ideology and science Flashcards
the impact of science
society has faith in science because it has improved many features of life such as transport, communication and medicine
society’s faith in science has started to fall because it causes problems such as pollution, global warming and weapons of mass destruction
cognitive power of science - science enables us to explain, predict and control the world
open belief systems
popper - every scientists theories are open to criticism, scrutiny and testing by others
the principle of falsification - scientists set out to try and falsify existing theories, deliberately seeking evidence that would disprove them
science is cumulative. it builds on the achievements of previous scientists to develop a greater and greater understanding of the world around us
popper - scientific knowledge can always be questioned, criticised, tested and shown to be false
the cudos norms
merton - the protestant reformation and puritanism first supported scientific thinking
communism - scientific knowledge is not private property. scientists must share it with the scientific community, otherwise knowledge can’t grow
universalism - the truth or falsity of scientific knowledge is judged by the universal objective criteria and not by the particular race or sex
disinterestedness - being committed to discovering knowledge for its own sake
organised scepticism - no knowledge claim is regarded as sacred. every idea is open to criticism and objective investigation
closed belief systems
religion is a closed belief system because knowledge claims are made that cannot be successfully overturned
having a number of devices or get out clauses that reinforce the system prevent it from being disproved
witchcraft among the azande
misfortune - they do not believe in coincidence or chance. ‘i have walked down the same path a thousand times but have not been bitten before. why now?
dealing with a suspected witch - the injured person makes an accusation against the suspected witch and the matter may be received by consulting the prince’s magic poison oracle. the prince’s diviner will administer a potion to a chicken at the same time asking the benge whether the accused is a witch
evans - pritchard - three functions of the azande belief system
- it clears the air and prevents grudges from festering
- encourages neighbours to behave considerately towards each other
- children have a vested interest in keeping their parents in line
the azande don’t question their belief system because they are trapped in their own idiom of belief because they accept the system’s basic assumptions and cannot challenge it
