Scientonomy Seminar 2016
| Title | The fourth annual IHPST seminar on the theory of scientific change |
|---|---|
| Start Date | 15 January 2016 |
| End Date | 8 April 2016 |
This was the fourth seminar on the theory of scientific change at the IHPST, University of Toronto.
Questions Raised
- Accepted Methodology and Theory Pursuit: Is there any connection between an accepted methodology and the pursuit of a theory?
- Bearers of Mosaic: Who can be a bearer of a mosaic? Can a community be a bearer of a mosaic? Can an individual be a bearer of a mosaic? Can an instrument be a bearer of a mosaic?
- Conclusive Theory Assessment: Are there any actual historical instances of conclusive theory assessment or does every case of theory assessment involve some degree of inconclusiveness?
- Delegation of Authority to Artifacts: Can there be delegation of authority to tools, instruments, other material objects, or to computer software?
- Discipline: What is discipline? How should it be defined?
- Methodology and Methods: Can a method become employed by being the deductive consequence of an already accepted methodology? How would this affect the Methodology Can Shape Methods theorem?
- Methods Shaping Theory Construction: Do our employed methods and accepted demarcation criteria influence theory construction?
- Methods and Technical Research Tools: What is the relationship between methods and technical research tools?
- Model: What is model? How should it be defined?
- Necessary Theories: Are there theories that are necessarily part of any mosaic?
- Role of Ethics in Scientific Change: What role do ethical concerns play in scientific change? Are ethical norms capable of affecting employed methods?
- Role of Practical Considerations in Scientific Change: What is the role of practical considerations such as financial constraints or limitations of manpower in the process of scientific change?
- Status of Tacit Theories: What is the status of tacit theories in the scientific mosaic? Is it possible for a community to actually accept a theory without openly formulating it?
- Tautological Status of The Zeroth Law (Harder-2015): Is Harder's zeroth law a tautology?
- The Necessity of Intercommunication for Community: If two independent communities undergo similar changes which result in identical mosaics, are these communities still considered as distinct, or are they a single community?