<p>"Today, more than ever before, we need this book. Stengers, a philosopher known internationally for her willingness to tackle the big questions of our time, insists that <i>Another Science is Possible</i>. Toughly and tightly argued her book spells out how 'slow science' could get us there. One key point she raises, missed by so many, is the disillusion and distress, Marx might well have said alienation, of the young scientists who find that the science they believed they were going to be part of, is not the science they are working within. Only crack heads can deny climate change and its threat to life itself, but flinching, and looking away from the necessity of transforming science is politically and ethically inadequate. Stengers offers the new generation that is rising up with its new political narrative, intellectual weaponry in the formidable project of turning science away from its destructive collaboration with neoliberal capital to help build - yes - a better world. And don't we need one!"<br />—<b>Hilary Rose, Emerita Professor of Social Policy, University of Bradford</b></p> <p>"Stengers's slow science manifesto is timely, trenchant and thoughtful."<br />—<b><i>Nature</i></b></p>

Like fast food, fast science is quickly prepared, not particularly good, and it clogs up the system. Efforts to tackle our most pressing issues have been stymied by conflict within the scientific community and mixed messages symptomatic of a rushed approach. What is more, scientific research is being shaped by the bubbles and crashes associated with economic speculation and the market. A focus on conformism, competitiveness, opportunism and flexibility has made it extremely difficult to present cases of failure to the public, for fear that it will lose confidence in science altogether. 

In this bold new book, distinguished philosopher Isabelle Stengers shows that research is deeply intertwined with broader social interests, which means that science cannot race ahead in isolation but must learn instead to slow down. Stengers offers a path to an alternative science, arguing that researchers should stop seeing themselves as the 'thinking, rational brain of humanity' and refuse to allow their expertise to be used to shut down the concerns of the public, or to spread the belief that scientific progress is inevitable and will resolve all of society's problems. Rather, science must engage openly and honestly with an intelligent public and be clear about the kind of knowledge it is capable of producing. 

This timely and accessible book will be of great interest to students, scholars and policymakers in a wide range of fields, as well anyone concerned with the role of science and its future.
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Like fast food, fast science is quickly prepared, not particularly good and it clogs up the system. Efforts to tackle our most pressing issues, like global warming, have been stymied by conflict within the scientific community and mixed messages, symptomatic of a rushed approach.
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1 Towards a Public Intelligence of the Sciences 1

2 Researchers with the Right Stuff 23

3 Sciences and Values: How Can we Slow Down? 48

4 Ludwik Fleck, Thomas Kuhn and the Challenge of Slowing Down the Sciences 83

5 ‘Another Science is Possible!’ A Plea for Slow Science 106

6 Cosmopolitics: Civilising Modern Practices 133

Notes 157

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Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9781509521807
Publisert
2017-12-15
Utgiver
Vendor
Polity Press
Vekt
318 gr
Høyde
216 mm
Bredde
140 mm
Dybde
18 mm
Aldersnivå
G, 01
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet
Antall sider
220

Forfatter
Oversetter

Om bidragsyterne

Isabelle Stengers is Professor of Philosophy of Science at the Université Libre de Bruxelles.