Dr. phil. habil. Alexander Reutlinger
August 28th, 2020 to January 31st, 2021
Affiliation: LMU Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München | Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy
Contact
Research for a study about:
Trust in Science and Strategic Science Skepticism
Abstract of the Research Project:
- general criteria for epistemic trust in science to analyze and rebut strategic science skepticism (the project is based on different tools from social epistemology, formal epistemology, and philosophy of science)
- the role of science and expertise in liberal democracies (a project that brings together debates from epistemology and political philosophy)
- non-causal explanations and understanding in the sciences, mathematics and metaphysics (a project situated at the intersection of philosophy of science, philosophy of mathematics, and metaphysics).
Online: Tagung | Wissenschaftliche Expertise in der Demokratie. Zur Aktualität Otto Neuraths
Online-Vorträge:
Wissenschaftliche Expertise in der Demokratie. Zur Aktualität Otto Neuraths
Veranstalter:
Österreichisches Gesellschafts- und Wirtschaftsmuseum in Kooperation mit dem Institut Wiener Kreis der Universität Wien
Sprecher:
Alexander Reutlinger (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München)
Günther Sandner (Universität Wien)
Moderation:
Daniela Ingruber (Austrian Democracy Lab, Donau Universität Krems)
Datum: 12.01. 2021
Zeit: 18:00 Uhr
Online-Plattform: Zoom
Abstract:
Otto Neurath hat immer wieder in gesellschaftliche und politische Debatten interveniert: von der Sozialisierungsdebatte nach dem Ersten Weltkriegs bis zu Fragen des Wiederaufbaus gegen Ende des Zweiten Weltkriegs. Auch in seinen Schriften reflektierte er wiederholt und mit wachsender (Selbst-)Reflexion zum Verhältnis von Bürger*innen, wissenschaftlichen Expert*innen und Politik, zu Diskurs, Beratung und Entscheidung in der Demokratie. Dabei spielten Bildstatistik und Visual Education für Neurath eine Schlüsselrolle. Wir möchten die Aktualität von Neuraths Ideen zu Expertise und Demokratie diskutieren, indem wir zwei Fragen aufwerfen: Welche Rolle sollten wissenschaftliche Expert*innen in liberalen Demokratien einnehmen? Wie sollten Expert*innen wissenschaftliches Wissen an Bürger*innen vermitteln, damit Bürger*innen informierte und selbstbestimmte politische Entscheidungen treffen können? Wir werden diese Fragen im Kontext der Klima- und Corona-Krise aufwerfen.
Online Lecture: 14/01/2021
Why Strategic Science Skeptics Are Not “Modern-Day Galileos”
Moderator: Iulian Toader
Date: 14/01/2021
Time: 15h00 - 17h00
Plattform: Moodle Collaborate | Talks in Philosophy of Science and Epistemology PSE
Access: https://eu.bbcollab.com/guest/c8cdeaacf66140a5994605d5fff5cf25
Online Lecture: 26/11/2020
What's Epistemically wrong with Strategic Science Skepticism?
Moderator: Iulian Toader
Date: 26/11/2020
Time: 15h00 - 17h00
Plattform: Moodle Collaborate | Talks in Philosophy of Science and Epistemology PSE
Access: https://eu.bbcollab.com/guest/c8cdeaacf66140a5994605d5fff5cf25
No registered accounts are required, it's enough to click on the link and enter your name. Chrome or Firefox browsers work best.
Abstract:
Strategic science skepticism creates distrust in science. It works by contesting scientific knowledge claims in a public debate to promote the particular political and economic interests of individuals, groups or organizations. For instance, the fossil fuel industry and right-wing populists contest climate science publicly to promote the industry's economic interests and to prevent government regulations. In this talk, I will address the following question: what precisely is epistemically wrong with strategic science skepticism? I will defend an account of epistemic wrongness that draws on two sources from current epistemology of science: (1) theories of empirical confirmation and (2) social epistemology of agreement among scientists.
Online Lecture: 17/11/2020
When Do Non-Epistemic Values Play an Epistemically Illegitimate Role in Science?
Date: 17/11/2020
Time:
Plattform/Host: online CEU Central European University, Department of Philosophy
Access: https://events.ceu.edu/node/9633
If you would like to attend, please consult the events-page of CEU's philosophy department for further details.
Report
During my IVC fellowship, I worked on four research articles addressing topics that are closely related to a philosophical analysis and critique of strategic science skepticism: (1) a counterfactual independence account of objectivity in science (forthcoming in Episteme), (2) an analysis of the illegitimate role of non-epistemic values, (3) the epistemology of agreement and its consequences for a kind of disagreement evoked by science skeptics, and (4) a rebuttal of the claim, endorsed by science skeptics, that science skeptics are revolutionary scientists.
Moreover, I engaged in several outreach activities. Martin Kusch and I published an article on “Criticising Science” (published in Philosophy Now) and we recorded a video on “Values in Science”. Günther Sandner and I organized an online event on “Wissenschaftliche Expertise in der Demokratie. Zur Aktualität Otto Neuraths”, hosted by the Österreichisches Gesellschafts- und Wirtschaftsmuseum Wien, in cooperation with the IVC. Günther Sandner and I are currently working on a paper synthesizing our contributions to this event.