Intendierte Lernergebnisse
As part of the elective course on Knowledge, Culture, and Digitalization, the course addresses pseudoscience from the perspective of knowledge production and dissemination, scientific cultures, and the effects of the new scientific and political environment we are living in. Students will learn about the concept of pseudoscience, its historical and contemporary manifestations, political implications of pseudoscience, cultural, political, psychological and other explanations for its emergence, as well as possible strategies for combating it.
Lehrmethodik
Introductory lecture by the teacher followed by group discussion of the assigned readings.
Inhalt/e
At a time of growing skepticism about—if not outright denialism of—scientific findings and expertise in general, pseudoscience might seem an unusual, maybe even outdated concept. We might think of alchemists from centuries ago, but pseudoscience is not a thing of past: cryptozoology (think of Bigfoot or Nessie), astrology, telekinesis, and flat-Earthism are just some of the more recent/contemporary examples.The course will examine the nature of relationship between science and pseudoscience and ask whether all pseudosciences are the same, equally unhinged and harmful. We will discuss the methods of telling science and pseudoscience apart and look into whether ideas are "born" as pseudoscientific or become pseudoscientific. We will discuss motivations: we know how easy denying scientific findings is, but why would anyone invest a lot of effort in producing pseudoscientific knowledge?The following topics and questions will be addressed:Introduction: Pseudoscience in a Post-Truth WorldDemarcation Problem: Telling Science and Pseudoscience Apart (we'll visit the Karl-Popper-Archiv)Definitions: Skepticism, denialism, fraud, mistake, consensus, debate, bias...Typology and examples of pseudosciences (we'll cover a wide variety of examples)Fringing: How does one become a pseudoscientist?Political-epistemological ramificationsWhat to do: Can science education and communication save science (and society) from pseudoscience?
Literatur
Christian, Alexander. Wissenschaft und Pseudowissenschaft: Ein Beitrag zum Demarkationsproblem. Frankfurt am Main–Wien: Lang, 2013.Gordin, Michael D. On the Fringe: Where Science Meets Pseudoscience. New York: Oxford University Press, 2021.Kaufman, Allison B., and James C. Kaufman, eds. Pseudoscience: The Conspiracy Against Science. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2018.McIntyre, Lee. The Scientific Attitude: Defending Science From Denial, Fraud, and Pseudoscience. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2019.Mnookin, Seth. The Panic Virus: The True Story Behind the Vaccine-Autism Controversy. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2012.O'Brien, Thomas C., Ryan Palmer, Dolores Albarracin. “Misplaced Trust: When Trust in Science Fosters Belief in Pseudoscience and the Benefits of Critical Evaluation.” Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 96 (2021).Oreskes, Naomi. Why Trust Science? Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2019.Pigliucci, Massimo, and Maarten Boudry, eds. Philosophy of Pseudoscience: Reconsidering the Demarcation Problem. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013.Popper, Karl. Logik der Forschung: Zur Erkenntnistheorie dermodernen Naturwissenschaft. Wien: Springer, 1935 // The Logic of Scientific Discovery. London and New York: Routledge, 1992.Rupnow, Dirk. Pseudowissenschaft: Konzeptionen von Nichtwissenschaftlichkeit in der Wissenschaftsgeschichte. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, 2008.Sagan, Carl. The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. New York: Random House, 1996.Williams, William F., ed. Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publ., 2000.