180123 VO-L Science and Society (2017W)

Contents: In this course we will look at philosophical work on the relationship between science and society. The course will be split into four parts. In the first part we will look at public (dis)trust in science, scientific expertise and the role of trust in science itself. Questions we will consider include: what is the source of public distrust in science? How can we identify scientific experts? What role does trust play in the internal workings of science.

In the second part we will take a broader look at the role of science in society. One view of this role is that science is somehow separate (or should be kept separate) from the broader society in which it is embedded: science is a disinterested quest for the truth, and it should be pursued irrespective of its social benefits (or costs). Another view that science is just ‘politics by another means’. We will consider whether either of these ‘extreme’ views is plausible, and look at attempts to articulate a more nuanced role for science in society.

In the third part we will take a closer look at one of the issues raised in the first two parts. One source of public distrust in science is the recognition that scientists are not in fact ‘disinterested inquirers’: they have their values, they have views about political and ethical debates, and sometimes they comment on these debates. Because this clashes with a popular but naïve view about what science is, many conclude that scientists are not to be trusted. In this part of the course we will look at attempts to get clear on the role that value judgements play in science.

In the fourth and final part we will look at the kinds of broader ethical and societal questions raised by scientific work. We will focus on a number of concrete issues including genetic engineering and animal testing. Our aim in this part of the course will be to think through some of the difficult ethical and societal questions prompted by advances in science.

Aims: This course is designed for students with no prior knowledge of the philosophy of science. By the end of the course students will have acquired and developed:

1. An understanding of the complexity of the relationship between science and society.
2. An appreciation that, while certain cherished ideas about science may fail to withstand critical scrutiny, this need not damage the authority of science.
3. A range of valuable skills and abilities (how to evaluate an argument; how to construct a valid argument; how to read a complicated text).
4. The ability to express complex philosophical ideas and views, with an emphasis on clarity, structure, precision, concision and dialectical effectiveness.

Methods: I will explain and clarify various views about and arguments concerning the relationship between science and society through a series of lectures. The students will be expected to read a text before each lecture (sometimes there will be an additional ‘popular text’ taken from e.g. a newspaper). All of the readings are available on the Moodle page for the course.