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Lecture

Science and Religion: Pseudo-Sciences and Alter-Sciences

In course

HUM-436: Sciences and religions I

Le but de cet enseignement est de revenir sur les conditions (historiques mais aussi épistémologiques) qui ont permis aux sciences de prendre de l'autonomie par rapport à la religion. ...

Description

This lecture delves into the realm of pseudo-sciences, para-sciences, and alter-sciences, exploring their distinctions from true science. It discusses the historical context, the blurred lines between belief and conviction, and the ongoing struggle for recognition between orthodox and heterodox knowledge. The lecture also examines the impact of cognitive marketing strategies, the challenges of separating pseudo-sciences from real science, and the rise of alter-sciences. Through various examples like geocentrism and flat Earth theories, it highlights the dangers of distorting scientific results to fit personal beliefs. The lecture concludes by emphasizing the importance of critical thinking in evaluating such phenomena.

Instructor

Jean-François Bert

Official source

Related concepts (32)

Pseudoscience

Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or unfalsifiable claims; reliance on confirmation bias rather than rigorous attempts at refutation; lack of openness to evaluation by other experts; absence of systematic practices when developing hypotheses; and continued adherence long after the pseudoscientific hypotheses have been experimentally discredited.

Geocentric model

In astronomy, the geocentric model (also known as geocentrism, often exemplified specifically by the Ptolemaic system) is a superseded description of the Universe with Earth at the center. Under most geocentric models, the Sun, Moon, stars, and planets all orbit Earth. The geocentric model was the predominant description of the cosmos in many European ancient civilizations, such as those of Aristotle in Classical Greece and Ptolemy in Roman Egypt.

Non-science

A non-science is an area of study that is not scientific, especially one that is not a natural science or a social science that is an object of scientific inquiry. In this model, history, art, and religion are all examples of non-sciences. Demarcation problem Since the 17th century, some writers have used the word science to exclude some areas of studies, such as the arts and the liberal arts. The word nonscience, to describe non-scientific academic disciplines, was first used in the middle of the 19th century.

Marketing

Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emphasize in advertising; operation of advertising campaigns; attendance at trade shows and public events; design of products and packaging attractive to buyers; defining the terms of sale, such as price, discounts, warranty, and return policy; product placement in media or

Flat Earth

Flat Earth is an archaic and scientifically disproven conception of the Earth's shape as a plane or disk. Many ancient cultures subscribed to a flat-Earth cosmography. The idea of a spherical Earth appeared in ancient Greek philosophy with Pythagoras (6th century BC). However, most pre-Socratics (6th–5th century BC) retained the flat-Earth model. In the early 4th century BC, Plato wrote about a spherical Earth. By about 330 BC, his former student Aristotle had provided strong empirical evidence for a spherical Earth.

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