A Defense of Partisan-Science: An Assessment of Stenmark's Non-Partisan Science3

Abstract

In his influential book “How to Relate Science and Religion,” Mikael Stenmark argues for the legitimateness of what he calls “partisan science”: “science that is aligned with or supports a particular ideology, religion, or worldview over another.” However, he maintains that we should make an exception: the justification phase of science (phase 3) requires neutral science. Thus, he argues for “non-partisan science₃.” In this article, I assess his arguments for non-partisan science₃. I find them wanting and I will argue for partisan science₃ and maintain that we should adhere to “Augustinian” or “theistic science.”     

Beyond Science: A Look at the Biblical Christian View of the Supernatural

Abstract

Science has greatly improved the quality of contemporary life compared with past centuries. Consequently, science has gained prominence as an authentic authority and a reliable source of truth, more respected than religion in general and biblical faith in particular. Naturalistic science, the most dominant kind of science, is rooted in the rationalism of the Enlightenment and excludes belief in the supernatural. However, the limits of this science become evident when confronted with the reality of supernatural phenomena in daily life. This article seeks to briefly examine the worldviews of naturalistic science and biblical Christianity in relation to the supernatural and present the significance of biblical Christianity for interpreting all of life’s reality.     

Assembling the Whale: Parliaments in the Politics of Nature

Abstarct

In the field of science and technology studies (STS), much research has been concerned with politics. Nevertheless STS research tends to disregard the work of conventional political institutions such as parliaments, especially in the politics of nature, which is often seen as delegating ‘nature’ to science. Parliaments work on nature-objects through documents; paperwork is crucial in its procedures for delegating an issue to be further worked upon at other sites, for securing the issue's return and for enabling a decision. This mode of circulating an issue amounts to a central infrastructure for taking nature into account in politics; this infrastructure enables ‘assembling work’ as a specific mode of parliamentary practice. In the late nineteenth century the Norwegian parliament handled a controversy over whaling. New species, questions and publics were entangled with the whale issue through the parliament's work, its tools and procedures. As such, parliament enabled, worked upon and modified the issue. By assembling the whale issue it performed a politics of nature in rich, complex ways. Hence, understanding the specific site where an issue is taken up is necessary in order to grasp its trajectory and to understand how conventional political sites do politics of nature in practice     

The Ecological Revolution: The Senses Considered as Perceptual Systems, 50 Years Later - Part 2

ABSTRACT

This editorial presents the second of a 2-part special issue honoring the publication of James J. Gibson's 1966 book, The Senses Considered as Perceptual Systems. As was pointed out by several reviews of this book written just after its publication (i.e., between 1967 and 1969), Gibson's 1966 book represents a revolution not only for the psychological science but also for domains beyond that of psychology. This second part of the special issue is composed of 5 theoretical contributions that represent, in addition to the 4 pieces previously published in the first part, the far-reaching influence of Gibson's ecological revolution.     

The creative suffering of the triune God: An evolutionary panentheistic paradigm

Abstract

One way the alleged conflict between science and religion is often presented is the claim that Western religions represent human beings as the pinnacle of creation. Science, however, has progressively shown this perspective to be false, specifically through the discoveries that we are not at the universe's center, that the universe is much larger than we once thought, and that we evolved from “lower” life forms. While these discoveries are valid, the interpretation that they mortify vain human pretensions to significance is not. In this essay we assess this claim of mortification and argue that it is a myth.     

Ambiguity,the Trinity,and Naturalism: From the Methodology of Pannenberg to the Phenomenology of Merleau-Ponty

Abstract

Through an interpretation of Wolfhart Pannenberg's trinitarian methodology, this article presents the argument that theology and naturalism are ambiguously intertwined and that we once again have to determine how to methodologically address the relationship between theology and science. This study contends that Pannenberg's theology is important for our conception of the dialog between theology and science. However, I wish to offer a fundamentally new interpretation of Pannenberg which locates the ambiguous character of his methodology primarily in the substantive issue with which it deals. This redirects the dialogue between theology and science through Pannenberg's hermeneutic of history towards the contemporary phenomenology of the body and ultimately to the suggestion of a trinitarian-phenomenological approach beyond the methodology of Pannenberg.     

New and Expanded Concepts in Neurophysiology,Psychology, and Sociology Complementary to Llorens' Developmental Theory: Achieving Growth and Development through Occupation for Neonatal Infants and their Families

ABSTRACT

Introduction: This issue expands the Llorens’ Developmental Theory of Occupational Therapy. Llorens drew from multiple theorists from the disciplines of sociology, neurophysiology, biology, ecology, psychology, occupational science, and psychodynamics to provide the profession of occupational therapy with a unified theory to facilitate growth and development for people of all ages—from infancy to old age.

Purpose: The purpose of this issue is to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate the continued relevance of Llorens' theory. In addition, the author evaluates, recommends, and applies updated theoretical premises in the realms of psychodynamics, neurophysiology, contextual ecology, and cognitive science that reflect the relevance of occupational therapy practice for infants and their families in the neonatal intensive care unit.

New Psychological Elements: Through the appropriate use of purposeful occupational activity and affective object relationships, the expanded Developmental Theory of Occupational Therapy provides a unified theory of occupation enablement as intrinsic spatiotemporal adaptation and as extrinsic socio ? cultural and physically contextual occupational adaptation to achieve growth and development across the lifespan.     

Social and Ideological roots of “science and religion”: A social-historical exploration of a Recent phenomenon

Abstract

Since the 1960s, there is a growing interest in interactions between religion and science. This article is an exploration of the roots of the contemporary field of “Science and Religion” (S&;R), by investigating some social and historical connections between the emergence of S&;R and modernizing trends in Western society. This article deals with three questions: (1) Is the emergence of the field of S&;R the response to a conflict between religion and science? (2) Is S&;R related to the process of modernization in Western society? (3) Whence the specific American interest in S&;R?     

Editors’ Overview: Neuroethics: Many Voices and Many Stories

Advances in neuroscience continue to enhance understanding of the brain and provide new tools to take advantage of that understanding. These changes are poised to profoundly alter society. Given that the impact will be felt not only by neuroscientists, but by diverse members of society, it is imperative that conversations engage all stakeholders. Doing so will allow for the sharing of diverse views and perspectives to understand and frame the science, better educate and prepare the public for new developments, and provide a shared approach to identifying and resolving ethical challenges. These were the goals of Neuroethics Week, staged in 2007 by the Center for Ethics in Science and Technology in San Diego, and are the basis for the contributions to this special issue of Science and Engineering Ethics.     

Reflections on 30 years of Cognition & Emotion

ABSTRACT

The publication of the first issue of Cognition & Emotion in 1987 helped open the floodgates to what has become a golden age of emotion research in the social and biological sciences. In this article, I describe the intellectual landscape of that era and trace key developments that helped foster the growth of the field of affective science. Looking back from a present-day perspective, I offer some thoughts on the major changes that have occurred over the past three decades, the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead, and my own personal journey toward becoming an affective scientist (which largely occurred during this period). Finally, I offer three considerations that might be helpful for young researchers who are already in the field of affective science or are considering entering it.     

Normal crises: Stage theory and family therapy

Abstract

The theme of the Twenty-Third Georgetown University Symposium on Family Theory and Family Psychotherapy, held November 8 and 9,1986, in Washington, DC, was Toward a Science of Human Behavior. The program included famed sociobiologist Edward O. Wilson as the Distinguished Guest Lecturer; a special panel discussion about what is involved in moving toward a science of human behavior; a presentation by Murray Bowen, Director of the Georgetown University Family Center; a presentation by Walter Toman, who is well-known for his research on sibling position; and 10 other presentations related to various aspects of family systems theory and therapy.     

An Experience for the Lifelong Journey: The Long-Term Effect of a Class Visit to a Science Center

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to explore the multiple outcomes of a class visit to a science center, and to investigate changes in these outcomes over time. The study is significant because relatively little research has been conducted on the long-term effects of school museum visits. The study was carried out in the National Museum of Science, Technology and Space in Israel, which is the largest science museum in the country. Participants were 8th-grade students who had a guided visit in the museum. Students from this class were interviewed immediately after and then again 16 months after the visit. The short- and the long-term interviews were analyzed according to 3 main categories that addressed meaningful learning outcomes: connecting knowledge, communicating knowledge, and fostering lifelong learning. After 16 months the students retained details of the experience; indicated the contribution of the visit to their knowledge; and emphasized peer interactions during the visit. This highlights the significant educational values that students take to their life's journey from the informal learning experience.     

Development of student creative skills: A quest for successful science education

Abstract:

Twelve middle school teachers taught one section of science in a Science‐Technology‐Society (STS) context and another in a more traditional manner organized around typical concepts of science. Because science is concerned with exploring and questioning, trying to explain, and devising tests for such explanations, there is an obvious tie to Creative Problem Solving. Students (314 in twelve class settings) who experienced science as concepts to be considered were compared to students (326 in twelve class settings) who experienced science by considering contemporary issues and student generated questions. Pre‐ and posttest measures were taken on the quantity and uniqueness of student generated questions, possible causes, and predicted consequences for a discrepant presented event. Students in the STS classes consistently showed greater growth in terms of (a) total number of questions generated; (b) number of unique questions; (c) total number of causes suggested; (d) uniqueness of the causes suggested; (e) total number of possible consequences predicted; and (f) uniqueness of the consequences.     

Proclus on the order of philosophy of nature

In this paper I show that Proclus is an adherent of the Classical Model of Science as set out elsewhere in this issue (de Jong and Betti 2008), and that he adjusts certain conditions of the Model to his Neoplatonic epistemology and metaphysics. In order to show this, I develop a case study concerning philosophy of nature, which, despite its unstable subject matter, Proclus considers to be a science. To give this science a firm foundation Proclus distills from Plato’s Timaeus the basic concepts Being and Becoming and a number of basic propositions, among others the quasi-definitions of the basic concepts. He subsequently explains the use of these quasi-definitions, that are actually epistemic guides, in such a way that he obtains a connection between a rational and an empirical approach to the natural world. A crucial task in establishing the connection is performed by the faculty of doxa and by geometrical conversion. The result is that Proclus secures a universal, necessary and known foundation for all of philosophy of nature.     

Conflict of interest in biomedical research: a view from Europe

In this paper I address the conflict of interest (CoI) issue from a legal point of view at a European level. We will see that the regulatory framework that exists in Europe does state the need for the independence of ethics committee involved in authorisation of research and clinical trials. We will see that CoI is an element that has to be closely monitored at National and International level. Therefore, Member States and Newly Associated States do have to address CoI in the authorisation process of research and clinical protocols of biomedicine. The opinions here expressed are personal and do not commit the European Commission. An earlier version of this paper was delivered at a Conference on Conflict of Interest and Its Significance in Science and Medicine, 5–6 April, 2002, Warsaw, Poland. The author is a Scientific Officer in the Programme Science and Society dealing with ethics and science (Unit C.3).     

History,philosophy, and science teaching: A brief review

School science education is currently the subject of much debate. Historians and philosophers of science should play a role in this debate. Since the late nineteenth century there has been a persistent, if minor, tradition arguing for the incorporation of historical and philosophical dimensions in the teaching of school science. With the current crisis in science teaching, there are encouraging signs that more attention is being paid to this tradition. What is required is much greater collaboration between philosophers, historians, and science educators, particularly in the training of teachers.This article is a shortened version of my 1988, A Role for History and Philosophy in Science Teaching, inEducational Philosophy and Theory 20 (2). All references are to the following History, Philosophy, and Science Teaching: A Bibliography.This special number ofSynthese is part of a large international project on the place of history and philosophy in science teaching. Special issues ofEducational Philosophy and Theory, Interchange, andStudies in Philosophy and Education are being produced. An international conference on the subject will be held at Florida State University in November 1989. Details of the journals and the conference can be obtained from the author.The project commenced while the author was on leave at Florida State University in 1987. It began with a gracious invitation from Jaakko Hintikka to guest edit this number, and was furthered with the support and encouragement of David Gruender. I thank them both, and also the Philosophy Department for its hospitality. Special appreciation is due to the nearly 30 authors who have contributed papers to the project. I hope that their efforts will re-open the needed dialogue between historians, philosophers, and science educators.     

Perfecting not Perfect: Christology and Pneumatology within an Imperfect Yet Purposeful Creation

Abstract

The issue of evolutionary theodicy remains an area of difficulty within the science–theology dialogue. The evolutionary understanding of life identifies a process where suffering and extinction are intrinsic; however, theology seeks to articulate God's loving goodness towards creation. Therefore the central question of evolutionary theodicy becomes: “How can a loving God act by such a process?” Within the view of theistic evolution, evolutionary theodicy has resulted in a deeper understanding of Christology and Pneumatology, as the whole of creation is understood to be moving towards its eschatological perfection in Christ.     

A (Post)Foundational Approach to the Philosophy of Science: Part II

Summary  This is a sequel to my paper, “Searching for a (Post)Foundational Approach to Philosophy of Science”, which appeared in an earlier issue of this Journal [Ginev 2001, Journal for General Philosophy of science 32, 27–37]. In the present paper I continue to scrutinize the possibility of a strong hermeneutics of scientific research. My aim is to defend the position of cognitive existentialism that combines the advocacy of science’s cognitive specificity and the rejection of any form of essentialism. A special attention will be paid to the notion of the thematizing project of scientific research.     

Computers,information and ethics: A review of issues and literature

Editorial note:The following bibliographic survey of computer ethics is intended as a general introduction useful to guide both preliminary research and course development. It is the first of a series that Carl Mitcham will be doing on a number of specific discussions of ethics in science and technology. Future installments are projected on nuclear ethics, engineering ethics, ethics in scientific research, and biomedical ethics. With this [book] I issue “a call to arms.” The world needs much more discussion and writing on the social and ethical issues surrounding computing. I hope readers .... will take up the challenge.     

Researcher Degrees of Freedom in the Psychology of Religion

ABSTRACT

There is a push in psychology toward more transparent practices, stemming partially as a response to the replication crisis. We argue that the psychology of religion should help lead the way toward these new, more transparent practices to ensure a robust and dynamic subfield. One of the major issues that proponents of Open Science practices hope to address is researcher degrees of freedom (RDF). We pre-registered and conducted a systematic review of the 2017 issues from three psychology of religion journals. We aimed to identify the extent to which the psychology of religion has embraced Open Science practices and the role of RDF within the subfield. We found that many of the methodologies that help to increase transparency, such as pre-registration, have yet to be adopted by those in the subfield. In light of these findings, we present recommendations for addressing the issue of transparency in the psychology of religion and outline how to move toward these new Open Science practices.