Research Proposal: Learned Societies--- the "in"s and "out"s
By Julio Pineda and Yunjung Kim
Abstract
At first glance, everything in science may seem to be concrete. Upon a closer examination, one begins to see that nothing is definite about science. As proposed by Thomas Kuhn, an influential philosopher of science in the twentieth century, science is a social construct due to many paradigm shifts (i.e. revolutionary science). As scientists conduct research, they encounter anomalies that cannot be explained with the current paradigm. At this point, a scientist may choose to continue to study it on their own or begin a discussion with fellow scientists through learned societies about the discrepancies. If new theories and ideas are formed, over a period of debate and conflict, a new paradigm replaces the old. In consequence, understanding of science and "facts" by the general public has been changed. Thus, science and the learned societies shape how the people view the world and what the people believe. As a group, we are interested in the dynamics within and between learned societies and public during the progression of science. We are motivated by the dichotomy of how information is individualized and publicized. We propose to investigate the "in"s and "out"s of learned societies. That is, we plan to explore 1) how they function within themselves and 2) how they interact with communities. In each of these aspects, we will consider the social polarities in science (collaboration and competition; and sharing and privatizing). We will explore prominent learned communities such as the Royal Society, the Oxford colleges and Oxford scientific communities to answer these questions.
Main questions
Learned societies are social communities. They function between members, other learned societies, and groups in the public (outside of the societies). We separate this research into two separate parts: the inside and the outside. We will explore how learned societies interact "inside" their scientific community (in their own group and with others) and how they interact "outside" the scientific community. Two main and broad questions arise:
Pre-departure
In order to answer these questions during our stay in the UK, we will study the history of how the learned societies (specifically the Royal Society) has interacted inside and outside the communities before the departure. We consider the following preliminary questions:
While in the UK:
Once we are on-site, we will
Abstract
At first glance, everything in science may seem to be concrete. Upon a closer examination, one begins to see that nothing is definite about science. As proposed by Thomas Kuhn, an influential philosopher of science in the twentieth century, science is a social construct due to many paradigm shifts (i.e. revolutionary science). As scientists conduct research, they encounter anomalies that cannot be explained with the current paradigm. At this point, a scientist may choose to continue to study it on their own or begin a discussion with fellow scientists through learned societies about the discrepancies. If new theories and ideas are formed, over a period of debate and conflict, a new paradigm replaces the old. In consequence, understanding of science and "facts" by the general public has been changed. Thus, science and the learned societies shape how the people view the world and what the people believe. As a group, we are interested in the dynamics within and between learned societies and public during the progression of science. We are motivated by the dichotomy of how information is individualized and publicized. We propose to investigate the "in"s and "out"s of learned societies. That is, we plan to explore 1) how they function within themselves and 2) how they interact with communities. In each of these aspects, we will consider the social polarities in science (collaboration and competition; and sharing and privatizing). We will explore prominent learned communities such as the Royal Society, the Oxford colleges and Oxford scientific communities to answer these questions.
Main questions
Learned societies are social communities. They function between members, other learned societies, and groups in the public (outside of the societies). We separate this research into two separate parts: the inside and the outside. We will explore how learned societies interact "inside" their scientific community (in their own group and with others) and how they interact "outside" the scientific community. Two main and broad questions arise:
- How do they function within themselves?
For more information on the research questions related to this aspect of learned societies, please refer to my partner (Julio Pineda)'s page - How do they interact with communities?
I would like to consider the dynamic between sharing and privatizing work between learned societies and communities. There are many aspects to consider and ideas to define to fully understand the interaction.
First, what is a community? How is the public grouped (in particular, in the UK and more specifically, around Oxford)? We will consider different audiences: students, businesses, monarchy and the wealthy people, non-science people, etc.. Other questions follow: With these populations, do their relations with the learned societies affect how much information they receive and in which form they receive the information? With the understanding of what communities are, we would like to extend the relationship and the dynamic between each pairing.
In order to consider the interaction, we must understand each side's perspective on sharing and privatizing. So, we must ask: to what extent is public dissemination a goal of learned societies? Do the goals differ depending on the community? How much does the public want to know? Are each of their goals satisfied? If so, how? If not, why not?
As in all research, evidence is vital. How is the interaction displayed in public? Through the built environment, can we make inferences on how information is being disseminated or how learned societies hide their work to the public.
Pre-departure
In order to answer these questions during our stay in the UK, we will study the history of how the learned societies (specifically the Royal Society) has interacted inside and outside the communities before the departure. We consider the following preliminary questions:
- How does the Royal Society function? How do they function within themselves? How do they interact with the community?
- What have been the previous debates discussed by the Royal Society? How have these issues been presented in the public? How have these information been shared? How do the societies promote scientific understanding to the general populace?
- University structure: Are there changes in how universities are constructed?
- What were the rise of scientific spaces in Oxford in the early ages?
While in the UK:
Once we are on-site, we will
- visit scientific facilities to look at the built environment of science spaces to observe whether they encourage sharing or privatizing
- conduct interviews with people in learned societies at University of Oxford and people in the community to obtain information on their views on the polarities of sciences