The HPS Podcast - Conversations from History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Science

Jahnavi Phalkey on India's Place in the History of Modern Science

Thu, 27 Aug 2026 16:00:00 +1000

This week, Thomas Spiteri speaks with Dr Jahnavi Phalkey, historian of science and technology, filmmaker, and Founding Director of Science Gallery Bengaluru. Phalkey is the author of Atomic State: Big Science in Twentieth Century India, and producer-director of the documentary film Cyclotron (2020) – a film about the world's oldest functional particle accelerator and the people who keep it running today. Her writing spans the history of science, technology, and the state in twentieth-century India.

The conversation traces Phalkey's route into the history of science by way of political sociology, silent cinema, and a chance funded place at Georgia Tech under John Krige, and her eventual return to studying India after finding its absence conspicuous in accounts of twentieth-century science. She discusses how Atomic State pushes back against two dominant framings in the historiography of science in India: the "tools of empire" argument for the imperial period, and the scarcity of histories of Indian science after independence. Drawing on the early efforts to build particle accelerators in Kolkata and Bangalore, and the eventual rise of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and the Department of Atomic Energy, she describes how the demands of a single, resource-intensive field reshaped the relationship between Indian science and the Indian state — and how that "big science" model went on to marginalise both university research and smaller-scale inquiry.

The discussion broadens into Phalkey's work reframing India and China as "conceptual sites" rather than deviant "cases" measured against a European norm, and closes with her current thinking on critique in the history and philosophy of science, informed in part by Bruno Latour, and on what it means for historians of science to help the public make meaning of research in an age of climate change, AI, and new gene technologies.

In this episode, Phalkey:

Describes her winding path into history of science
Explains what drew her back to studying science in India specifically, after finding it missing from standard histories of twentieth-century science
Outlines the two historiographical tendencies Atomic State argues against: the "tools of empire" framework and the neglect of post-independence science
Discusses the concept of India and China as "conceptual sites," against the limits of a Europe-benchmarked history of science
Traces the early, fragile efforts to build particle accelerators in Kolkata and Bangalore, and the wartime origins of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Reflects on how the everyday bureaucracy of running a national laboratory shaped the entangled relationship between Indian science and the postcolonial state
Discusses her documentary Cyclotron and the material, practical difficulties of building and maintaining a particle accelerator in a resource-constrained setting
Considers how the "big science" model, centred on the Department of Atomic Energy, drew resources and people away from Indian universities and small-scale research
Calls for a connected rather than a difference-based history of science in the Global South, and reflects on reconstituting the meaning of critique in history and philosophy of science

Relevant Links

Atomic State: Big Science in Twentieth Century India — Permanent Black
Cyclotron (2020) — documentary directed and produced by Jahnavi Phalkey
Science Gallery Bengaluru
Science of Giants
Devi Prize – for promoting "public engagement with science" (2024)
Infosys Prize, Humanities ( 2023)

Mentioned scholarship

David Arnold, Science, Technology and Medicine in Colonial India (Cambridge History of India)
Bruno Latour, "Why Has Critique Run Out of Steam?" (2004)
Steven Shapin & Simon Schaffer, Leviathan and the Air-Pump (1985)

Note: This conversation was recorded in May, 2026

Thanks for listening to The HPS Podcast. You can find more about us on our website, Bluesky, Instagram and Facebook feeds.

This podcast would not be possible without the support of School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne and the Hansen Little Public Humanities Grant scheme.

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Mazviita Chirimuuta on Simplification in Neuroscience

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 15:00:00 +1000

This week, Thomas Spiteri speaks with Dr Mazviita Chirimuuta, Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh and author of The Brain Abstracted: Simplification in the History and Philosophy of Neuroscience (MIT Press, 2024) – winner of the 2025 Lakatos Award and the 2024 Nayef Al-Rodhan International Prize in Transdisciplinary Philosophy from the Royal Institute of Philosophy.

The conversation centres on the central argument of the book: that the leading ideas which have shaped neuroscience are best understood as attempts to simplify the brain, one of the more complex objects of scientific inquiry. Mazviita describes this in practice as a mismatch between the brain's overwhelming complexity and the representations — models, theories, diagrams — that scientists rely on, which necessarily ignore much of that complexity. She identifies three recurring simplifying strategies running through the book — reduction, mathematisation, and analogy — and discusses how "proxy systems," from anesthetised cats to cerebral organoids, let scientists study minimal, decontextualised versions of the brain built using these strategies.

She also discusses the diverging paths of neuroscience and AI research, the risk of conflating predictive power with genuine understanding, and why she advocates for greater theoretical pluralism in how science approaches the brain.

In this episode, Chirimuuta:

Describes her academic path from psychophysics and vision science back into philosophy of science
Introduces The Brain Abstracted and its central concern with simplification in neuroscience
Unpacks three recurring simplification strategies in neuroscience — reduction, mathematisation, and analogy
Traces how the computer analogy shaped artificial neural networks, from McCulloch and Pitts through Hubel and Wiesel to today's deep learning models
Introduces the idea of the "Heraclitean brain" — a system always in flux — and what this means for scientific explanation
Reflects on the historical back-and-forth between localisationist and dynamic/distributed views of brain function
Considers the shifting, increasingly divergent relationship between neuroscience and AI research, including energy efficiency as a new point of biological inspiration
Calls for greater theoretical humility and pluralism in neuroscience, drawing on the 19th-century work of John Hughlings Jackson as a case study

Relevant Links

Note: This conversation was recorded at the end of 2025.

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Magdalena Skipper on Scientific Publishing

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 14:00:00 +1000

This week, Thomas Spiteri speaks with Dr. Magdalena Skipper, Editor-in-Chief of Nature. Skipper has held the role since 2018, and has a background in the genetic sciences. She is also notably the first female — and only the eighth person — to lead the journal since its founding in 1869.

Skipper reflects on what she has worked to preserve and change since taking on the role, from deepening the connection between Nature's research and journalism teams to broadening the journal's scope beyond the natural sciences into engineering, social sciences, and clinical research. Drawing on her training as a geneticist, she discusses how evidence and rigor take different forms across disciplines, and why she sees no single "final word" in science.

The conversation turns to some of the defining pressures on contemporary research culture: the COVID-19 pandemic's paradoxical effect on public trust in science, the discipline-specific nature of the replication crisis, and the rise of meta-science as a lens for understanding how research itself is produced. Skipper also discusses Nature's move toward transparent peer review, the persistent inequities shaping who gets published, and why she remains fundamentally hopeful about science's capacity for self-correction.

In this episode, Skipper:

Describes what she set out to preserve and change on becoming Nature's Editor-in-Chief, including expanding the journal's scope into engineering, social sciences, and clinical research
Reflects on how her background in genetics shaped her thinking about evidence, rigor, and multiple valid paths to a scientific claim
Discusses the COVID-19 pandemic's dual legacy: accelerating the adoption of preprints while eroding public trust in science
Unpacks the replication crisis as a discipline-specific phenomenon and what Nature has learned from it
Explains the growing role of meta-science, particularly at the intersection of psychology, human behaviour, and research practice
Details Nature's move to transparent and, since June 2025, mandatory published peer review reports
Addresses persistent inequities in scientific publishing and Nature's editorial efforts to counter "helicopter science"
Shares why she remains hopeful about science's capacity for self-correction and its role in building a more equitable world

Relevant Links

Note: This conversation was recorded in October 2025.

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Steven Shapin on the Social Life of Scientific Knowledge

Sun, 19 Oct 2025 20:00:00 +1100

This week, Thomas Spiteri speaks with Steven Shapin, Professor Emeritus of the History of Science at Harvard. Shapin reflects on his path into the history and sociology of science and discusses the central concerns of his work: how knowledge is produced, the social foundations of trust in science, the embodied nature of knowledge, and the performance of expertise.

He revisits Leviathan and the Air-Pump, co-authored with Simon Schaffer, outlining the Boyle–Hobbes controversy and showing how seventeenth-century scientific credibility depended on rhetoric, social standing, and performance, while highlighting the broader relevance of the book’s insights into the social foundations of knowledge. Shapin considers contemporary challenges, including political interventions in science and universities, the effects of digital communication, and the fragmentation of expertise, and reframes the “crisis of truth” as a crisis of social knowledge.

Finally, he connects these themes to his recent work on taste and eating (Eating and Being), examining how communities form shared judgments about food and flavour, paralleling the intersubjective construction of objectivity in science.

In this episode:

Recounts his path through Edinburgh, UCSD, and Harvard and what each taught about interdisciplinarity.
Explains the story and broader thesis of Leviathan and the Air-Pump: facts are made credible through practice, rhetoric, and social arrangements.
Reflects on shifting disciplinary fault lines.
Describes how credibility is performed today and the growing value of face-to-face embodiment.
Surveys credibility issues from science’s entanglement with business, government, and partisan politics.
Discusses Eating and Being, drawing parallels between intersubjective agreement in science and taste.

Transcript being prepared.

Photo: Steven Shapin, Groningen, Netherlands, March 2020, by Newfrogm, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Relevant links

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Cordelia Fine on "Patriarchy Inc"

Fri, 03 Oct 2025 17:00:00 +1000

This week, Thomas Spiteri speaks with Professor Cordelia Fine — psychologist, award-winning writer, and professor in the History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Melbourne. Cordelia is one of today’s leading voices on how science and society shape our understandings of gender.

In the conversation, Cordelia discusses her new book Patriarchy, Inc.: What We Get Wrong About Gender Equality – and Why Men Still Win at Work. The book challenges two influential views of gender inequality: the “different but equal” view, or the claim that natural differences between the sexes explain persistent inequalities in work and care; and the “business case” for diversity, which treats equality as worthwhile only when it improves efficiency or profit.

Fine argues that both perspectives misrepresent the problem. Drawing on psychology, sociology, economics, and cultural evolution, she shows how divisions of labour are created and reinforced, how expectations are instilled from childhood, and how workplace structures designed around constant availability clash with the realities of people’s lives.

She concludes by outlining a new vision of gender equality — one that rejects both biological determinism and narrow economic utility, and instead centres justice, fairness, and human wellbeing.

In this episode, Fine:

Explains why the “different but equal” and “business case” narratives remain persuasive yet inadequate
Traces how gender divisions of labour operate at individual, interactional, and institutional levels
Describes how children actively take up and reproduce gender norms
Shows how workplace ideals disadvantage carers and perpetuate inequality
Proposes a conception of gender justice that measures equality in terms of wellbeing, respect, and fair reward

Relevant Links

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Miriam Solomon on How Stigma Shapes Psychiatry

Fri, 19 Sep 2025 17:00:00 +1000

This week, Thomas Spiteri speaks with Professor Miriam Solomon, Professor of Philosophy at Temple University and a leading voice in philosophy of science, medicine, and psychiatry.

Solomon reflects on her intellectual trajectory, from her early studies in the natural sciences at Cambridge and her doctoral work at Harvard, to her later contributions in the philosophy of medicine and psychiatry. She describes how questions about knowledge-making — from consensus conferences to evidence-based medicine — led her to examine psychiatry and, most recently, the constitutive role of stigma in shaping psychiatric categories.

In the conversation, Solomon argues that stigma is not only a social force attached to mental illness from the outside but also a factor that has shaped psychiatry from within. It has influenced the recognition, definition, and revision of diagnostic categories, as she illustrates through cases drawn from the history of psychiatry. She situates these examples within broader debates about the nature of psychiatric disorder, the limitations of the DSM, and possible alternative frameworks.

In this episode, Solomon:

Recounts her path from philosophy of science to psychiatry, shaped by formative years at Cambridge and Harvard
Explains why consensus conferences and evidence-based medicine sparked her interest in psychiatry and the DSM
Argues that stigma is not only a social prejudice but a constitutive force within psychiatric knowledge
Examines the role of stigma in categories like Asperger’s and PTSD, and its entanglement with hermeneutical injustice
Assesses debates over defining psychiatric disorder, including the harmful dysfunction model, and emphasises the centrality of “harm” over “dysfunction”
Discusses the challenges facing the DSM
Calls for greater awareness of how stigma operates, both within psychiatry and in everyday experiences of mental illness

Relevant Links

Transcript coming soon.

Photo Credit: Amira Solomon

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Philip Kitcher on Philosophy for Science and the Common Good

Fri, 12 Sep 2025 01:00:00 +1000

This week, Thomas Spiteri speaks with Professor Philip Kitcher, John Dewey Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Columbia University and one of the most influential philosophers of science of the past half-century.

Kitcher traces his intellectual journey from his early years at Cambridge and Princeton, where he studied with Thomas Kuhn, Carl Hempel, and Paul Benacerraf, to his later interventions in public debates over creationism, sociobiology, and the Human Genome Project. These experiences, he explains, shifted his understanding of philosophy’s role—from narrow technical problems to broader ethical and political questions.

He also reflects on his evolving views of scientific explanation, his collaborations with historians and sociologists of science, and the recognition of ethical and political dimensions long neglected in philosophy of science. Kitcher concludes with his vision of a pragmatist philosophy that reconnects ethics with politics and ensures science serves democratic ideals and human flourishing in the face of global crises.

In this episode, Kitcher:

Recounts his path from mathematics to philosophy of science at Cambridge and Princeton
Reflects on the influence of Thomas Kuhn, Carl Hempel, Paul Benacerraf, and Richard Rorty
Explains how public debates on creationism, sociobiology, and genomics redirected his work toward questions of science and society
Discusses his shift from unificationist to pluralist accounts of scientific explanation
Highlights the importance of history and sociology of science for philosophy’s self-understanding
Argues for philosophy’s responsibility to address ethical and political dimensions of science
Outlines his pragmatist vision for democracy, ethics, and science in the service of human flourishing

Relevant Links

Transcript coming soon

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Lydia Patton on HOPOS

Fri, 29 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +1000

This week, Thomas Spiteri is in conversation with Professor Lydia Patton, philosopher of science and historian of the philosophy of science. Patton traces her unexpected journey from ballet to Kantian philosophy and into the emerging field of HOPOS (history of philosophy of science). She reflects on her years as editor-in-chief of the HOPOS journal, she offers her perspective on the field’s future.

Along the way, she highlights the distinctive character of HOPOS as a historically grounded approach to philosophical problems, reflects on her editorial leadership of HOPOS (2017-2024), emphasises the importance of widening the scope of the discipline, and considers the promise and limits of new and emerging methods of research. She concludes by discussing some of areas of research that continue to capture her attention.

In this episode, Patton:

Recounts her unlikely path from ballet to philosophy and HOPOS
Clarifies what makes HOPOS distinctive as a historical approach
Reflects on her editorial leadership of HOPOS (2017–2024)
Challenges presentist views of the 19th century and its blurred disciplinary boundaries
Explores new digital methods in the history of philosophy of science
Shares concerns and hopes about AI and machine learning
Looks ahead to the journal’s future under Matthew Brown

Relevant Links

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Sarah Blaffer Hrdy on ‘Rethinking our Starting Assumptions’

Thu, 21 Aug 2025 23:00:00 +1000

“I love your field. It is making such an important point about scientists who don't understand the extent to which our own upbringing impacts our starting assumptions. It's those starting assumptions that get you in trouble.”

In today’s episode Samara Greenwood returns to interview the pioneering primatologist and evolutionary anthropologist, Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, about her latest book Father Time: A Natural History of Men and Babies. The discussion centres on the shifts Sarah made in her personal assumptions through the process of conceiving and writing this work. The notion that men had the capacity to be expert carers of young babies was foreign to Sarah until she experienced it firsthand when her son-in-law took on the role of primary carer to her first-born grandson in 2012. This ‘lived experience’ of expert male care led Sarah not only to a new mindset, but to a new way of theorising about the evolutionary possibilities for baby-care in men.

Relevant Links:

For more on the topic of supporting men in their care of children, see our series on working fathers.

Working Fathers Podcast Mini-Series:

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Cristian Larroulet Philippi on Measurement in the Human Sciences

Thu, 14 Aug 2025 05:00:00 +1000

This week, Thomas Spiteri is joined by Dr. Cristian Larroulet Philippi, who joins us at the University of Melbourne this year as the inaugural RW Seddon Fellow in the History and Philosophy of Science program. With a background in economics and a PhD in History and Philosophy of Science from the University of Cambridge, Larroulet Philippi was previously a Junior Research Fellow at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. His research explores the development and justification of quantitative concepts, the role of measurement in the human sciences, and the intersection of scientific objectivity and values.

In this episode, Larroulet Philippi:

Traces his path from economics into philosophy of science, and how encounters with psychometrics and measurement theory reshaped his research direction
Explains why measurement in the human sciences is perhaps more philosophically complex than in the physical sciences – highlighting issues of conceptual vagueness, causal complexity, and limited experimental control
Discusses the difficulties of treating concepts like intelligence or depression severity as measurable quantities, and what kinds of evidence and theory would be needed to justify this
Examines the risks of treating indices like depression or wellbeing scores as overly objective or precise in policy contexts, and why we need a clearer grasp of what such numbers are meant to represent
Reflects on why clearer thinking about measurement matters across philosophy, psychology, sociology, and policy — and on his efforts to build cross-disciplinary dialogue

Relevant Links

Cristian Larroulet-Philippi - University of Melbourne
Recent Interview - about the RW Seddon Fellowship
PhilPapers
Cristian's podcast, FICICO (Spanish-speaking)

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Heather Douglas on Rethinking Science’s Social Contract

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 22:00:00 +1000

This week on The HPS Podcast, Thomas Spiteri is in conversation with internationally recognised philosopher of science and professor at Michigan State University, Heather Douglas. Heather’s work has transformed how philosophers and scientists think about values, responsibility, and the relationship between science and society.

In recognition of her contributions, she has been honoured as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the Institute for Science, Society, and Policy at the University of Ottawa, and has held senior fellowships at the Center for Philosophy of Science at the University of Pittsburgh and, most recently, with the SOCRATES Group at Leibniz Universität Hannover.

In this episode, Douglas:

Shares her intellectual journey, from early interdisciplinary studies to her philosophical work on scientific responsibility, values, and policy
Explains how the twentieth-century “social contract” for science emerged—shaping the distinction between basic and applied research, determining how science is funded, and insulating scientists from broader social accountability
Examines the enduring appeal of the “value-free ideal” and why this model is increasingly challenged by contemporary social and ethical realities
Discusses the pressures that have exposed the limitations of the old social contract for science, including Cold War funding dynamics, issues of public trust, and debates over dual-use research
Sets out her vision for a new social contract for science—one that recognises the unavoidable role of values in research, makes public trust and inclusivity central, and supports scientists through stronger institutional structures
Offers practical proposals for reforming science funding, governance, and accountability — arguing that only a more open, responsive, and democratically engaged science can meet the challenges of the twenty-first century

Relevant Links:

Transcript now live!

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Hans-Jörg Rheinberger on 'Epistemic Things'

Fri, 01 Aug 2025 04:00:00 +1000

Today on The HPS Podcast, Thomas Spiteri talks with Hans-Jörg Rheinberger, distinguished historian and philosopher of science and Director Emeritus at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin. Trained first in philosophy and then in molecular biology, Rheinberger is well-recognised for his work on the history and epistemology of experimentation. His influential work, including concepts like “experimental systems” and “epistemic things,” has helped shape how we understand the material, conceptual, and historical dimensions of scientific research.

In this episode, Rheinberger:

Describes his path from philosophy to molecular biologist, and how time at the lab bench informed his understanding science
Explains what “experimental systems” are—carefully arranged environments where scientists interact with both the unknown and the tools that make inquiry possible
Defines “epistemic things,” the phenomena that underpin scientific curiosity, and “technical objects,” the stable tools and methods that emerge from research over time
Illustrates these ideas with vivid case examples, from solving the genetic code with synthetic RNA to the invention and evolution of the electron microscope
Reflects on the impact of new technologies, automation, and digital visualisation, and what persists — and changes — about experimentation in the contemporary lab

Relevant Links

Transcript coming soon

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Surekha Davies on Humans: A Monstrous History

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 04:00:00 +1000

Today on The HPS Podcast, Thomas Spiteri speaks with Dr. Surekha Davies, historian of science, art and ideas, and author of the new book Humans: A Monstrous History (University of California Press). Surekha’s research explores how ideas about humanity have been shaped by encounters with what did not seem to fit. She draws on visual, material and textual sources to show how people have imagined and defined the human across time.

In this episode, Surekha:

Traces her path into HPS, from Star Trek dreams to Renaissance studies
Explains why visual and material sources are crucial to understanding early modern science
Introduces her book Humans: A Monstrous History
Tell us about how monstrosity functioned as an epistemic tool for organising knowledge and drawing conceptual boundaries
Examines how these ideas influenced concepts of gender, race and empire

If you’ve ever wondered how the strange and unfamiliar shaped science, culture, and our understanding of humanity, this episode is for you.

Relevant Links:
Surekha Davies Website
Humans: A Monstrous History ((University of California Press, 2025)
Renaissance Ethnography and the Invention of the Human: New Worlds, Maps and Monsters (Cambridge University Press, 2016).

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S5 E1 - Samara and Thomas: Reflections and Roads Ahead

Fri, 18 Jul 2025 05:00:00 +1000

After a short break, The HPS Podcast is back! Season 5 opens with a special handover episode. After several years as lead host, Samara Greenwood passes the mic to fellow PhD candidate Thomas Spiteri. Together, they look back on the podcast’s journey, what it has meant to them, and where it’s headed next.

Hear from Samara and Thomas as they:

Introduce Thomas as the new host and share plans for Season 5
Reflect on hosting highlights and lessons learned
Discuss insights from the 10th Integrated HPS Conference at Caltech (2025)
Explore what it means to do integrated HPS
Wrap up with a lightning round on favourite concepts, research obsessions, and books

Plus, some exciting news: The HPS Podcast has received the 2024 BSHS Ayrton Prize for Public Engagement!

Whether you’ve been with us from the beginning or are tuning in for the first time, this episode sets the stage for an exciting new season. We thank you for joining us!

Relevant Links

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Transcript coming soon.

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Audience Faves: Daston & Harrison on 'Scientists and History'

Fri, 09 May 2025 15:00:00 +1000

In the lead up to the launch of Season 5, we at The HPS Podcast are re-releasing some favourite episodes from our collection.

In this episode Professors Lorraine Daston and Peter Harrison talk to Samara Greenwood on the often complex, sometimes fraught relationship between practicing scientists and the history of science.

This episode was originally released on March 07, 2024.

The transcript can be found at - S3 Ep1 - Lorraine Daston & Peter Harrison Transcript

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Audience Faves: Hasok Chang on 'Epistemic Iteration'

Fri, 09 May 2025 14:00:00 +1000

In the lead up to the launch of Season 5, we at The HPS Podcast are re-releasing some favourite episodes from our collection.

In this episode, Professor Hasok Chang talks with Samara Greenwood about his concept of 'Epistemic Iteration', the idea that scientific inquiries do not start from a solid foundation, but rather begin from an imperfect position, using the outcomes of our further inquiry to refine and correct the original starting point.

This episode was originally released on December 4, 2023.

The transcript can be found at - Hasok Chang Transcript - S2 Ep 11

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Audience Faves: Rachael Brown on 'Values in Science'

Fri, 09 May 2025 14:00:00 +1000

In the lead up to the launch of Season 5, we at The HPS Podcast are re-releasing some favourite episodes from our collection.

In this episode we have Dr Rachael Brown talking to Samara Greenwood on challenge the common idea that Science is (and should be) 'Value-Free'. At a practical level, in choosing which phenomena to study, and how best to study them, can science really ever be value-free? Second, would we want it to, even if it could? Isn't it possible that, if used appropriately, values provide a beneficial component of the scientific process.

This episode was originally released on July 13, 2023.

The transcript can be found at - S1 Ep 7 - Rachael Brown on 'Values in Science'

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Audience Faves: Kristian Camilleri on 'The Disunity of Science'

Fri, 09 May 2025 14:00:00 +1000

In the lead up to the launch of Season 5, we at The HPS Podcast are re-releasing some favourite episodes from our collection.

First, we have Dr Kristian Camilleri talking with Samara Greenwood about the relatively recent realisation that this thing we call 'Science' is a less unified phenomena then is typically supposed. The 'disunity' becomes clear when we appreciate that scientific disciplines have developed in divergent ways and often employ very different methods and practices.

This episode was originally released on June 8, 2023.

The transcript can be found at - S1 Ep 2 - Kristian Camilleri on 'The Disunity of Science'

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S4 Ep 12 - Joshua Eisenthal et al. on 'Philosophy of Science in Practice'

Thu, 05 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +1100

Today we have not one, not two, but five fabulous guests who all presented at this year’s conference for the Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice, or SPSP24 for short.

Many philosophers of science we have featured on the podcast, including Hasok Chang, Rachel Ankeny and Sabina Leonelli, were founding members of SPSP. Also, our earlier episode on ‘The Turn to Practice’ in philosophy of science has been one of our most popular. Therefore, it seemed an obvious decision to dedicate our final episode of the season to hearing from some of those doing current work in the area.

Leading us further into the world of Philosophy of Science in Practice is our foreign correspondent Joshua Eistenthal, philosopher of physics at Caltech and regular contributor to the podcast. Thanks to Josh, we bring you compelling conversations with philosophers Julia Bursten, Aja Watkins, Sindhuja Bhakthavatsalam, Caleb Hazelwood, and Joseph Rouse.

This is also Samara Greenwood's last episode as co-ordinator, producer and co-host of the podcast.

Transcript coming soon.

Relevant links:

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S4 Ep 11 - Redux: Fiona Fidler on 'Collective Objectivity'

Thu, 28 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +1100

"It wouldn’t make sense to leave the entire burden of upholding objectivity in science on the shoulders of fallible individuals, right?" Prof. Fiona Fidler

Today, we return to one of our favourite episodes, with the person who first came up with the idea for our podcast – Professor Fiona Fidler.

Fiona is head of our History and Philosophy of Science Program at the University of Melbourne and co-lead of the MetaMelb research initiative.

In this episode Fiona first discusses her early move from psychology to HPS when she was struck by the ‘dodgy’ statistical methods she found prevalent in many sciences. She has since dedicated her career to studying scientific practice to help improve confidence in scientific claims.

Fiona introduces us to the concept of ‘Collective Objectivity’. Following from an earlier podcast on 'Values in Science' by Rachel Brown, Fiona discusses how contemporary understandings of objectivity have become more sophisticated.

Rather than viewing objectivity in science as solely the role of individuals, today we understand there are strong social dimensions to ensuring scientific outcomes are not unduly biased. As Fiona discusses, this not only requires diversity in 'who does science' to ensure multiple perspectives are incorporated, but we also need multiple collective review mechanisms to ensure we are developing truly robust, reliable, objective outcomes.

A full transcript of this episode can be found here

Relevant links:

AIMOS - Association for Interdisciplinary Meta-Research and Open Science
Profile: Prof Fiona Fidler (unimelb.edu.au)
Blog Post: MetaMelb – A New Research Initiative (hpsunimelb.org)
Website: MetaMelb research group
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Objectivity as a Feature of Scientific Communities & Objectivity as a Social Process
What is P Hacking: Methods & Best Practices

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S4 Ep 10 - Erika Milam on 'Colloquial Science'

Thu, 21 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +1100

"These conversations are the focus of fierce debate, not because scientists lack authority, but because these are the intellectual battles worth fighting. These are the stakes on which modern society depends"

Our guest today is Erika Milam, Charles C. and Emily R. Gillispie Professor in the History of Science at Princeton University.

Through her research, Erika has found it useful to coin the term ‘Colloquial Science’ to describe work that deals with technical scientific topics but is produced in such a way as to be accessible to a variety of audiences.

The term colloquial science can be distinguished from other terms, such as popular science, as it is concerned with shared conversations between specialists and non-specialists.

Examples of colloquial science, including scientific memoirs, magazine articles, documentaries - and even podcasts – can act as critical sources of inspiration for practicing scientists as well as future generations of researchers.

Transcript at: www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-10-erika-milam-on-colloquial-science

Related resources

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S4 Ep 9 - Holden Thorp on 'Teach History and Philosophy of Science'

Thu, 14 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +1100

“This is Holden Thorp. I'm the Editor in Chief of Science and thanks to Sam and Carmelina for all they're doing to get the word out about the history and philosophy of science”

Today's guest is Holden Thorp, professor of chemistry at George Washington University and Editor-in-Chief of the Science family of journals.

In April of this year, Holden published an editorial in Science with the tantalising title ‘Teach Philosophy of Science’. Holden called for more substantial teaching of history and philosophy of science across undergraduate and graduate science curricula. He argued that learning about the historical and philosophical foundations of science is crucial for improving public trust. Encouraging deeper consideration of ongoing revision in science, as well as historical and societal contexts, will better equip future researchers and professionals with a more nuanced perspective on how robust, reliable knowledge is established.

In the months since its publication the editorial provoked significant discussion across social media, so we decided to reach out to Holden to join us for a more in-depth conversation. We were keen to see exactly what role Holden saw for HPS scholars in such a shift and test his willingness to engage with the more challenging insights that research across History, Philosophy and Sociology of Science bring to the surface.

A full transcript of the episode can be accessed here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-9-holden-thorp-on-teach-history-and-philosophy-of-science

Relevant links:

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S4 Ep 8 - Nicole C. Nelson on 'Ethnographies of Science'

Thu, 07 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +1100

Today, Carmelina is joined by Dr. Nicole C. Nelson, Associate Professor in the Department of Medical History and Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Nicole is an ethnographer of science and a familiar face to many within both Science and Technology Studies, and Metascience. Today, Nicole explains how ethnographic studies can help us to make sense of the world, and how she uses ethnography to construct the story of science in a way that the published record of scientific articles can't. By immersing herself within the spaces where science takes place, Nicole's research produces a deeper and richer understanding of how and why science is conducted the way it is.

A full transcript of the episode can be accessed at www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-8-nicole-c-nelson-on-ethnographies-of-science

Relevant Links:

Profile:

Nicole C. Nelson, PhD

Books:

Changing Order | Collins

Articles:

Understand the real reasons reproducibility reform fails | Nelson

Thanks for listening to The HPS Podcast with current producers, Samara Greenwood and Carmelina Contarino. You can find more about us on our blog, website, bluesky,twitter, instagram and facebook feeds. Music by ComaStudio.

This podcast would not be possible without the support of School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne.

HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

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S4 Ep 7 - Naomi Oreskes on 'Writing on Ignorance'

Thu, 31 Oct 2024 05:00:00 +1100

"In response to that article, I was getting hate mail. I was getting attacked. I thought, these people have a script. This is a story that people need to understand. This isn't just something of academic interest. This is something that has real political and cultural consequences."

Today's very special guest is acclaimed historian of science, Professor Naomi Oreskes, author of Merchants of Doubt, Science on a Mission and her most recent book with long time collaborator Erik Conway – The Big Myth – all about understanding the rise of free-market fundamentalism.

Naomi discusses what lead her shift from exploration geologist to historian and philosopher of science, as well as her somewhat accidental pathway into public discussions on pressing concerns such as climate change, trust in science, and the escalation of misinformation in the public realm.

Naomi also introduces us to the fascinating field of agnotology – the study of socially constructed ignorance. While Naomi has often written about ignorance or doubt that was deliberately cultivated by bad faith actors, she also emphasises the importance of studying ‘inadvertent ignorance.’ This is when the attention of researchers becomes focussed on certain sets of issues and not others, not due to malevolent aims, but rather due to background assumptions, commitments and even funding sources. Of course, our attention can’t be directed everywhere at once, but it is the inevitability and pervasiveness of such ‘directive forces’ that makes studying them so important.

Transcript at: www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-7-naomi-oreskes-on-writing-on-ignorance

Relevant links:

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S4 Ep 6 - Jen Martin on 'Communicating Science'

Thu, 24 Oct 2024 05:00:00 +1100

"Doing the thing is not the whole thing, it's also the sharing it with the audiences who either need it or are simply interested in it...science isn't finished until it's communicated"

Our guest today is Associate Professor Jen Martin. Jen leads the University of Melbourne’s acclaimed Science Communication Teaching program and is passionate about helping scientists develop the skills they need to be visible, to make connections and to have impact.

As well as teaching, Jen is a prolific communicator of science. Over the last 18 years her voice has become a familiar companion to many as she talks weekly about science on Melbourne radio, and co-hosts the fun and highly informative ‘Let’s Talk SciComm’ podcast.

In today’s episode, Jen shows us how communicating science in inclusive and non-elitist ways is not an ‘optional extra’ to research, but rather a fundamental part of the process, with its own set of teachable skills.

A full transcript of the episode can be accessed here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-5-jen-martin-on-communicating-science

Relevant Links:

Episode edited by Samara Greenwood and Grace Martin

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S4 Ep 5 - Edouard Machery on 'Experimental Philosophy'

Thu, 17 Oct 2024 05:00:00 +1100

Today our guest presenter Thomas Spiteri is joined by Professor Edouard Machery, Distinguished Professor in the University of Pittsburgh’s HPS department and director of the Center for Philosophy of Science.

Edouard, a leading figure in experimental philosophy (X-Phi), shares insights into the X-Phi movement, which integrates empirical methods into philosophical inquiry. He discusses the limitations of traditional philosophical methods, particularly the use of intuitions, and explains how X-Phi broadens the tools available to philosophers.

Reflecting on the evolution of X-Phi, Edouard talks about its future direction and the need to balance empirical research with philosophical rigor, while cautioning against the risk of the field becoming too isolated from broader philosophical discussions.

A full transcript of the episode can be accessed here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-4-edouard-machery-on-experimental-philosophy

Relevant Links:

Edouard Machery | Personal Website
Edouard Machery | hps.pitt.edu
Edouard Machery | phil.papers
The Center for Philosophy of Science
You can find Conversations at the Center on YouTube and Spotify
Experimental Philosophy Overview

Additional Resources:

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S4 Ep 4 - Darrin Durant on 'Expertise'

Thu, 10 Oct 2024 05:00:00 +1100

Today Carmelina is joined by Dr Darrin Durant a Senior Lecturer in HPS at the University of Melbourne specialising in Science and Technology studies. Darrin's research covers two seemingly distinct areas: nuclear energy and expertise. Yet nuclear energy and other contested public policy issues are informed by experts on both sides of the debate. As Darrin explains in today’s episode, there are different types of expertise and we must learn to better judge who is, and who isn’t an expert.

Using real-world case studies, Darrin discusses the problems around creating public policy where conflicting scientific evidence or scientific uncertainty exists. By understanding how conflicting positions are treated when differing expert opinions arise and by understanding the different types of expertise at play, Darrin argues that policymakers and the public are better equipped to make active judgements about the experts involved and the contentious issues under discussion.

Transcript available here (links to an external site)

Relevant Links:

Profile:

Darrin Durant | HPS | University of Melbourne

Books:

Book Chapters:

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S4 Ep 3 - Simon Schaffer on 'Leviathan and the Air-Pump: 40 years later' (Part 2)

Thu, 03 Oct 2024 05:00:00 +1000

This episode forms Part 2 of our extended interview with the celebrated historian of science, and master communicator, Professor Simon Schaffer.

Today, we continue to focus our discussion on the book Simon co-wrote with Steven Shapin in the early 1980s, Leviathan and the Air-Pump. Simon reveals fascinating insights into the production of the book, including his many deep dives into rare books collections, as well as the back and forth of typewritten pages between Simon in London and Steven in Edinburgh.

Simon also talks about the rise to prominence of the publication, highlighting the crucial role of other well known HPS figures. At the end of the interview, Simon offers a series of reflections on the future of our wonderful field.

A full transcript of the episode can be accessed here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-3-simon-schaffer-on-leviathan-and-the-air-pump-40-years-later-part-2

Relevant links:

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S4 Ep 2 - Simon Schaffer on 'Leviathan and the Air-Pump: 40 years later' (Part 1)

Thu, 26 Sep 2024 05:00:00 +1000

This episode is the first of two in which the celebrated Professor of History of Science, Simon Schaffer, discusses the famous HPS publication, Leviathan and the Air-Pump: Hobbes, Boyle and the Experimental Life, which Simon co-wrote with another esteemed HPS scholar, Steven Shapin, in the early 1980s.

The book went on to become one of the most well-known across both HPS and STS, with next year marking 40 years since its first release.

In todays episode, Simon discusses his own academic story, introduces us to the books main themes and aims, and muses on why it was this particular publication became so well known.

Simon is also a delightful, scholarly communicator, so enjoy listening and remember to tune in again next week for the equally entertaining second half.

Transcript available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-2-simon-schaffer-on-leviathan-and-the-air-pump-40-years-later-part-1

Relevant links:

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S4 Ep 1 - Sam and Carmelina on 'Studying Humanities and Science'

Thu, 19 Sep 2024 05:00:00 +1000

Welcome back to The HPS Podcast for Season 4.

In today's episode, Carmelina and Samara touch on a variety of topics, but a core theme is 'how we study science through the lens of the humanities'. Both Sam and Carmelina believe the skills and perspectives developed through disciplines such as history, sociology, and philosophy are crucial to resolving many of today's problems. So, it is incredibly sad that they continue to be undervalued by many.

We hope The HPS Podcast - in its own small way - contributes to a broader appreciation of the richness and value of the humanities approach.

Also - make sure to listen to the end for some fun outtakes from the recording of this episode!

Transcript available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s4-ep-1-sam-and-carmelina-on-studying-humanities-and-science

Relevant links include:

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Working Fathers Mini-series. Ep 5 - What's Next?

Thu, 05 Sep 2024 04:00:00 +1000

We are pleased to bring you a special five episode podcast series Working Fathers created by Professor in HPS Cordelia Fine, political philosopher Associate Professor Dan Halliday, social psychologist, Dr Melissa Wheeler and historian Dr Annabelle Baldwin.

What’s next for Australian fathers? In this final episode of the mini-series, we look at the future of fatherhood. So far, one thing all our guests seem to agree on is that, for many families, current arrangements aren’t working as well as they could. Expectations on men as fathers are expanding, but without much of a lessening of demands from employers. As people have children later, these demographic shifts mean that families will be less likely to be able to depend on grandparents to help out. In short, policies, practices and norms need to continue to evolve to support the needs of working dads and their families and move us towards more equal opportunities to share care, access more flexible work, and achieve greater family wellbeing.

Special guests for this episode are:

Professor Leah Ruppanner, Professor of Sociology & Founding Director of The Future of Work Lab at the University of Melbourne.
Dr Carla Pascoe Leahy, Honorary Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Lecturer in Family History at the University of Tasmania.
Associate Professor Lee Gettler, Director of the Hormones, Health, and Human Behavior Laboratory at Notre Dame.

A full transcript for the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/working-fathers-mini-series-ep-5-what-s-next

The Working Fathers Podcast was funded by the Faculty of Arts and the School of Historical & Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. The creators of the podcast are also very grateful for the support of external partners, the Women’s Leadership Institute of Australia and the Trawalla Foundation.

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Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

Working Fathers Mini-series. Ep 4 - Give Dads a Break

Tue, 03 Sep 2024 04:00:00 +1000

We are pleased to bring you a special five episode podcast series Working Fathers created by Professor in HPS Cordelia Fine, political philosopher Associate Professor Dan Halliday, social psychologist, Dr Melissa Wheeler and historian Dr Annabelle Baldwin.

In Episode 4, Give Dads a Break, we look at more of the pressures that prevent fathers from being active and equal caregivers in their children’s lives. In particular, we look at the gender norms that dictate what it means to be a good man, and the social norms that dictate what it means to be a good worker – and ask what this means for fathers’ capacity to be more active caregivers in their children’s lives. We also look at the experiences of men who defy these norms, the policies that can help shift them, as well as some of the potential benefits of change for dads, partners and families.

Special guests for this episode are:

Dr Carla Pascoe Leahy, Honorary Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Lecturer in Family History at the University of Tasmania, Joint Editor of Studies in Oral History.
Professor Leah Ruppanner, Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of The Future of Work Lab at the University of Melbourne.
Professor Miranda Stewart, Professor of Law at the University of Melbourne and Fellow at the Tax and Transfer Policy Institute at the Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.

A full transcript for the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/working-fathers-mini-series-ep-4-give-dad-s-a-break

The Working Fathers Podcast was funded by the Faculty of Arts and the School of Historical & Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. The creators of the podcast are also very grateful for the support of external partners, the Women’s Leadership Institute of Australia and the Trawalla Foundation.

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

Working Fathers Mini-series. Ep 3 - Are Fathers Free?

Thu, 29 Aug 2024 04:00:00 +1000

We are pleased to bring you a special five episode podcast series Working Fathers created by Professor in HPS Cordelia Fine, political philosopher Associate Professor Dan Halliday, social psychologist, Dr Melissa Wheeler and historian Dr Annabelle Baldwin.

How much freedom do fathers have? Do fathers have real choices about how to divide their time between paid work and caring for the kids at home? Where do government and organisational policies fit in?

One of the major societal changes of the past century has been the rise of female employment, particularly in the peak child rearing years. Over the same period, there has been much less change in men’s employment rates. Why hasn’t the rise in women’s employment been accompanied by a drop in men’s employment? Why is part-time work still so much less common among men than it is among women? One answer is that these patterns are just the product of free choices. But choices are never made in a vacuum, and freedom of choice comes in degrees. In this episode, we look at the laws, policies, and organisational practices that constrain dads’ choices.

Special guests for this episode are:

Dr Carla Pascoe Leahy, Honorary Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Lecturer in Family History at the University of Tasmania.
Professor Leah Ruppanner, Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of The Future of Work Lab at the University of Melbourne.
Professor Miranda Stewart, Professor of Law at the University of Melbourne and Fellow at the Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.

A full transcript for the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/working-fathers-mini-series-ep-3-are-fathers-free

The Working Fathers Podcast was funded by the Faculty of Arts and the School of Historical & Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. The creators of the podcast are also very grateful for the support of external partners, the Women’s Leadership Institute of Australia and the Trawalla Foundation.

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

Working Fathers Mini-series. Ep 2 - What Gave Rise to the Breadwinner?

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 04:00:00 +1000

We are pleased to bring you a special five episode podcast series Working Fathers created by Professor in HPS Cordelia Fine, political philosopher Associate Professor Dan Halliday, social psychologist, Dr Melissa Wheeler and historian Dr Annabelle Baldwin.

How people divide labour within and beyond the family unit has changed throughout human history. The current model in many Western nations, including Australia, is a version of the 'breadwinner model', where one parent is designated the primary earner and the other the primary carer. But where did this model come from? And why is it so entrenched?

In this episode, What Gave Rise to the Breadwinner? we dive into the complex social, cultural, political, and economic forces shaping fatherhood, the historical notion of the male breadwinner, and consider where policy might fit in.

Special Guests:

Dr Kate Murphy, Senior Lecturer at Monash University. Kate is currently researching the history of fatherhood in 20thC Australia as part of the ARC funded project Fatherhood: An Australian History 1919–2019, with Mike Roper, John Murphy, Alistair Thomson, Johnny Bell and Jill Barnard.
Dr Carla Pascoe Leahy, Honorary Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Lecturer in Family History at the University of Tasmania.
Associate Professor Lee T Gettler, Director of the Hormones, Health, and Human Behavior Laboratory at Notre Dame University, faculty affiliate of the Eck Institute for Global Health.

A full transcript for the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/working-fathers-mini-series-ep2-what-gave-rise-to-the-breadwinner

The Working Fathers Podcast was funded by the Faculty of Arts and the School of Historical & Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. The creators of the podcast are also very grateful for the support of external partners, the Women’s Leadership Institute of Australia and the Trawalla Foundation.

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

Working Fathers Mini-series. Ep 1 - Where's Dad?

Thu, 22 Aug 2024 04:00:00 +1000

We are pleased to bring you a special five episode podcast series created by Professor in HPS Cordelia Fine, political philosopher Associate Professor Dan Halliday, social psychologist, Dr Melissa Wheeler and historian Dr Annabelle Baldwin.

The series is called Working Fathers, and explores the varied roles fathers play in contemporary Australia and how policy can better recognise, value and support fatherhood.

In this first episode, ‘Where’s Dad?’ host Dan Halliday notes that, despite significant social change over the last 50 years, there is still a large gap between the time and energy mothers and fathers expend in caregiving and family labour. Dan and his guests look at how this division of labour shakes out in terms of responsibilities, risks and rewards: from the mental and emotional load of keeping a family running, through unappealing household chores, to the more joyful moments of parenting and the economic impacts for mothers.

Special guests for this episode are:

Dr Carla Pascoe Leahy, Honorary Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Lecturer in Family History at the University of Tasmania, Joint Editor of Studies in Oral History.
Professor Leah Ruppanner, Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of The Future of Work Lab at the University of Melbourne.
Professor Miranda Stewart, Professor of Law at the University of Melbourne and Fellow at the Tax and Transfer Policy Institute at the Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.

A full transcript for the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/working-fathers-mini-series-ep1-where-s-dad

The Working Fathers Podcast was funded by the Faculty of Arts and the School of Historical & Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. The creators of the podcast are also very grateful for the support of external partners, the Women’s Leadership Institute of Australia and the Trawalla Foundation.

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

Working Fathers Mini-Series. Introduction.

Wed, 21 Aug 2024 20:00:00 +1000

In a break from our usual format, we are pleased to bring you a special five episode podcast series created by Professor in HPS Cordelia Fine, political philosopher Associate Professor Dan Halliday, social psychologist, Dr Melissa Wheeler and historian Dr Annabelle Baldwin.

The series is called Working Fathers, and explores the varied roles fathers play in contemporary Australia and how policy can better recognise, value and support fatherhood.

In this introduction to the series, Dan provides us with a teaser about what to expect over the next five episodes.

The Working Fathers Podcast was funded by the Faculty of Arts and the School of Historical & Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. The creators of the podcast are also very grateful for the support of external partners, the Women’s Leadership Institute of Australia and the Trawalla Foundation.

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Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S3 Ep 12 - Sabina Leonelli on 'The Philosophy of Open Science'

Thu, 30 May 2024 05:00:00 +1000

Our guest today is Professor of Philosophy and History of Science at the University of Exeter, Sabina Leonelli. Sabina recently released a book in the Cambridge Elements Philosophy of Science series on The Philosophy of Open Science. In her book, Sabina offers a stimulating perspective on the Open Science movement, discussing both its strengths and some of its unintended downsides, including constraining academic diversity and worsening epistemic injustices in some cases.

In this episode, Sabina talks about her own wide-ranging experience with Open Science initiatives and the shift in perspective she would like to see across the Open Science movement towards ensuring more effective and responsible research outcomes.

A transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep-12-sabina-leonelli-on-the-philosophy-of-open-science

Relevant links:

___________________________________________

PhD Positions in HPS at the University of Melbourne.
All are currently open for expressions of interest, with fully funded positions to start in 2025.

Medical Humanities: PhD position for the Medical Humanities Research Lab
Metascience: PhD position for the MetaMelb Research Initiative
Death Technologies: PhD position for the DeathTech Research Initiative

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S3 Ep 11 - Uljana Feest on 'What is Missing in Replication Debates'

Wed, 22 May 2024 17:00:00 +1000

Today Carmelina is joined by Professor Uljana Feest, Philosopher of Psychology and Chair for Philosophy of Social Science and Social Philosophy at the Leibniz University of Hannover.

In this episode, Uljana discusses her work on the philosophy and history of psychology as it relates to the replication crisis. In a recent article ‘What is the Replication Crisis a Crisis Of?’ Uljana proposes something is missing from current debates which typically focus on one of two positions. On one hand are those calling for reforms in methods, such as statistical reform, on the other are those calling for a focus on theory building.

Uljana suggests that, while both positions get something right, there is more to the story. We also need to focus on the subject matter of psychology - on what phenomena or object we are interested in studying, in how we conceptualise those objects (‘memory’ or ‘emotion’, for example) and then differentiate between the broader object of study and the narrow effect analysed in our experiments.

The transcript for this episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep-11-uljana-feest-on-what-is-missing-in-replication-debates

Relevant links

Uljana's Profile: Prof Uljana Feest | Leibniz University Hannover
Article: Uljana Feest | 2024 | 'What is the Replication Crisis a Crisis Of?' | Philosophy of Science

___________________________________________

PhD Positions in HPS at the University of Melbourne.
All are currently open for expressions of interest, with fully funded positions to start in 2025.

Medical Humanities: PhD position for the Medical Humanities Research Lab
Metascience: PhD position for the MetaMelb Research Initiative
Death Technologies: PhD position for the DeathTech Research Initiative

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Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S3 Ep 10 - Aja Watkins & Miguel Ohnesorge on 'Philosophy of the Geosciences'

Thu, 16 May 2024 14:00:00 +1000

Today we are joined by Miguel Ohnesorge and Aja Watkins to talk about a new subfield of HPS - The Philosophy of the Geosciences.

Miguel and Aja recently co-authored an article titled 'What is the Philosophy of the Geosciences?' In today's episode, we discuss many of the themes introduced in the paper, including common problems found across such diverse geoscientific disciplines as palaeontology, seismology and climate science.

Aja and Miguel highlight how the geosciences have had to develop similar strategies for studying such large and often inaccessible phenomena. As global sciences, they also face many common ethical challenges, including rectifying a history of often extractive and exploitative practices, as well as navigating the continued ramifications of their research on human welfare and the environment.

A transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep-10-aja-watkins-miguel-ohnesorge-on-philosophy-of-the-geosciences

Relevant links:

Aja's Website: Aja Watkins (ajawatkins.org)
Miguel's Website: Miguel Ohnesorge (mohnesorgehps.com)
Open Access Paper: What is Philosophy of the Geosciences? | Ohnesorge & Watkins | 2024 Philosophy Compass
Research Group: Philosophy of the Geosciences Research Group | Alisa Bokulich
Colloquium: Philosophy of the Geosciences Colloquium | Boston University
Recording: Aja Watkins | Using Paleoclimate Analogues to Inform Climate Projections
Recording: Miguel Ohnesorge | Bringing Gravitation Down to Earth: Severe Testing in Laplace’s Mécanique Céleste
Recording: Rachel Laudan | Cinderella Science: Intellectual Obstacles Facing History & Philosophy of Geology
Recording: Carol Cleland | Rethinking Mineral Taxonomy from a More Historical Perspective
Paper: Ahmad Elabbar | Varying Evidential Standards as a Matter of Justice | The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science

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Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S3 Ep 9 - Emma Kowal on 'Haunting Biology'

Thu, 09 May 2024 12:00:00 +1000

How are we to understand Indigenous biological difference in the twenty-first century?
Is it a racist ruse, a stubborn residue of racial pseudoscience?
Or is it a potentially empowering force that can be unlocked by newly accurate science?
Or by being under Indigenous control?

Today’s guest is Deakin Distinguished Professor Emma Kowal. Emma first trained as a doctor and public health researcher, before turning to cultural and medical anthropology. Now Emma also works across Science and Technology Studies and the History of Science and is the immediate past president of The International Society for Social Studies of Science (4S).

The episode focuses on Emma's recently published monograph Haunting Biology: Science & Indigeneity in Australia. In the book, Emma wrestles with the need to acknowledge the ghosts of science past at the same time as we forge new pathways in Indigenous genomics.

A transcript for the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep-9-emma-kowal-on-haunting-biology

Related links:

The Book - Haunting Biology | Emma Kowal
The Centre - ANU National Centre for Indigenous Genomics
The Program - SING Australia | Summer Internship for Indigenous Peoples in Genomics
Profile - Emma Kowal Profile | Deakin University
Deakin SSN - Deakin Science and Society Network
Earlier Book - Trapped in the Gap: Doing Good in Indigenous Australia | Emma Kowal
Interview - 'Why Did Scientists Collect the Blood of Indigenous Peoples?' | Time to Eat the Dogs
Interview - 'Emma Kowal talks Indigenous health care, difference & genomics' | The Familiar Strange

You can also find further links to people and topics mentioned in the podcast via the transcript.

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Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S3 Ep 8 - Haixin Dang on 'Disagreement in Science'

Thu, 25 Apr 2024 05:00:00 +1000

We have a very special episode today with guest host Dr Joshua Eisenthal interviewing fellow philosopher of science, and good friend, Dr Haixin Dang on the fascinating subject of Disagreement in Science.

It might seem like scientists should always aspire to achieve consensus, and therefore any disagreement in science is a mark of failure. However, as Haixin points out, disagreement is in fact a vital part of healthy scientific practice.

Disagreement helps scientists be reflective about their work, challenging each other to consider alternative positions, question assumptions and further their investigations in a variety of ways.

However, exactly how disagreement works in science, and what kind of disagreements are more or less helpful, has not been well-studied. Haixin suggests a better understanding of scientific disagreement may be important for science communication and tackling science scepticism. If we can better explain how scientists actually make progress, perhaps members of the public will be more understanding when the experts disagree.

A transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep-8-haixin-dang-on-disagreement-in-science

Further links:

Website: Haixin Dang
Journal Article: Minority Reports: Registering Dissent in Science | Philosophy of Science | Haixin Dang
Journal Article: Do Collaborators in Science Need to Agree? | Haixin Dang
Physics Examples Mentioned

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Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S3 Ep 7 - Sophie Ritson on 'Collaboration in Science'

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 14:00:00 +1000

Today's episode features one of our favourite philosophers of physics, Dr Sophie Ritson. Sophie's research focuses on the way contemporary physicists – of both the experimental and theoretical kind – work together to develop reliable knowledge and find creative ways to expand our fundamental understanding of the universe.

Sophie is unafraid to dig in where others fear to tread. She began her career examining the string theory controversy and, more recently, has studied first-hand the high stakes experimental particle physics happening at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN in Switzerland.

In this week’s episode, Sophie discusses her fascinating research on these topics, as well as on the larger question of ‘how do large scale research collaboration’s generate knowledge?’

A transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep-7-sophie-ritson-transcript

Further links:

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Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S3 Ep 6 - Kirsten Walsh on 'Rethinking Isaac Newton through his Archive'

Thu, 11 Apr 2024 05:00:00 +1000

Today's guest is Dr Kirsten Walsh, a philosophy lecturer at the University of Exeter.

Kirsten’s research primarily focuses on Isaac Newton and his methodology, but she is careful to consider philosophical issues alongside a sensitivity and consideration for historical contexts.

In today’s episode Kirsten gives us a sense of how our historical understanding of Newton has changed over time, and the role various archival practices have played in what knowledge is developed.

Kirsten’s lively discussion gives us a wonderful insight into the detailed, everyday practices of Newton, but also of the archivists who decide what records are to be kept, and the historians who interrogate those documents in varying ways.

A transcript of the interview can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep-6-kirsten-walsh-transcript

Related links

Website: Philosopher | Kirsten Walsh
Paper: 'The Unknown Newton' | Kirsten Walsh
Paper: 'Frameworks for Historians and Philosophers' | Currie & Walsh
Book: The Newton Papers | Sarah Dry
Archive: Newton Papers | Cambridge Digital Library
Website: The Newton Project
Archive: The Royal Society | Science in the Making
Article: 'Newton goes digital' | Royal Society

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Throwback Thursday - Greg Radick on 'Counterfactual History of Science'

Thu, 04 Apr 2024 05:00:00 +1100

This week the team at The HPS Podcast are taking a mid-semester break!

To celebrate we are reposting one of our favourite episodes from Season 1 featuring Professor Greg Radick, a leading historian of biology at the University of Leeds.

In the podcast Greg discusses the use of counterfactuals in history of science - the term we use for asking ‘What if?’ questions about history - and their potential to subvert our conventional thinking.

In Greg’s research, a central counterfactual question is: “What might biology be like now if a different side had triumphed in early debates on genetics?”

For example, might we be a little less deterministic about genetic inheritance and a little more embracing of contextual effects on human development?

By asking such seemingly simple ‘what if’ questions, fruitful new lines of investigation and alternative perspectives can open up.

A transcript of the interview can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-5-transcript

Related links

Profile: Professor Gregory Radick | University of Leeds
Website: Gregory Radick | Personal Site
Book: Disputed Inheritance: The Battle over Mendel and the Future of Biology
Article: Teach students the biology of their time | Nature

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Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S3 Ep 4 - Dan Hicks on 'Public Scientific Controversies'

Thu, 28 Mar 2024 05:00:00 +1100

In today’s episode we have assistant professor and philosopher of science, Dan Hicks, taking us through better understanding public scientific controversies.

‘Public scientific controversies’ is a term Dan uses to capture a broad variety of controversies that involve both science and the public. This would include controversies around vaccines, genetically modified foods, medical research and climate change.

In studying why controversies like these arise and persist, Dan has found our common explanations are not always fit for purpose. Controversies aren’t all of one type, so a blanket diagnosis like, "it is all due to the public not properly understanding the science" or alternatively "the problem is widespread distrust of science," is not helpful.

Instead, Dan argues that what is required is more careful consideration of the specific processes and mechanisms at play in each case. Better diagnoses can then help us better determine appropriate and effective interventions.

Relevant links for Dan:

Profile - Dan Hicks - About
Research - Dan Hicks - Research
Discussion - Dan Hicks - philosophy of science, data science, environmental policy
Relevant Article - Dan Hicks - Misinformation and trustworthiness: Frenemies in the analysis of public scientific controversies

S3 Ep 3 - Anna Alexandrova on 'Philosophy of Well-Being Science'

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 05:00:00 +1100

Today's episode features Professor Anna Alexandrova from the University of Cambridge discussing a field she has pioneered - the Philosophy of Well-Being Science.

As Anna points out, well-being and happiness are now established phenomena for scientific research, particularly in the disciplines of psychology and economics. But does current scientific research produce knowledge that is properly about well-being? What kind of well-being? Should the goal be a single concept and single theory of well-being?

Anna persuasively argues that a ‘one-concept-or-one-theory-fits-all’ attitude is wrong-headed.

Instead, Anna suggests researchers should invest in tailoring the concept of ‘well-being’ for specific people in specific contexts. Furthermore, we must take into consideration the components of well-being, or better put – of human flourishing - that are meaningful to the people within those groups.

Relevant links for Anna:

Profile - Anna Alexandrova | HPS | University of Cambridge
Book - A Philosophy for the Science of Well-Being | Oxford Academic (oup.com)
Current work - The Many Dimensions of Wellbeing - Bennett Institute for Public Policy
Media - Interviews and popular writings

The transcript for this episode can be found at: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep3-anna-alexandrova-transcript

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S3 Ep 2 - Kate Lynch on 'Causal Explanation in Science'

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 05:00:00 +1100

Today's guest is Dr Kate Lynch, who will discuss the topic of 'causal explanation in science'. Kate is a philosopher of biology and a lecturer in HPS at the University of Melbourne.

In this episode Kate introduces us to the difference between 'causation' and 'causal explanation', as well as difficulties involved in assessing what makes a good causal explanation.

Some of Kate's research looks at medical explanations of death, including the complications that can be involved in deciding what cause of death will be officially documented. We were fascinated to learn of the varied practical, political, and even social considerations that can shape what cause a physician ends up recording on a death certificate. We also appreciated the way Kate used concrete examples like this to draw us into further discussion of the role social values play in science, all the way down to the core scientific task of articulating causal explanations for natural phenomena.

You can find more interviews with and by Kate on the ABC's Philosophers Zone below:

S3 Ep 1 - Lorraine Daston & Peter Harrison on 'Scientists and History'

Thu, 07 Mar 2024 05:00:00 +1100

Today's episode is dedicated to the often complex, sometimes fraught relationship between practicing scientists and the history of science.

To discuss this topic, we are joined by two of the most distinguished scholars in the history of science, Lorraine Daston and Peter Harrison, who recently co authored an article for Aeon, urging for a fresh dialogue between scientists and historians. In the interview we cover the history of these tensions, tracing them back to the science wars of the 1990s, as well as talking about why and how these relations might be repaired.

The great joy of this episode is not only its fascinating content, but the pleasure of listening to two HPS luminaries discussing topics so close to their heart.

Links:

Transcript:

www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep1-lorraine-daston-peter-harrison-transcript

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S3 - Samara & Carmelina on 'Seeing Science Differently'

Thu, 07 Mar 2024 04:00:00 +1100

Welcome to Season 3 of the HPS podcast!

It's so great to be back.

Kicking off our third season, we have a new addition to the team, Carmelina Contarino.
Carmelina is an Honours student in HPS at the University of Melbourne and will be joining Samara in producing the podcast, as well as hosting several of the episodes.

In today's episode, Samara and Carmelina dive into what has become a bit of a theme of the podcast, 'Seeing Science Differently'. Science isn't always as neat or as sterile as we have been lead to expect. Instead, HPS shows science to be far more interesting. It's a little bit messy, sometimes unpredictable and full of unexpected twists.

We particular love this quote from François Jacob's autobiography 'Of Flies, Mice, and Men' featured in this episode:

"When you look more closely at 'what scientists do', you might be surprised to find that research actually comprises both the so-called day science and night science. Day science calls into play arguments that mesh like gears, results that have the force of certainty... Conscious of its progress, proud of its past, sure of its future, day science advances in light and glory.

By contrast, night science wanders blind. It hesitates, stumbles, recoils, sweats, wakes with a start. Doubting everything, it is forever trying to find itself, question itself, pull itself back together. Night science is a sort of workshop of the possible. Where what will become the building material of science is worked out. Where hypotheses remain in the form of vague presentiments and woolly impressions...

Where thought makes its way along meandering paths and twisting lanes, most often leading nowhere."

Further links

Transcript

www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-samara-and-carmelina-transcript

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BOOK LAUNCH - Mauricio Suárez on 'Inference and Representation'

Thu, 28 Dec 2023 05:00:00 +1100

Today on the podcast, Mauricio Suárez talks with Samara about his new book - Inference and Representation: A study in Modelling Science.

Mauricio is Professor of Logic and Philosophy of Science at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, a life member at Clare Hall Cambridge and research associate at the London School of Economics.

Mauricio has a long standing interest in the ways scientists represent the phenomena they study, in particular, through modelling, and his book seeks to answer the question: How should we best understand the relationship between a scientific model and the aspect of the world the model is intended to represent?

Are there substantive criteria – a set of necessary and sufficient conditions – that a model must meet to serve as an adequate representation?

Or, as Mauricio argues, is it better to take a more pragmatic and deflationary approach.

In this approach, the search for a ‘defining condition for representation’ is abandoned. Instead, the effectiveness of a model is understood to not be determined by substantive criteria, but rather by the models ability to enable appropriate, fruitful scientific inferences relevant for the phenomena under consideration.

Transcript of the episode available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/mauricio-suárez-transcript

Resources related to the episode:

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S2 Ep 12 - Highlights from the 2023 AAHPSSS Conference

Thu, 21 Dec 2023 08:00:00 +1100

Welcome to the final episode of Season 2 (with a bonus ep coming next week!). We take a moment in this episode to reflect on the first year of the HPS podcast.

Just a few weeks ago Sam and Indi attended the biannual AAHPSSS (The Australasian Association for the History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Science) conference at the University of Sydney. In this episode they reflect on their time at the conference, featuring interviews with various conference attendees and presenters.

HPS Scholars featured in this episode are:

The 2023 conference program provides more information on the presentations of those mentioned, as well as everyone who we didn’t get a chance to interview! The program can be found here: https://aahpsss.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AAHPSSS2023_Program.pdf

The transcript for this episode is also available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/aaphsss-transcript-s2-ep12

We would like to thank everyone who has helped the HPS have a successful first year, either by listening to the podcast, engaging on social media, or by being on it! We look forward to what the next year and season will bring.

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S2 Ep 11 - Hasok Chang on 'Epistemic Iteration'

Thu, 14 Dec 2023 05:00:00 +1100

"We get this instinct that true science must start from a firm foundation. Time and again, that's what I see NOT happening in the practice of science. We start from where we stand. The foundation is never indubitable, the foundation is provisional."

Our very special guest today is Hasok Chang. Hasok is Professor of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Cambridge and his research focuses on 'taking the most obvious items of scientific knowledge and asking how we came to know such things. Usually, such a line of questioning reveals that even the most mundane piece of knowledge was hard won through the most challenging and fascinating investigations and debates.'

As well as being well know for his books, Inventing Temperature, Is Water H2O?, Realism for Realistic People, and his upcoming work How does a Battery Work? Hasok has taken a leading role in HPS, as both a founding member of the Committee for Integrated HPS and the Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice.

In today’s episode we discuss Hasok’s notion of ‘Epistemic Iteration’ – the idea that we do not start our inquiries from a solid foundation, but rather begin from an imperfect position and then use the outcomes of our inquiry to refine and correct that original starting point.

Transcript of the episode available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/hasok-chang-transcript-s2-ep-11

Resources related to the episode:

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S2 Ep 10 - Katherine Furman on 'The Philosophy of Public Health'

Thu, 07 Dec 2023 05:00:00 +1100

"Philosophers of science are really good about thinking about causation and trying to figure out what the mechanisms are that make something work"

Today we welcome Katherine Furman, who talks to Indi about the philosophy of public health. Katherine is a lecturer of Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Liverpool. She is currently on research leave to work with the SOCRATES project in Hanover, Germany.

Katherine explores with us the intricacies of implementing public health measures in the face of epidemics. When there is resistance to these programs, the cause is rarely as simple as an information deficit. Katherine draws on her South African background in her focus on the South African AIDS epidemic and how various case studies of rejection of public health programs may be applicable to the wider philosophy of science.

Transcript of the episode available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/katherine-furman-transcript-s2-e10

Resources related to the episode:

Katherine's Website: https://katherinefurman.com/

SOCRATES Centre: https://www.socrates.uni-hannover.de/en/

Maya Goldenberg's Book: Vaccine Hesitancy: Public Trust, Expertise, and the War on Science

Benjamin Black's Book: Belly Woman: Birth, Blood & Ebola - the Untold Story

Article on Ebola: Ebola: failures, flashpoints and focus | | Africa at LSE

Jonny Steinberg's Book: Three Letter Plague

Heidi Larson's Book: Stuck: How Vaccine Rumors Start - and Why They Don't Go Away

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S2 Ep 9 - Carl Bergstrom on 'Science and Misinformation'

Thu, 30 Nov 2023 05:00:00 +1100

Today's guest is Professor Carl Bergstrom from the University of Washington. Carl has been touring Australia over the last few weeks and we were delighted when he agreed to join us while he was in Melbourne.

Carl works across evolutionary biology, informatics and science studies and has become particularly well-known for his work concerning the spread of misinformation and what we can do about it. Together with his colleague Jevin West, Carl developed a university course named ‘Calling Bullshit: Data Reasoning in a Digital World’, which they have since developed into a best selling book.

In this episode Carl discusses a range of topics including the role institutional norms and incentive structures play in shaping science, the challenges of studying misinformation and why he believes we must urgently turn our collective attention to the study of collective human behaviour if we hope to address our current information crisis.

Transcript of the episode available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/carl-bergstrom-transcript-s2-ep9

Resources related to the episode:

Carl's Website: https://ctbergstrom.com/

'Calling Bullshit' Website: https://callingbullshit.org/

Guardian Article: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/aug/01/carl-bergstrom-people-are-using-data-to-bullshit

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S2 Ep 8 - Gerhard Wiesenfeldt on 'The Unknown Scientist'

Thu, 23 Nov 2023 08:00:00 +1100

Welcome to another week of the HPS podcast. This week's guest is Gerhard Wiesenfeldt of the University of Melbourne. He joins us as he discusses the benefits and pitfalls of studying those in the history of science who are less well known.

The popular narratives in the history of science tend to centre around a few key figures on whom extensive research and work has been done, those such as Galileo, Newton, Darwin. However, for every household name there were a legion of other scientists also working in their respective fields.

By studying these scientists we gain insight not only into an understudied piece of history, but also into the everyday working of the science machine, and the workers who kept it going.

The transcript for this episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/gerhard-weisenfeldt-transcript-s2-e8

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S2 Ep 7 - Ian Hesketh on 'Science History in Science'

Thu, 16 Nov 2023 08:00:00 +1100

This week's guest is Ian Hesketh, an intellectual historian and historian of science at the University of Queensland. His work in HPS revolves around 19th century scientific practices and their intricacies. He works to situate this science not only in its temporal history, but to delve into the ways in which the practice itself helped to form the science of the day.

He joins the podcast to discuss how scientific and historical writing practices can effect the way in which science itself is shaped, as well as the rich tradition of science history present in the discipline of science itself. To demonstrate how the writing of science history can shape how science is produced, he turns to the Darwinian Revolution. Darwin was not simply a scientist, but was well versed in the history of his field as well as its changing nature, a fact integral to his development of the theory of evolution.

Transcript of the episode is now available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/ian-hesketh-transcript-s2-e7

Resources related to the episode:

Book: The Science of History in Victorian Britain: Making the Past Speak https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1dnppv7

Book: Imagining the Darwinian Revolution: Historical Narratives of Evolution from the Nineteenth Century to the Present https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv2k4fwpr

Ian's Chapter: Imagining the Darwinian Revolution https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:005e875

Article: From Copernicus to Darwin to you: history and the meaning(s) of evolution https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:4d9ee19

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S2 Ep 6 - Sarah Qidwai on 'Science and Colonialism'

Thu, 09 Nov 2023 05:00:00 +1100

Today's guest is Sarah Qidwai, a Postdoctoral Researcher in the history of science who focuses on British Imperialism, Science and Colonialism, the relation of Science and Islam, as well as the history of evolutionary biology. Sarah’s dissertation focussed on how the Muslim polymath, Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan, engaged with science and science popularisation.

In this week’s episode Sarah introduces us to the topic of Science and Colonialism – a crucial area of research for understanding many of the features of modern science, as well as reconfiguring our understanding of its history – expanding our vision and challenging many traditional Eurocentric notions of what it takes to really come to grips with understanding this thing we call science.

Transcript of the episode is now available here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/sarah-qidwai-transcript-s2-e6

Resources related to the episode:

Sarah's Website: https://sarahqidwai.com/
Sarah's Article: 'Re-examining Complexity: Sayyid Ahmad Khan's Interpretation of 'Science' in Islam' in Rethinking History, Science, and Religion (2019)
Sarah's Article: 'Darwin or Design? Examining Sayyid Ahmad Khan's Views on Human Evolution' in The Cambridge Companion to Sayyid Ahmad Khan (2019)
Marwa Elshakry's Book: Reading Darwin in Arabic, 1860-1950
Sujit Sivasundaram's Article: On Global Histories of Science, Isis: Vol 101, No 1
Further reading: The Routledge Handbook of Science and Empire

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S2 Ep 5 - Adrian Currie on 'Opportunistic Methods'

Thu, 02 Nov 2023 05:00:00 +1100

Today's guest on the podcast is Dr Adrian Currie, senior lecturer in philosophy at the University of Exeter. Much of Adrian's research revolves around the question 'How do Scientists successfully generate knowledge in tricky circumstances?'

Much of Adrian's work has focused on the historical sciences, such as palaeontology and archeology. In this episode Adrian talks about how scientists in these fields have developed a range of creative and opportunistic ways of developing knowledge - even when evidence is thin on the ground.

A transcript of this episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/adrian-currie-transcript-s2-e5

Additional resources:

Adrian's website - https://sites.google.com/site/adrianmitchellcurrie/

Blog - Extinct: The Philosophy of Palaeontology Blog - http://www.extinctblog.org/

Book - Rock, Bone & Ruin: An Optimist's Guide to the Historical Sciences (2018) - https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262037266/rock-bone-and-ruin/

Book - Scientific Knowledge & the Deep Past: History Matters (2019)

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S2 Ep 4 - Duane Hamacher on 'Indigenous Science'

Thu, 26 Oct 2023 08:00:00 +1100

"Everything on the land is reflected in the sky. So if you want to learn about indigenous astronomy, You have to learn about everything."

This week we welcome Duane Hamacher to the HPS podcast as he discusses Indigenous science and its importance in the Australian context.

Duane is a professor of astronomy who focuses on Indigenous astronomy, its history, and its present role in our knowledge systems. He works with elders from Indigenous groups across the world to bring to light the history of astronomy in their culture, and how we can appreciate and learn from it today.

He discusses with us the importance of considering Indigenous knowledge systems, be they oral, dance, or art, and their validity amongst Western science, and the importance of not dismissing that which looks different from what we might have previously been taught. At the University of Melbourne, Duane teaches a course called Indigenous Astronomy, run through the physics department, which highlights for students that there is more than one way of knowing, the synergy which exists between different modes of knowing, and how this fits in with the rest of their schooling at the university. Indigenous and Western ways of knowing are not disparate ideas, but run in parallel.

A transcript of this episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/duane-hamacher-transcript-s2-e4

Some links related to this episode can be found below:

Book - Disciplining the Savages: Savaging the Disciplines by Martin Nakata
Book - The First Astronomers - How Indigenous Elders Read the Stars by Duane Hamacher
Article - Stars that vary in brightness shine in the oral traditions of Aboriginal Australians (theconversation.com) by Duane Hamacher
Book Chapter - Safeguarding Indigenous Sky Rights from Colonial Exploitation by Karlie Alinta Noon, Krystal De Napoli, Peter Swanton, Carla Guedes, Duane Hamacher
Article - Dismantling the Divide Between Indigenous and Scientific Knowledge by Arun Agrawal

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S2 Ep 3 - Kristian Camilleri on 'The Turn to Practice'

Thu, 19 Oct 2023 08:00:00 +1100

Season 2 of the HPS podcast welcomes back friend of the podcast, Kristian Camilleri. This time he joins us to discuss the turn to practice in the philosophy of science.

The "turn to practice" is a common name for the shift in philosophy of science theory when philosophers and social scientists moved from studying science through broad theories and began to analyse how science is actually conducted by practising scientists. By shifting their focus here, philosophers of science were better able to understand the inner workings of scientific practice.

This often lead to interesting analysis of the ways in which discoveries were made. No one creates new ideas out of a vacuum, and by monitoring the steps of progress made by scientists, philosophers learnt more about how we come to create new scientific theories.

This episode with Kristian provides a neat sequel to his Season 1 episode on the Disunity of Science.

Some links related to this episode can be found below:
Book – Science after the Practice Turn in the Philosophy, History, and Social (routledge.com)

Article – ‘The Shaping of Inquiry: Histories of the Exact Sciences after the Practical Turn’ - https://www.scirp.org/pdf/AHS_2015050715404250.pdf

Society for the Philosophy of Scientific Practice - https://philosophy-science-practice.org/about/mission-statement

A transcript of this episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/kristian-camilleri-transcript-s2-e3

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S2 Ep 2 - David Kaiser on 'Scientific Training'

Thu, 12 Oct 2023 05:00:00 +1100

"Scientists are not born, they are made" David Kaiser

Today's guest on the podcast is David Kaiser, Germeshausen Professor of the History of Science and Professor of Physics at MIT.

In history of science, David is best known for his books on the history of modern physics including Drawing Theories Apart, Quantum Legacies, and a personal favourite, How the Hippies Saved Physics, which in part looks at how changing cultural conditions in 1970s USA, including severe cutbacks in the funding of physics and the emergence of counterculture, gave rise to an unusual group of physicists who helped rejuvenate more speculative physics.

In a fitting follow up to Rachel Ankeny’s episode last week on research repertoires, today David discusses the role of education, scientific training, and pedagogy in the production of scientific knowledge.

Some links related to this episode can be found below:

Profile: David I. Kaiser » MIT Physics
2005 Book: Drawing Theories Apart: The Dispersion of Feynman Diagrams in Postwar Physics
2011 Book: How the Hippies Saved Physics
2020 Book: Quantum Legacies: Dispatches from an Uncertain World
Edited Book: Pedagogy and the Practice of Science
Paper: The Postwar Suburbanization of American Physics
Open Course: Einstein, Oppenheimer, Feynman: Physics in the 20th Century
MIT Case Studies on Social and Ethical Responsibilities of Computing: SERC

A transcript of this episode can be found here: www.hpsunimelb.org/post/transcript-s2-e2

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S2 Ep 1 - Rachel Ankeny on 'Research Repertoires'

Thu, 05 Oct 2023 05:00:00 +1100

"That's what ‘repertoires’ is trying to force philosophers to look at - that whole ecosystem that encompasses the doing of science." Prof. Rachel Ankeny

We start season 2 with the wonderful Rachel Ankeny discussing scientific change and the concept of research repertoires.

Rachel is professor of History and Philosophy at the University of Adelaide, with wide ranging expertise across HPS, bioethics and science policy, as well as food studies. Rachel is also editor in chief of the journal Studies in History and Philosophy of Science and is past president of the International Society for the History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Biology.

In this episode Rachel introduces us to the concept of 'Research Repertoires', a notion she develop with Sabina Leonelli as a way to better understand the complex composition of research communities. In particular, Rachel and Sabina introduce the notion of repertoires to highlight how important the practice of science is to understanding how scientific knowledge making works and changes over time.

The repertoire of a scientific community incorporates many different components, including the typical skills, methods, materials and technologies that community members use, the institutional structures they practice in, the geographical locations they are dispersed across, the common language they share, the organizations they subscribe to, and the ways in which they typically publish.

Some links related to this episode can be found below:

Profile: Professor Rachel Ankeny | Researcher Profiles (adelaide.edu.au)
Research Repertoires: Repertoires: A post-Kuhnian perspective on scientific change and collaborative research (Ankeny & Leonelli, 2016)
Repertoires and Model Organisms (Sect 5): Model Organisms (cambridge.org)
Repertoires in Jazz: The Jazz Repertoire (Faulkner & Becker 2006)
Kuhn's Concept of Paradigm: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

A transcript of this episode can be found here: www.hpsunimelb.org/post/transcript-s2-e1

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BONUS EPISODE - Joshua Eisenthal & HPS Chat

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 21:00:00 +1000

In this final bonus episode for Season 1 we are doing things a little bit differently.

Instead of a one-way interview, philosopher of physics - Joshua Eisenthal - and host Samara Greenwood have a two-way conversation reflecting on Season 1 and discuss how certain episodes intersected with their own research interests.

In particular, Josh and Sam discuss Donna Haraway's concept of Storytelling, Greg Radick's discussion of Counterfactual History and Fallon Mody's thoughts on the uses of biography.

Joshua is a research assistant professor at the California Institute of Technology and associate editor of the Einstein papers.

You can find more about Josh on his website - www.josheisenthal.co.uk

The transcript for this episode can be found at - https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-13-transcript

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BONUS EPISODE - Simine Vazire on 'Making Science Better'

Fri, 18 Aug 2023 23:00:00 +1000

Welcome to a special bonus episode of The HPS Podcast with Professor of Psychology, Simine Vazire, discussing the ways in which HPS scholars and scientists can work together to create better science.

We are releasing the episode to coincide with the campaign put together by Simine and others to support the legal defence of Data Colada – a group of professors who identify concerns with the integrity of published research. Members of Data Colada are being sued by Francesca Gino, a Harvard Business School Professor, after they published blog posts raising concerns about the data integrity of four papers on which Gino was a co-author. As the group says, “defending science requires defending legitimate scientific criticism against legal bullying”.

In this podcast episode Indigo Keel, talks with Simine about more than just this one issue. They discuss Simine's connection to History and Philosophy of Science, the need for scientists to reflect on the practices of their discipline, issues that have arisen out of the replication crisis and cases of alleged scientific misconduct – including the Francesca Gino case. Simine highlights how philosophers of science can contribute to making science better.

Relevant links:

· The GoFundMe Campaign to Support Data Colada’s Legal Defense

· Vox Article: Is it Defamation to Point out Scientific Research Fraud?

· Data Colada Post (Part 1): “Clusterfake”

· Data Colada Post (Part 2): “My Class Year is Harvard”

· Data Colada Post (Part 3): “The Cheaters are Out of Order”

· Data Colada Post (Part 4): “Forgetting the Words”

A transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/bonus-episode-transcript

Simine studies the research methods and practices used in psychology, as well as structural systems in science, such as peer review. Simine is editor in chief of Collabra: Psychology, one of the PIs on the repliCATS project (with Fiona Fidler), and co-founder (with Brian Nosek) of the Society for the Improvement of Psychological Science.

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S1 Ep12 - Fiona Fidler on 'Collective Objectivity'

Thu, 17 Aug 2023 05:00:00 +1000

"It wouldn’t make sense to leave the entire burden of upholding objectivity in science on the shoulders of fallible individuals, right?" Prof. Fiona Fidler

To finish off our inaugural season with a bang – today’s episode features the visionary researcher who initiated the idea for the podcast – Professor Fiona Fidler.

Fiona is head of our History and Philosophy of Science Program at the University of Melbourne and co-lead of the MetaMelb research initiative.

In this episode Fiona first discusses her early move from psychology to HPS when she was struck by the ‘dodgy’ statistical methods she found prevalent in many sciences. She has since dedicated her career to studying scientific practice to help improve confidence in scientific claims.

Fiona introduces us to the concept of ‘Collective Objectivity’. Following from an earlier podcast on 'Values in Science' by Rachel Brown, Fiona discusses how contemporary understandings of objectivity have become more sophisticated.

Rather than viewing objectivity in science as solely the role of individuals, today we understand there are strong social dimensions to ensuring scientific outcomes are not unduly biased. As Fiona discusses, this not only requires diversity in 'who does science' to ensure multiple perspectives are incorporated, but we also need multiple collective review mechanisms to ensure we are developing truly robust, reliable, objective outcomes.

Current research shows our current community-level systems are no longer adequate for today’s complex scientific world. Fiona forcefully argues that what is required is heavy investment in establishing stronger collective mechanisms for reinforcing the goals of scientific objectivity.

Some links related to this episode can be found below:

Profile: Prof Fiona Fidler (unimelb.edu.au)
AIMOS - Association for Interdisciplinary Meta-Research and Open Science
Blog Post: MetaMelb – A New Research Initiative (hpsunimelb.org) |
Website: MetaMelb research group
Helen Longino (1990) Science as Social Knowledge
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Objectivity as a Feature of Scientific Communities
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Objectivity as a Social Process
What is P Hacking: Methods & Best Practices - Statistics By Jim

A transcript of this episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-12-transcript

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 11 - James McElvenny on 'Language and Science'

Thu, 10 Aug 2023 05:00:00 +1000

Today on the podcast is Dr James McElvenny, historian and philosopher of linguistics, discussing the topic of language and science.

As James points out in this episode, intersections between language, the language sciences and science are many and varied.

For example, James introduces us to the ways in which the study of language and the study of science have interacted in history, in particular through famous figures in the philosophy of science such as Wittgenstein and Carnap.

James also makes the important point that while there are many practical reasons to study language or science or HPS - there is also much to be said about studying them for their inherent interest and their value in making us better-developed people, or as they say in Germany: ‘Gebildet’.

As well as working and teaching in this space, James runs his own very successful podcast - The History and Philosophy of the Language Sciences. The podcast and blog can be found via the website at https://hiphilangsci.net/

Some links relevant to this episode can be found below:

James McElvenny's personal website: https://www.jamesmcelvenny.net/
James McElvenny's A History of Modern Linguistics
Podcast: History of Philosophy without Any Gaps
Book: Michael Gordin, Scientific Babel: How Science was done Before and After Global English
Book: Stephen G. Alter Darwinism and the Linguistic Image
HiPhiLangSci Ep5: On August Schleicher and comparative-historical linguistics
HiPhiLangSci Ep15: On Jakobson and the Prague Circle

A full transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-11-transcript

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 10 - Martin Bush on 'Knowledge Circulation and Visualisation'

Wed, 02 Aug 2023 21:00:00 +1000

This week we welcome Dr Martin Bush to the podcast to discuss the role of imagery and visualisation in the circulation of science and knowledge.

Martin is a member of the HPS department at the University of Melbourne who focuses primarily on the role of imagery in the popularisation and teaching of astronomy. In this episode, he takes us through the different arenas in which science is produced, discussed and circulated, and how these spheres can influence, or gate keep knowledge from each other. Martin then looks at the role that imagery and visualisation plays in the popularisation and understanding of scientific knowledge, and at the use of imagery as documentary evidence.

Follow the links below to learn more about Martin and the topic he discussed with us:

Burke, Peter. Eyewitnessing: The uses of images as historical evidence. Cornell University Press, 2001.

Bush, Martin. (2018). 1891: The Collins–Hosking debate, Christchurch. Public Understanding of Science, 27(7), 897–904. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963662518771400

Bush, Martin. "Again with feeling: modes of visual representation of popular astronomy in the mid-nineteenth century." Notes and Records 76, no. 3 (2022): 485-506.

Kärnfelt, Johan. "The Popularization of Astronomy in Early Twentieth-Century Sweden: Aims and Motives." In Popularizing Science and Technology in the European Periphery, 1800–2000, pp. 175-194. Routledge, 2016.

Lewis, Dyani. "Why the WHO took two years to say COVID is airborne." Nature 604, no. 7904 (2022): 26-31.

Secord, Anne. (1994). Science in the Pub: Artisan Botanists in Early Nineteenth-Century Lancashire. History of Science, 32(3), 269–315. https://doi.org/10.1177/007327539403200302.
Secord, James A. “Knowledge in Transit.” Isis 95, no. 4 (2004): 654–72. https://doi.org/10.1086/430657.

A full transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-10-transcript

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 9 - Caleb Hazelwood on 'Scientific Metaphysics'

Thu, 27 Jul 2023 05:00:00 +1000

This episode features Caleb Hazelwood, philosopher of science and PhD candidate, talking on the topic of Scientific Metaphysics.

As Caleb explains, ‘scientific metaphysics’ refers to coming to grips with what ‘really is’ in the world – and being crystal clear about the concepts we use to describe natural phenomena and how they interact. For example, Caleb talks about the importance of differentiating between entities we consider stable across the universe – such as the elements – compared with more space-bound entities – such as biological species.

While exploring such fundamental questions may appear difficult and abstract, Caleb does a wonderful job in showing how debates such as these provide for fruitful interactions between scientific practice and philosophical reasoning.

See the following links for more on the topic:
· Caleb Hazelwood - https://calebhazelwood.com/
· Catherine Kendig - https://www.canr.msu.edu/people/catherine-kendig
· Yasmin Haddad - https://www.yasminhaddad.com/
· Thomas Pradeu on ‘Individuality and the Microbiome’ - https://invivomagazine.com/en/focus/interview/article/350/you-can-identify-individuals-based-on-their-unique-features-of-their-microbiomes
· Thomas Pradeu on Philosophy of Immunology - https://newbooksnetwork.com/philosophy-of-immunology
· Caleb’s review of Charles Pence’s The Causal Structure of Natural Selection - http://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/21945/
· James Woodward – Causation with a Human Face
· James Woodward – ‘Causation and Manipulability’ SEP - https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/causation-mani/
· ‘Metaphysics of Science’ (Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
· Aeon article by John Dupré on ‘Science-based Metaphysics’

A full transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-9-transcript

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 8 - Samara Greenwood on 'Social Change and Science'

Thu, 20 Jul 2023 05:00:00 +1000

This week Indigo Keel interviews our regular host, Samara Greenwood, on societal contexts and science.

Samara is currently undertaking a PhD in which she investigates the various ways in which changes in society can come to shape change in science. In this episode Samara discusses some of the controversies of drawing links between political contexts and scientific change, including links between second wave feminism and Primate Field Studies in the 20th century. She also discusses how studying context-to-science relations can provide us with a richer and more inclusive understanding of science, one which does justice to the positive contributions social and political change can have on knowledge production.

If you are interested in learning more about context, or reading examples of contextual histories of science, Samara suggests the following books:

Samara Greenwood ‘The Problem of Context Revisited: Moving Beyond the Resources Model’, Studies in History and Philosophy of Science
Naomi Oreskes Science on a Mission: How Military Funding Shaped what we Do and Don't know about the Ocean
David Kaiser How the Hippies Saved Physics
James Poskett Horizons: A Global History of Science

A transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-8-transcript

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 7 - Rachael Brown on 'Values in Science'

Thu, 13 Jul 2023 05:00:00 +1000

Today on the podcast Samara talks with Dr Rachael Brown on values in science. In particular, the downfall of the value-free ideal.

Dr. Rachael Brown, is a philosopher of biology and director for the Centre for Philosophy of the Sciences at the Australian National University or ANU in Canberra.
Rachael runs her own wonderful podcast on philosophy and science called The P-Value.

In discussing values in science, Rachael describes how the traditional stance is that science works best when scientists do not bring personal or social values to their work, particularly when it comes to interpreting data or assessing hypotheses. However this value-free ideal is challenged on two key fronts. First, at a practical level, can science really be ever conducted without values? And second, would we want it to, even if we could? In other words, if used appropriately can values provide a beneficial component to the scientific process?

As part of the discussion on values and perspectives in science, Rachael also provides a valuable analogy, the concept of a figure on a stage being lit up by a variety of spotlights in order to fully see the figure. In a similarly way, Rachael describes how useful it is to have a variety of views on a particular natural phenomena as different viewpoints cast both differing 'lights' on a subject, but also different 'shadows'. It is only when multiple perspectives are obtained that the shadows become illuminated.

Some relevant links are provided below:

Rachael's podcast 'The P-Value' - https://thep-value.buzzsprout.com/
Rachael's personal website -
https://www.rachaelbrown.net/about-me.html
Heather Douglas book - Science, Policy and the Value-Free Ideal

A full transcript of the episode can also be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-7-transcript

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 6 - Fallon Mody on 'Biography in Science'

Thu, 06 Jul 2023 05:00:00 +1000

On this episode Samara interviews Dr Fallon Mody, Historian of Medicine and Metascience researcher at the University of Melbourne, on the topic of Biography.

For non-historians, scientific biography is likely thought of as a straightforward telling of a celebrated individual’s life history, like Albert Einstein or Marie Curie.

However, historians find biography - as a research tool - is better put to a broader range of uses.

For example, Fallon has used group biographies in her own research investigating the role of migrant and refugee doctors in shaping urban and regional medicine in Australia during the early 20th century.

In today’s episode Fallon draws our attention to the range of ways biography can be used as a valuable research tool – especially in recovering important stories of women, indigenous, and non-elites in the history of science and medicine.

A transcript of the interview can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-6-transcript

Below are some resources mentioned by Fallon in the interview:

Fallon's Research on Medical Migration as well as Metascience
Janet McCalman Sex and Suffering: Women's Health and a Women's Hospital
Rod Buchanan Playing with Fire: The Controversial Career of Hans J Eysenck
Anne Crowther and Marguerite Dupree Medical Lives in the Age of Surgical Revolution
Katharine Foxhall Migraine: A History
Janet Browne - Biographies of Darwin

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 5 - Greg Radick on 'Counterfactual History of Science'

Thu, 29 Jun 2023 05:00:00 +1000

This weeks guest is Greg Radick, Professor of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Leeds.

In the podcast Greg discusses the use of counterfactuals in history of science - the term we use for asking ‘What if?’ questions about history - and their potential to subvert our conventional thinking.

In Greg’s research, a central counterfactual question is: “What might biology be like now if a different side had triumphed in early debates on genetics?”

From this seemingly simple ‘what if?’ question a fruitful range of new research options open up.

A transcript of the interview can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-5-transcript

Some useful resources on Greg and his work:

Book: Disputed Inheritance: The Battle over Mendel and the Future of Biology (Published August 2023)

Article on Teaching Genetics differently: Teach students the biology of their time | Nature https://www.nature.com/articles/533293a

Website: https://gregoryradick.com/

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 4 - Cordelia Fine on 'Sex Difference Research'

Thu, 22 Jun 2023 05:00:00 +1000

Professor Cordelia Fine joins Samara this week to talk about 'norms of reaction' in relation to sex differences. Feminist critics of sex difference research are often accused of claiming there are no sex differences, or that sex hormones have no influence on human behaviour. Cordelia talks us through why this is a false characterisation. Instead, feminist researchers are digging into the ways in which the developmental outcomes of genes and hormones on behaviour can vary radically depending on environmental conditions.

Links to some of the works Cordelia mentions in the podcast are provided below:

Rebecca Jordan-Young, Brain Storm: The Flaws in the Science of Sex Differences

Jillian Barker, Beyond Biofatalism: Human Nature for an Evolving World 2015

Video: Daphna Joel, ‘Neuroscience of Sex and Gender’

Cordelia Fine, Delusions of Gender 2010

Cordelia Fine, Testosterone Rex 2016

A transcript of the interview can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-4-transcript

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 3 - Alan Love on 'Purpose in Biology'

Thu, 15 Jun 2023 03:00:00 +1000

Does nature have a purpose?

The simple scientific answer is no, but the fuller story is, of course, more complicated than that. Concepts like goal directedness, directionality, and even purpose are used - usefully! - in biology all the time. How can we reconcile these two realities?

Today's guest on the HPS podcast is Professor Alan C. Love. Alan is professor of philosophy at the University of Minnesota and principal investigator of 'The Purpose Project'. Alan joins Samara Greenwood to talk about how we can develop richer understandings of purpose in the sciences, and potentially, more broadly.

Alan also raises some interesting points on the challenges and opportunities of interdisciplinarity. He discusses what scientists need to be aware of when working collaboratively, and how philosophers of science can add great value.

A transcript of the episode can be found here - https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-3-transcript

More about Alan Love and his work:

Project Website: ‘Biological Purpose’ - https://www.biologicalpurpose.org/

General Article: ‘Alan Love on the Science of Purpose’ - https://bit.ly/AlanLoveArticle

Academic Article: ‘Organising Interdisciplinary Research on Purpose’ -https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biac041

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 2 - Kristian Camilleri on 'The Disunity of Science'

Thu, 08 Jun 2023 05:00:00 +1000

How do you view science? Is it a unified discipline that relies on a single method, or are the sciences more diverse than the standard image implies?

In this episode of the podcast, Samara meets with the University of Melbourne’s own Dr Kristian Camilleri to talk about the Disunity of Science.

Kristian highlights the problems with a monolithic vision of science and argues for seeing the sciences as diverse and differently evolving practices. This 'disunity' becomes clear when we appreciate that scientific disciplines often employ very different methodologies and have developed in divergent ways. The disunity of science also has practical implications, as scientists may face barriers when collaborating if they hold to an overly simplified model of science. Recognising science as highly variegated allows for a more helpful and accurate understanding.

Follow the links below to learn more about Kristian Camilleri and his work

Interview with Kristian: ‘Unpacking the History of Quantum Mechanics’ 2021
Kristian's Book: Heisenberg & the Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics 2009

On the Disunity of Science

Edited collection: The Disunity of Science: Boundaries, Contexts, and Power 1996
Article: ‘The Disunity of Nature and Science’ 2002

A transcript of the podcast can be found here.

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 1 - Donna Haraway on 'Storytelling in Science'

Wed, 31 May 2023 17:00:00 +1000

In this episode of The HPS Podcast, Samara interviews a member of 'HPS Royalty' - Donna Haraway, who highlights the important role of narrative and storytelling in the sciences.

For Donna, storytelling in science involves being aware of how important scientific narratives are to scientific practice, and to the ways science contributes to humanities broader 'story' of the world. Donna proposes that engaging in 'polymath curiosity' by reading more in the world of HPS and beyond can help scientists ensure they stay innovative and playful with their thinking. Donna also suggests 'thinking about thinking' is helpful. For example, not just considering relationships as being linear or hierarchical, but rather thinking in webs of interactions, like in the game of 'Cat's Cradle'. Ultimately, Donna would love everyone to appreciate more the camaraderie, sense of humour and exploratory capacities of good scientists.

Follow the links below to learn more about Donna Haraway and her work, as discussed in the episode:

Article: ‘A Manifesto for Cyborgs’ 1985
Article: ‘Situated Knowledges’ 1988
Book: Primate Visions 1989
Article: ‘A Game of Cat’s Cradle’ 1994
Video: Donna Haraway Lecture ‘Making Oddkin: Story Telling for Earthly Survival’ 2017
Video: Donna Haraway & Bruno Latour Discussing ‘Storytelling for Earthly Survival’ 2020

A transcript of the episode can also be found here.

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org

S1 Ep 0.5 - Introduction to the Podcast

Wed, 31 May 2023 16:00:00 +1000

Welcome to The HPS Podcast! Before we dive into the history and philosophy of science interviews we’ve all been waiting for, our host Samara Greenwood takes us through the backstory to the podcast. Samara discusses what HPS is all about, the aims of the podcast, as well as a bit about the history of the discipline. We then meet the rest of the podcast crew, Fiona Fidler and Indigo Keel, before learning more about the upcoming season.

To find out more about HPS at the University of Melbourne and beyond, here are some further resources to explore:

The HPS@UniMelb website, which also contains information about the HPS seminar series, the HPS blog and further resources.
More about HPS at the formal UniMelb HPS website
A Short Video on HPS by Dr Kristian Camilleri
An article on the History of HPS at the University of Melbourne

A transcript of the episode can be found here.

Music by ComaStudio.
Website HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org