law models in ecology, and the other concerns the applicability of ecological theory in conservation biology. The semantic conception of ecological theories is used to resolve these problems. [source] The Four Faces of Institutionalism: Public Policy and a Pluralistic PerspectiveGOVERNANCE, Issue 4 2000Simon Reich Contending conceptions of the "new" institutionalism claim to offer approaches that can develop generalizable social scientific theories of behavior. This article challenges that proposition, arguing that contingencies exist in which specific forms of institutionalism are best suited to addressing particular types of questions. Viewed through the prism of public policy, it develops the argument that ,policy dictates politics.' It suggests that four variants of institutionalism (historical, new economic, normative, and billiard ball) are each systematically most appropriate to examine the issues in the policy domains of redistribution, regulation, modernization, and liberalization, respectively. [source] Dismantling the Self/Other Dichotomy in Science: Towards a Feminist Model of the Immune SystemHYPATIA, Issue 1 2001LISA WEASEL Despite the development of a vast body of literature pertaining to feminism and science, examples of how feminist phifosophies might be applied to scientific theories and practice have been limited. Moreover, most scientists remain unfamiliar with how feminism pertains to their work. Using the example of the immune system, this paper applies three feminist epistemologies feminist empiricism, feminist standpoint theory, and feminist postmodernismtoassess competingchims of immune function within a feminist context. [source] Philosophical Anthropology Can Help Social Scientists Learn from Empirical TestsJOURNAL FOR THE THEORY OF SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR, Issue 3 2007JOHN WETTERSTEN ABSTRACT Popper's theory of demarcation has set the standard of falsifiability for all sciences. But not all falsifiable theories are part of science and some tests of scientific theories are better than others. Popper's theory has led to the banning of metaphysical and/or philosophical anthropological theories from science. But Joseph Agassi has supplemented Popper's theory to explain how such theories are useful as research programs within science. This theory can also be used to explain how interesting tests may be found. Theories of rationality may be used to illustrate this point by showing how they fail or succeed in producing interesting and testable hypotheses in the social sciences. [source] Representations of nature of science in high school chemistry textbooks over the past four decadesJOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, Issue 7 2008Fouad Abd-El-Khalick Abstract This study assessed the representations of nature of science (NOS) in high school chemistry textbooks and the extent to which these representations have changed during the past four decades. Analyses focused on the empirical, tentative, inferential, creative, theory-driven, and social NOS, in addition to the myth of "The Scientific Method," the nature of scientific theories and laws, and the social and cultural embeddedness of science. A total of 14 textbooks, including five "series" spanning one to four decades, were analyzed. The textbooks commanded significant market shares in the United States and were widely used in some of the most populace states. Relevant textbook sections were scored on each of the target NOS aspects on a scale ranging from ,3 to +3, which reflected the accuracy, completeness, and manner (explicit versus implicit) in which these aspects were addressed. The textbooks fared poorly in their representations of NOS. Additionally, with a few exceptions, textbook scores either did not change or decreased over the past four decades. These trends are incommensurate with the discourse in national and international science education reform documents, which has witnessed an increasing emphasis on the centrality of NOS to scientific literacy and pre-college science education during the same time period. Assessment and evaluation strategies, and policies need to be targeted if substantial and desired changes in the ways NOS is addressed in science textbooks are to be effected. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 45: 835,855, 2008 [source] Identity Discourses on the DancefloorANTHROPOLOGY OF CONSCIOUSNESS, Issue 2 2010BRYAN RILL ABSTRACT Electronic Dance Music Culture (EDMC) is one of the largest subcultural musical movements in history. The dance floor is a creative context that engenders a freedom among participants to reshape their social identity within the Temporary Autonomous Zones (TAZ) that raves, the central spaces for EDMC, provide. On the dance floor, participants enter into powerful trances that have the capacity to reshape notions of self and personhood. This paper examines such identity discourses and suggests that trance consciousness re-constitutes the bodily self as an interaction rather than a corporeal body, radically altering the internal dialogue from which notions of self originate. I illuminate this process by articulating the phenomenal experience of musical trancing with scientific theories of human consciousness. Drawing on the ideas of Merleau-Ponty and Damasio, I suggest an integrative model of consciousness that sheds new light upon the complex layering of trance experiences. The potential benefit of this model lies in its ability to theoretically capture the ineffable musical experience and reveal salient processes underlying the self-transformation reported in subjective narratives. This is pertinent not only to EDMC and other musical cultures, but to our more general understanding of the relationship between self and experience in the world. [source] The Poverty of AnalysisARISTOTELIAN SOCIETY SUPPLEMENTARY VOLUME, Issue 1 2009David Papineau I argue that philosophy is like science in three interesting and non-obvious ways. First, the claims made by philosophy are synthetic, not analytic: philosophical claims, just like scientific claims, are not guaranteed by the structure of the concepts they involve. Second, philosophical knowledge is a posteriori, not a priori: the claims established by philosophers depend on the same kind of empirical support as scientific theories. And finally, the central questions of philosophy concern actuality rather than necessity: philosophy is primarily aimed at understanding the actual world studied by science, not some further realm of metaphysical modality. [source] A view of extraterrestrial soilsEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOIL SCIENCE, Issue 6 2009G. Certini Summary The nature of soils on celestial bodies other than Earth is a growing area of research in planetary geology. However, disagreement over the significance of these deposits arises, in part, through the lack of a unified concept and definition of soil in the literature. The pragmatic definition ,medium for plant growth' is taken by some to imply the necessity of biota for soil to exist, and has been commonly adopted in the planetary science community. In contrast, a more complex and informative definition is based on scientific theory: soil is the (bio)geochemically/physically altered material at the surface of a planetary body that encompasses surficial extraterrestrial telluric deposits. This definition is based on the premise that soil is a body that retains information about its environmental history and that it does not need the presence of life to form. Four decades of missions have gathered geochemical information regarding the surface of planets and bodies within the Solar System, and information is quickly increasing. Reviewing the current knowledge on properties of extraterrestrial regoliths, we conclude that the surficial deposits of Venus, Mars and our moon should be considered to be soils in a pedological sense, and that Mercury and some large asteroids are covered in mantles that are soil candidates. A key environmental distinction between Earth and other Solar System bodies is the presence of life, and because of this dissimilarity in soil-forming processes, it is reasonable to distinguish these (presently) abiotic soils as Astrosols. Attempts to provide detailed classifications of extraterrestrial soils are premature, given our poor current knowledge of the Universe, but they highlight the fact that Earth possesses almost-abiotic environments that lend themselves to providing more understanding about telluric bodies of the Solar System. "He found himself in the neighbourhood of the asteroids 325, 326, 327, 328, 329, and 330. He began, therefore, by visiting them, in order to add to his knowledge." (Excerpt from the The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry) [source] 3. HISTORIOGRAPHY WITHOUT GOD: A REPLY TO GREGORY,HISTORY AND THEORY, Issue 4 2008TOR EGIL FØRLAND ABSTRACT This reply aims both to respond to Gregory and to move forward the debate about God's place in historiography. The first section is devoted to the nature of science and God. Whereas Gregory thinks science is based on metaphysical naturalism with a methodological corollary of critical-realist empiricism, I see critical, empiricist methodology as basic, and naturalism as a consequence. Gregory's exposition of his apophatic theology, in which univocity is eschewed, illustrates the fissure between religious and scientific worldviews,no matter which basic scientific theory one subscribes to. The second section is allotted to miracles. As I do, Gregory thinks no miracle occurred on Fox Lakes in 1652, but he restricts himself to understanding the actors and explaining change over time, and refuses to explain past or contemporary actions and events. Marc Bloch, in his book The Royal Touch: Sacred Monarchy and Scrofula in England and France, is willing to go much further than Gregory. Using his superior medical knowledge to substitute his own explanation of the phenomenon for that of the actors, Bloch dismisses the actors' beliefs that they or others had been miraculously cured, and explains that they believed they saw miraculous healing because they were expecting to see it. In the third section, on historical explanation, I rephrase the question whether historians can accommodate both believers in God and naturalist scientists, asking whether God, acting miraculously or not, can be part of the ideal explanatory text. I reply in the negative, and explicate how the concept of a plural subject suggests how scientists can also be believers. This approach may be compatible with two options presented by Peter Lipton for resolving the tension between religion and science. The first is to see the truth claims of religious texts as untranslatable into scientific language (and vice versa); the other is to immerse oneself in religious texts by accepting them as a guide but not believing in their truth claims when these contradict science. [source] The impact of absenteeism on the quality of assembly line production: The importance of a specialization requirementHUMAN FACTORS AND ERGONOMICS IN MANUFACTURING & SERVICE INDUSTRIES, Issue 1 2008Ricardo Mateo Absenteeism among manual workers is without doubt one of the most significant factors that affect the functioning of assembly lines. It is a widely held view that high levels of absenteeism have negative repercussions on the quality and costs of operations. According to the scientific theory of work, workers who temporarily stand in for their absent colleagues affect production quality levels because of a lack of work specialization and experience. However, new and sophisticated automation can eliminate the effect of absenteeism on assembly line production. This article gathered more than 960,000 products produced by different levels of absenteeism. The effects of absenteeism on the quality of products in assembly lines over the course of one year were analyzed. In contrast to established thinking, the empirical evidence presented here confirms that absenteeism does not always produce problems in the quality of products. This evidence can be explained by the need for specialization among manual workers has been reduced by the invention of more sophisticated and specialized machinery. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Schizophrenia as split personality/Jekyll and Hyde: The origins of the informal usage in the English languageJOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES, Issue 1 2007Kieran McNally The entry into the English language of the informal usage of schizophrenia as split per-sonality/Jekyll and Hyde is traced and commented upon. The metaphor of split personality is followed from Eugene Bleuler via his translators and the wider psychiatric community into the present day. It, and to a lesser extent the Jekyll-Hyde personality, is found to be as much a product of the psychological professions as a product of lay misinterpretation. The informal definition of schizophrenia as split personality has outlived the scientific theory with which it was initially associated. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] The role of theory-constitutive metaphor in nursing scienceNURSING PHILOSOPHY, Issue 3 2008Jennifer Greenwood Abstract, The current view of theoretical statements in science is that they should be literal and precise; ambiguous and metaphorical statements are useful only as pre-theoretical, exegetical, and heuristic devices and as pedagogical tools. In this paper we argue that this view is mistaken. Literal, precise statements apply to those experiential phenomena which can be defined either conventionally by criterial attribution or by internal atomic constitution. Experiential phenomena which are defined relationally and/or functionally, like nursing, in virtue of their nature, require metaphorical description and explanation. In such cases, metaphor is theory-constitutive. Using insights from the philosophies of language and mind, and examples from nursing practice, education, and our own empirical research, we explore the nature of metaphor and its role in theory constitution. We argue that the apparent resistance of certain experiential phenomena to literal description and explanation is not necessarily indicative of pre-theoretic linguistic imprecision. We suggest, rather, that such resistance provides useful insights into the nature of such experiential phenomena. We also suggest that the aim of scientific theory should be methodological or epistemological precision and not merely linguistic precision. [source] THE ESSENTIAL AND THE ACCIDENTALRATIO, Issue 3 2005Michael Gorman The distinction between the essential and the accidental is nearly always understood in modal terms. After criticizing some recent writings by Kit Fine that question that understanding, I develop a theory according to which whether a given feature of a thing is essential turns on whether it is explained by other features of that thing. The theory differs from the modal view by leaving room for features that are accidental even though their bearers cannot exist without them. The theory has the additional advantage of being open to the results of scientific theory. [source] Teaching & Learning Guide for: Can a Darwinian Be a Christian?RELIGION COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 3 2008Gregory W. Dawes Author's Introduction The article was provoked by recent discussion of the so-called ,conflict thesis': the idea that the Christian faith and the findings of modern science are necessarily at odds. This thesis is generally attributed to John William Draper (1811,1882) and Andrew Dickson White (1832,1918). Recent opposition to their work dates from a 1979 publication by James Moore. Moore argues that the warfare metaphor employed by Draper and White misrepresents the historical reality, by suggesting that the religion and science debates were clashes between distinct groups of people who were sharply polarized and violently antagonistic. Since then, similar criticisms have been made by historians, such as David Livingstone, Ronald Numbers, and David Lindberg. A key question here is: what does the conflict thesis entail? If it holds that Christian thinkers have invariably opposed scientific progress, while the defenders of science have been non-believers, it would be demonstrably false. But there exist more interesting forms of conflict thesis, which are philosophical rather than historical. These suggest that there is some tension between what Christians have traditionally believed and the findings of modern science, particularly Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. Even if the two are not, strictly speaking, incompatible, the truth of one may constitute evidence against the truth of the other. Darwin's theory also undercuts traditional arguments from design, and highlights the epistemological divide between religious and scientific conceptions of authority. Online Materials The following sites contain audio and video files, as well as text and images. 1. http://www.meta-library.net/history/intro-frame.html This is a useful overview of the historical debate by Ronald Numbers, with links to other sites. Most presenters follow Moore in opposing the conflict thesis, narrowly defined, but neglect the conflicts that my article highlights. 2. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/id/program.html Here one can view an excellent, 2-h PBS television documentary on the Dover, Pennsylvania trial in December 2005 regarding the teaching of ,intelligent design' (ID) in public schools. 3. http://www.butler.edu/clergyproject/rel_evol_sun.htm This is a letter signed by more than 11,000 clergy, arguing that there is no conflict between religion and science, and encouraging (among other things) the liturgical celebration of evolution by natural selection. 4. http://www.discovery.org/csc/ At the other end of the theological spectrum, this is the website of the Discovery Institute, devoted to opposing Darwinism and promoting ,intelligent design' (ID). Controversially, it presents ID as a scientific theory, rather than a religious doctrine. 5. http://www.asa3.org/ Somewhere between the Clergy Letter Project and the Discovery Institute lies the American Scientific Affiliation (ASA). The ASA ,does not take a position when there is honest disagreement between Christians', so it embraces a variety of perspectives. Sample Syllabus The following could form the basis for a graduate seminar on religion and science, focusing on the Darwinian controversies. One could, for instance, devote two classes to each of these topics. 1. The Draper-White Thesis I recommend reading extracts from the two writers thought to be responsible for the conflict thesis, to establish what each actually said. John William Draper, The History of the Conflict between Religion and Science, International Scientific Series 13 (London: Henry S. King & Co., 1875), chap. 8. Andrew Dickson White, A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom (1896; New York, NY: Dover Publications, 1960), vol. 1, chap. 1. 2. Criticism of the Draper-White Thesis Either of the following readings from historians critical of Draper and White's work would be a useful starting point for discussion. James R. Moore, The Post-Darwinian Controversies: A Study of the Protestant Struggle to Come to Terms with Darwin in Great Britain and America, 1870,1900 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979), chap. 1. David N. Livingstone, ,Re-placing Darwinism and Christianity', in David C. Lindberg and Ronald L. Numbers (eds.), When Science and Christianity Meet, pp. 183,202 (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2003). 3. The Incompatibility Thesis Many authors attempt to show that Darwinism and Christianity and compatible. But it would be useful to examine Pope John Paul II's statement on this topic, along with some responses by biologists and philosophers. John Paul II, ,The Pope's Message on Evolution and Four Commentaries', The Quarterly Review of Biology, 72:4 (1997): 375,406. 4. The Evidential Thesis Students might enjoy reading and discussing the following article by a leading evolutionary biologist. George C. Williams, ,Mother Nature Is a Wicked Old Witch', in Matthew H. Nitecki and Doris V. Nitecki (eds.), Evolutionary Ethics, 217,31 (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1993). 5. The Replacement Thesis This is an important but often neglected book. Students would benefit from reading at least the first chapter. Neal C. Gillespie, Charles Darwin and the Problem of Creation (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1979), chap. 1. 6. The Faith and Reason Thesis The following article by a well-known historian and philosopher of science touches on some of the key issues. Ernan McMullin, ,Evolution and Special Creation', Zygon 28:3 (1993): 299,335. Focus Questions 1There exist many Christian thinkers who accept Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. Does that mean there is no conflict between Darwinism and Christianity? 2Taken at face value, Genesis 1,3 tells the story of the origins of the world and of human beings. What aspects of that story would you consider essential to the Christian faith? 3If we have an entirely natural explanation of the origins of complex living organisms, do we still have reasons to believe in a creator God? 4If God could have created complex living beings by a simple command, why would he choose a lengthy and wasteful process such as natural selection? 5Could a Christian regard the existence of God in the same way as a scientific hypothesis, that is to say, to be accepted only in so far as it is supported by the evidence? Seminar Activity I would suggest a debate, in which students sympathetic to the creationist position are asked to defend Darwin's theory, while students sympathetic to evolution are asked to argue against it. [source] Quine, Analyticity and Philosophy of MathematicsTHE PHILOSOPHICAL QUARTERLY, Issue 214 2004John P. Burgess Quine correctly argues that Carnap's distinction between internal and external questions rests on a distinction between analytic and synthetic, which Quine rejects. I argue that Quine needs something like Carnap's distinction to enable him to explain the obviousness of elementary mathematics, while at the same time continuing to maintain as he does that the ultimate ground for holding mathematics to be a body of truths lies in the contribution that mathematics makes to our overall scientific theory of the world. Quine's arguments against the analytic/synthetic distinction, even if fully accepted, still leave room for a notion of pragmatic analyticity sufficient for the indicated purpose. [source] Brain, mind and limitations of a scientific theory of human consciousnessBIOESSAYS, Issue 5 2008Alfred Gierer In biological terms, human consciousness appears as a feature associated with the functioning of the human brain. The corresponding activities of the neural network occur strictly in accord with physical laws; however, this fact does not necessarily imply that there can be a comprehensive scientific theory of consciousness, despite all the progress in neurobiology, neuropsychology and neurocomputation. Predictions of the extent to which such a theory may become possible vary widely in the scientific community. There are basic reasons,not only practical but also epistemological,why the brain,mind relation may never be fully "decodable" by general finite procedures. In particular self-referential features of consciousness, such as self-representations involved in strategic thought and dispositions, may not be resolvable in all their essential aspects by brain analysis. Assuming that such limitations exist, objective analysis by the methods of natural science cannot, in principle, fully encompass subjective, mental experience. BioEssays 30:499,505, 2008. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] The School Leadership Initiative: An Ethically Flawed Project?JOURNAL OF PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION, Issue 1 2002Michael Smith This paper considers the conception of leadership and management found in the UK government's school leadership initiative. It contrasts earlier ,scientific' theory with the more recent ,humanistic' theory on which the initiative appears to be based, and finds that they share significant features and flaws. Moreover, despite the moral tone of the new initiative, it finds on examination that it is based on an emotivist theory of ethics that in practice may require the headteacher to be manipulative in her leadership and management of the school. Finally, it outlines an alternative conception of leadership. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||