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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
An 11 page outline of the contention presented by researchers such as Barry Barnes and David Bloor. This paper recognizes the fact that factors such as social and political ideologies, group interests, and even competing personal and professional interests has greatly impacted our interpretation of scientific fact. The author contends, however, that while sociological circumstance can influence our understanding of science, that circumstance is incapable of changing actual scientific fact. Bibliography lists 9 sources.
Page Count:
11 pages (~225 words per page)
File: AM2_PPsciKnw.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
social and cognitive dimensions of scientific knowledge has fascinated some of the greatest minds on earth. Barry Barnes and David Bloor are among those minds. Along with other
key researchers these men have explored the role of large-scale social phenomena, in particular, in impacting scientific knowledge. This research recognizes the fact that factors such as social and
political ideologies, group interests, and even competing personal and professional interests has greatly impacted our interpretation of scientific fact. Their Strong Programme of sociology of scientific knowledge epitomizes the
full-blown constructivist view of science which arose in the 1970s. While this view of the manner in which we acquire and interpret scientific knowledge is supported time and time
again in history, the view is not without its critics. In short, while sociological circumstance can influence our understanding of science, that circumstance is incapable of changing actual scientific
fact. In Chapter One of "The Strong Programme in the Sociology of Knowledge" Bloor (2003) presents his view that the sociology of knowledge
is capable of the investigation and exploration of both the content and nature of scientific knowledge. Bloor presents this contention to counter the views of those sociologists who believe
that this is not the case, that pure knowledge stands independent from social sociological circumstance. Bloor (2002) contends:
"There are no limitations which lie in the absolute or transcendent character of scientific knowledge itself, or in the special nature of rationality, validity, truth or
objectivity". Bloor (2003) further contends that our failure to focus thorough sociological scrutiny on
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