Science & Religion

• What are major belief systems that make claims about the world?

  Religions and political ideologies
• How does science differ from belief systems like religion?

  Science explains the world, religion guides behavior
• What is a key feature of science as a belief system?

  It has cognitive power to explain and predict
• What has been the impact of science on society?

  Improved medicine, transport, and communication
• What are some problems caused by science according to the text?

  Pollution, global warming, and nuclear weapons
• What does Karl Popper argue about science?

  It is an open belief system subject to scrutiny
• What principle governs science according to Popper?

  Falsificationism
• How does scientific knowledge develop according to Popper?

  It builds on previous scientists' achievements
• What did Sir Isaac Newton say about scientific progress?

  He stood on the shoulders of giants
• How do knowledge claims in science survive?

  They live or die by the evidence
• What does Robert Merton argue about science?

  It has norms that promote knowledge growth
• What are the four norms identified by Merton known as?

  CUDOS
• What does CUDOS stand for in scientific norms?

  • Communism: Share knowledge with the community
  • Universalism: Judged by objective criteria
  • Disinterestedness: Knowledge for its own sake
  • Organised Scepticism: Open to questioning and criticism
• What is Polanyi's view on science?

  It is a closed belief system rejecting challenges
• What does Thomas Kuhn argue about science?

  It is a closed belief system based on paradigms
• What is a scientific paradigm according to Kuhn?

  A set of shared assumptions guiding research
• What happens when scientists challenge the dominant paradigm?

  They face ridicule and rejection
• What happened to Immanuel Velikovsky's theory?

  It was rejected without proper examination
• What does Kuhn say about scientific education?

  It socializes scientists into the dominant paradigm
• What is a scientific revolution according to Kuhn?

  A period when new ideas are accepted after anomalies
• How do interpretivist sociologists view science?

  As a socially constructed closed belief system
• What do Knorr-Cetina's views emphasize about scientific observations?

  They are constructed using new instruments
• What does Woolgar argue about scientists interpreting evidence?

  They must devise theories to explain findings
• How do conflict theories view scientific knowledge?

  As serving the interests of dominant groups
• What does Robin Horton argue about religion?

  It is a closed belief system with unchallengeable claims
• How is religious knowledge characterized according to Horton?

  As sacred and divinely authoritative
• What are 'get out clauses' in closed belief systems?

  Devices that reinforce beliefs against challenges
• What does Evans-Pritchard's study illustrate about closed belief systems?

  Believers are trapped within their own assumptions
• What do postmodernists believe about knowledge claims?

  All knowledge is uncertain and open to doubt
• How do postmodernists view science and religion?

  As meta-narratives falsely claiming truth
• What do postmodernists argue about competing explanations?

  They should be recognized and tolerated
• What is the focus of exam question 13?

  Outline two ways science is a belief system
• What does exam question 14 ask for?

  Analyze two ways science is a closed belief system
• What is the focus of exam question 15?

  Evaluate science and religion as belief systems