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This <b>Encyclopedia of [[Scientonomy]]</b> pursues three major goals:
 
This <b>Encyclopedia of [[Scientonomy]]</b> pursues three major goals:
 
   
 
   
1. Outline with encyclopedic rigor <b>the current state of our knowledge</b> concerning the mechanism of [[Scientific Change|scientific change]], including changes in both [[Theory|theories]] and [[Method|methods]] of their evaluation.
+
# Outline with encyclopedic rigor ''the current state'' of our knowledge concerning the mechanism of scientific change, including changes in both [[Theory|theories]] and [[Method|methods]] of their evaluation.
 +
# Trace and document ''all changes'' in the field of [[Scientonomy|scientonomy]], as they are proposed and [[Theory Acceptance|accepted]] by the scientonomic community.
 +
# List and outline ''the open questions'' concerning the process of scientific change and thus assist with future research in the field.
  
2. Trace and document <b> all changes</b> in the field of [[Scientonomy|scientonomy]], as they are proposed and [[Theory Acceptance|accepted]] by the scientonomic community.
+
The encyclopedia was established in 2016 by [[Community:Scientonomy|scientonomic community]]. Its current editors in-chief are [[Hakob Barseghyan]], [[Nicholas Overgaard]] and [[Paul Patton]].  
  
3. List and outline <b>the open questions</b> concerning the process of scientific change and thus assist with future research in the field.
+
==Workflow==
 +
This encyclopedia is one of the key elements of the ''scientonomic toolbox'', which collectively facilitate the scientonomic workflow. The key stages of the workflow are:
 +
* '''Pose Questions:''' The goal of this stage is to scrutinize the current knowledge of scientific change and identify as many open questions as possible. The annual [[Scientonomy Seminar|seminar on scientonomy]] hosted by the University of Toronto's [http://hps.utoronto.ca/ Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology] is currently the main venue facilitating this stage of the workflow. 
 +
* '''Suggest Modifications:''' The goal of this stage is to advance our knowledge of scientific change by proposing modifications to it. These suggested modifications are published and properly documented. In principle, these modifications can be published in any journal which uses the scientonomic mechanism of modifications. At the moment, there is only one such journal, [[Journal of Scientonomy]]. This encyclopedia documents each [[:Category:Modification|suggested modification]].
 +
* '''Evaluate Modifications:''' The goal of this stage is to assess the suggested modifications and decide which of them are acceptable and which are not. This is done by [[Community:Scientonomy|the community of scientonomists]] on the respective discussion pages of this encyclopedia. If a consensus emerges, the fate of the modification is documented. If a modification causes disagreement among scientonomists, it becomes a topic of discussion during [[Scientonomy Workshop|scientonomic workshops]], which aim at bridging the gaps between opposing parties and arriving at consensus. 
 +
* '''Document Changes:''' The goal of this stage is to document all the changes in our knowledge of scientific change. If a modification is considered acceptable by the community, then the respective articles of this encyclopedia are modified to reflect that change. If a modification is considered unacceptable, then the respective verdict is documented for that modification.
  
== Semantic Map ==
+
The primary role of this encyclopedia in the scientonomic workflow is to fix the current state of scientonomic knowledge, document all suggested modifications, and list open questions.    
This encyclopedia uses the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semantic_wiki Semantic approach]: the author's don't write their articles in a purely textual fashion (as is the case in most encyclopedias), but are asked to enter the data in a structured, semantically meaningful way. Thus, once entered on any page, the information is stored in the database of this encyclopedia and is then automatically retrieved on any other relevant page. For instance, a ''theory's'' page allows the authors to enter the dates when the theory was accepted by different communities. Once this acceptance record is entered, it is stored in the database and is then shown automatically on the respective ''topic's'' page. Consider, for instance, the history section of the topic [[Mechanism of Method Employment]]; this section is generated automatically based on the individual acceptance records of the respective theories that attempt to answer the question of method employment, such as [[The Third Law (Barseghyan-2015)]] or [[The Third Law (Sebastien-2016)]]. This makes it possible to trace the acceptance history of any theory or topic, keep track of the suggested modifications, etc.  
 
  
This approach applies to all the categories of this encyclopedia:
+
Here is an outline of the main stages of the scientonomic workflow:
 +
 +
<imagemap>
 +
Image:Scientonomy Workflow with Captions.png|630px|center
 +
circle 629 188 150 [[Journal of Scientonomy]]
 +
circle 335 482 150 [[Scientonomy Seminar]]
 +
circle 923 482 150 [[Scientonomy Workshop]]
 +
desc none
 +
</imagemap>
 +
 
 +
One great advantage of this workflow is that, at any moment of time, the community has a very good idea as to where it stands, what theories it currently accepts, what open questions it tries to answer, what modifications have been proposed and how they have been assessed. This workflow reflects the belief of the scientonomic community that only piecemeal and transparent advances can lead to progress in our field.
 +
 
 +
==Semantic Approach==
 +
This encyclopedia uses the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semantic_wiki semantic approach] implemented via [https://www.semantic-mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Introduction_to_Semantic_MediaWiki Semantic MediaWiki] framework: the authors don't write their articles in a purely ''textual'' fashion (as is the case in most encyclopedias), but are asked to enter the relevant ''data'' in a structured, semantically meaningful way. Thus, once entered in specially designed forms, the data is stored in the database of this encyclopedia and is then automatically retrieved on any other relevant page.
 +
 
 +
For instance, a ''theory's'' page allows the authors to enter the dates when the theory was accepted by different communities. Once this acceptance record is entered, it is stored in the database and is then shown automatically on the respective ''topic's'' page. Consider, for instance, the history section of the topic [[Mechanism of Method Employment]]; this section is generated automatically based on the individual acceptance records of the respective theories that attempt to answer the question of method employment, such as [[The Third Law (Barseghyan-2015)]] or [[The Third Law (Sebastien-2016)]]. This makes it possible to trace the acceptance history of any theory or topic, keep track of the suggested modifications, etc.
 +
 
 +
This approach applies to all the ''categories'' of this encyclopedia:
 
* [[:Category:Community|Community]]: This category lists all the communities recorded in this encyclopedia.  
 
* [[:Category:Community|Community]]: This category lists all the communities recorded in this encyclopedia.  
 
* [[:Category:Topic|Topic]]: These are all the questions that a community can accept as legitimate topics for research. The topics can be [[:Category:Definitional Topic|definitional]], [[:Category:Descriptive Topic|descriptive]], or [[:Category:Normative Topic|normative]].  
 
* [[:Category:Topic|Topic]]: These are all the questions that a community can accept as legitimate topics for research. The topics can be [[:Category:Definitional Topic|definitional]], [[:Category:Descriptive Topic|descriptive]], or [[:Category:Normative Topic|normative]].  
Line 16: Line 39:
 
* [[:Category:Modification|Modification]]: Suggested modifications are attempts to convince a community to change its views on a certain topic, i.e. to accept and/or reject a theory.
 
* [[:Category:Modification|Modification]]: Suggested modifications are attempts to convince a community to change its views on a certain topic, i.e. to accept and/or reject a theory.
  
 +
==Semantic Map==
 
Here is the basic semantic map of this encyclopedia. Click on a category, to go to the respective page:
 
Here is the basic semantic map of this encyclopedia. Click on a category, to go to the respective page:
  
Line 21: Line 45:
 
Image:Wiki Semantic Map.png|789px|center
 
Image:Wiki Semantic Map.png|789px|center
 
circle 738 640 150 [[:Category:Community|Community]]
 
circle 738 640 150 [[:Category:Community|Community]]
circle 482 824 150 [[:Category:Topic|Topic]]
+
circle 482 830 150 [[:Category:Topic|Topic]]
circle 993 824 150 [[:Category:Theory|Theory]]
+
circle 993 830 150 [[:Category:Theory|Theory]]
circle 738 328 150 [[:Category:Modification|Modification]]
+
circle 738 330 150 [[:Category:Modification|Modification]]
 +
desc none
 +
</imagemap>
 +
 
 +
 
 +
The encyclopedia also stores data on related [[:Category:Bibliographic Record|bibliographic records]] and [[:Category:Author|authors]]:
 +
 
 +
<imagemap>
 +
Image:Wiki Semantic Map Author Bibliographic Record.png|138px|center
 +
circle 137 77 136 [[:Category:Author|Author]]
 +
circle 137 337 136 [[:Category:Bibliographic Record|Bibliographic Record]]
 +
desc none
 
</imagemap>
 
</imagemap>
  
== How to Become an Author? ==
+
== How to Write Articles ==
If you wish to become an author and contribute to the encyclopedia, please email the co-editors in chief [mailto:hakob.barseghyan@utoronto.ca Hakob Barseghyan], [mailto:nicholas.overgaard@mail.utoronto.ca Nicholas Overgaard] or [mailto:paul.patton@mail.utoronto.ca Paul Patton].
+
The first question you need to ask as an author: what kind of information are you going to enter? If you wish to create a completely new page, then what category does it belong to?
 +
=== Topics ===
 +
Is it a [[:Category:Topic|topic]] page? I.e. is it a page on a certain question that different theories are attempting to answer? Here are some typical topic pages: [[Theory]], [[Mechanism of Theory Acceptance]], [[Scope of Scientonomy]]. If your page is a topic page, then [[:Category:Topic|check here]].
 +
 
 +
=== Theories ===
 +
Is it a [[:Category:Theory|theory]] page? I.e. is it a page on an individual attempt to answer a certain question? Here are some typical theory pages: [[The Second Law (Barseghyan-2015)]], [[The Third Law (Sebastien-2016)]], [[Authority Delegation (Overgaard-Loiselle-2016)]]. If so, go to [[:Category:Topic|this page]] to add a new theory.
 +
=== Suggested Modifications ===
 +
Is it a [[:Category:Modification|suggested modification]] page? These pages are usually added by the editors of this encyclopedia who trace all the scientific journals which make use of the scientonomic model of modifications and document those modifications in this encyclopedia. If you are an editor, then go to your ''community'' page first and add the modification from there. All communities are [[:Category:Community|listed here]].
 +
=== Communities ===
 +
Is it a [[:Category:Community|community]] page? First, try to locate the community in [[:Category:Community|this list]]. If the community is not in the system, go ahead and add it.
 +
=== Bibliographic Records ===
 +
Is it a [[:Category:Bibliographic Record|bibliographic record]], such as a book, an article, or a collection? Then go to [[:Category:Bibliographic Record|this page]] to add a new record.
 +
=== Authors ===
 +
Is it an [[:Category:Author|author]]? Authors of all bibliographic resources registered in this encyclopedia are to be entered separately [[:Category:Author|here]].
 +
 
 +
If you wish to change something on an already existing page, locate that page and click on the ''Edit'' tab. A respective form will appear and, if you have the necessary credentials to modify pages of that category, you will be able to alter the data in respective boxes.
 +
 
 +
== How to Become an Author ==
 +
If you have published in the [[Journal of Scientonomy]] or participated in the [[Scientonomy Seminar|seminar]], an account is created for you automatically. If you don't have an account, but know your scientonomy and believe you can contribute to the encyclopedia, please [mailto:hakob.barseghyan@utoronto.ca email us] and we will create an account for you.
 +
 
 +
If you have any questions, please feel free to email the co-editors in chief [mailto:hakob.barseghyan@utoronto.ca Hakob Barseghyan], [mailto:nicholas.overgaard@mail.utoronto.ca Nicholas Overgaard] or [mailto:paul.patton@mail.utoronto.ca Paul Patton].
  
 
== Guidelines ==
 
== Guidelines ==
Line 35: Line 90:
 
[[Guidelines:Readers|Guidelines for Readers]]
 
[[Guidelines:Readers|Guidelines for Readers]]
  
== Sample Articles ==
+
[[Completion Rates]]
 
 
[[Scientific Mosaic]]
 
  
 
== Open Questions ==
 
== Open Questions ==
  
 
[[List of Open Questions]]
 
[[List of Open Questions]]

Revision as of 15:30, 13 January 2018

This Encyclopedia of Scientonomy pursues three major goals:

  1. Outline with encyclopedic rigor the current state of our knowledge concerning the mechanism of scientific change, including changes in both theories and methods of their evaluation.
  2. Trace and document all changes in the field of scientonomy, as they are proposed and accepted by the scientonomic community.
  3. List and outline the open questions concerning the process of scientific change and thus assist with future research in the field.

The encyclopedia was established in 2016 by scientonomic community. Its current editors in-chief are Hakob Barseghyan, Nicholas Overgaard and Paul Patton.

Workflow

This encyclopedia is one of the key elements of the scientonomic toolbox, which collectively facilitate the scientonomic workflow. The key stages of the workflow are:

  • Pose Questions: The goal of this stage is to scrutinize the current knowledge of scientific change and identify as many open questions as possible. The annual seminar on scientonomy hosted by the University of Toronto's Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology is currently the main venue facilitating this stage of the workflow.
  • Suggest Modifications: The goal of this stage is to advance our knowledge of scientific change by proposing modifications to it. These suggested modifications are published and properly documented. In principle, these modifications can be published in any journal which uses the scientonomic mechanism of modifications. At the moment, there is only one such journal, Journal of Scientonomy. This encyclopedia documents each suggested modification.
  • Evaluate Modifications: The goal of this stage is to assess the suggested modifications and decide which of them are acceptable and which are not. This is done by the community of scientonomists on the respective discussion pages of this encyclopedia. If a consensus emerges, the fate of the modification is documented. If a modification causes disagreement among scientonomists, it becomes a topic of discussion during scientonomic workshops, which aim at bridging the gaps between opposing parties and arriving at consensus.
  • Document Changes: The goal of this stage is to document all the changes in our knowledge of scientific change. If a modification is considered acceptable by the community, then the respective articles of this encyclopedia are modified to reflect that change. If a modification is considered unacceptable, then the respective verdict is documented for that modification.

The primary role of this encyclopedia in the scientonomic workflow is to fix the current state of scientonomic knowledge, document all suggested modifications, and list open questions.

Here is an outline of the main stages of the scientonomic workflow:

Journal of ScientonomyScientonomy SeminarScientonomy WorkshopScientonomy Workflow with Captions.png

One great advantage of this workflow is that, at any moment of time, the community has a very good idea as to where it stands, what theories it currently accepts, what open questions it tries to answer, what modifications have been proposed and how they have been assessed. This workflow reflects the belief of the scientonomic community that only piecemeal and transparent advances can lead to progress in our field.

Semantic Approach

This encyclopedia uses the semantic approach implemented via Semantic MediaWiki framework: the authors don't write their articles in a purely textual fashion (as is the case in most encyclopedias), but are asked to enter the relevant data in a structured, semantically meaningful way. Thus, once entered in specially designed forms, the data is stored in the database of this encyclopedia and is then automatically retrieved on any other relevant page.

For instance, a theory's page allows the authors to enter the dates when the theory was accepted by different communities. Once this acceptance record is entered, it is stored in the database and is then shown automatically on the respective topic's page. Consider, for instance, the history section of the topic Mechanism of Method Employment; this section is generated automatically based on the individual acceptance records of the respective theories that attempt to answer the question of method employment, such as The Third Law (Barseghyan-2015) or The Third Law (Sebastien-2016). This makes it possible to trace the acceptance history of any theory or topic, keep track of the suggested modifications, etc.

This approach applies to all the categories of this encyclopedia:

  • Community: This category lists all the communities recorded in this encyclopedia.
  • Topic: These are all the questions that a community can accept as legitimate topics for research. The topics can be definitional, descriptive, or normative.
  • Theory: This category includes all the individual propositions that attempt to define, describe, or prescribe something. Theories are attempts to answer a certain question (topic); thus, theories also come in three types: definitions, descriptive theories, and normative theories.
  • Modification: Suggested modifications are attempts to convince a community to change its views on a certain topic, i.e. to accept and/or reject a theory.

Semantic Map

Here is the basic semantic map of this encyclopedia. Click on a category, to go to the respective page:

CommunityTopicTheoryModificationWiki Semantic Map.png


The encyclopedia also stores data on related bibliographic records and authors:

AuthorBibliographic RecordWiki Semantic Map Author Bibliographic Record.png

How to Write Articles

The first question you need to ask as an author: what kind of information are you going to enter? If you wish to create a completely new page, then what category does it belong to?

Topics

Is it a topic page? I.e. is it a page on a certain question that different theories are attempting to answer? Here are some typical topic pages: Theory, Mechanism of Theory Acceptance, Scope of Scientonomy. If your page is a topic page, then check here.

Theories

Is it a theory page? I.e. is it a page on an individual attempt to answer a certain question? Here are some typical theory pages: The Second Law (Barseghyan-2015), The Third Law (Sebastien-2016), Authority Delegation (Overgaard-Loiselle-2016). If so, go to this page to add a new theory.

Suggested Modifications

Is it a suggested modification page? These pages are usually added by the editors of this encyclopedia who trace all the scientific journals which make use of the scientonomic model of modifications and document those modifications in this encyclopedia. If you are an editor, then go to your community page first and add the modification from there. All communities are listed here.

Communities

Is it a community page? First, try to locate the community in this list. If the community is not in the system, go ahead and add it.

Bibliographic Records

Is it a bibliographic record, such as a book, an article, or a collection? Then go to this page to add a new record.

Authors

Is it an author? Authors of all bibliographic resources registered in this encyclopedia are to be entered separately here.

If you wish to change something on an already existing page, locate that page and click on the Edit tab. A respective form will appear and, if you have the necessary credentials to modify pages of that category, you will be able to alter the data in respective boxes.

How to Become an Author

If you have published in the Journal of Scientonomy or participated in the seminar, an account is created for you automatically. If you don't have an account, but know your scientonomy and believe you can contribute to the encyclopedia, please email us and we will create an account for you.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email the co-editors in chief Hakob Barseghyan, Nicholas Overgaard or Paul Patton.

Guidelines

Guidelines for Authors

Guidelines for Readers

Completion Rates

Open Questions

List of Open Questions

References

  1. ^  Shaw, Jamie and Barseghyan, Hakob. (2019) Problems and Prospects with the Scientonomic Workflow. Scientonomy 3, 1-14. Retrieved from https://scientojournal.com/index.php/scientonomy/article/view/33509.