Science, Pseudoscience, and the Politics of Knowledge

The talk is primarily intended for doctoral students at the Faculty of Science and Technology, but other University staff including post doc fellows are welcome to register.

Abstract

Why do people believe things that aren’t true? Scientists may shake their heads at those who place faith in astrology or who contend that climate change is not real. But such beliefs have been extraordinarily persistent over the centuries, from medieval alchemy to modern conspiracy theories about vaccines and microchips. Ignorance may seem to be the explanation for this persistence. But if ignorance were the answer, then education would be the solution. And that is clearly not the case: science education has not eradicated pseudoscience or other kinds of faulty claims to knowledge. This workshop will trace the history of knowledge making, both scientific and pseudoscientific. The line between those two activities is blurrier than we might like to admit. But exploring their history does suggest some useful ways to reconceptualize why it is that people believe unscientific things – and what we might do about it.