Sociology of Science | The Socjournal

Thomas Kuhn (1996) argued that scientific revolutions take place when dominant paradigms are dislodged by emergent paradigms. Science undergoes such transitions when established paradigms fail to account for an increasing number of empirical anomalies. Anomalies may be understood as enigmas …

There is a crucial distinction between explanatory systems that are based upon fate vs. prediction. Both perspectives purport to shed light upon the course of future events, however, fate is based upon a faith in metaphysics whereas prediction is scientific. …

Fate is the most potent weapon in a the arsenal of determinists like Stephen Hawking. To contend, as determinists plainly do, that the outcomes of events are pre-determined is essentially the same as saying that the ebbs and flows of …

If real is what you can feel, smell, taste and see, then ‘real’ is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain. Morpheus in The Matrix. Ray Kurzweil is obsessed with artificial intelligence (AI). Kurzweil has written a series of bestselling …

One can hardly broach the subject of agency without acknowledging the long-standing and unresolved philosophical debate regarding the agency vs. determination dichotomy. To provide an illustration of the extent of disagreement over this dualism, determinists, such as Stephen Hawking have …

Artificial intelligence represents a threshold in computing that will transform machines into human-like intellectual entities. In a world grown used to rapid technological progress, it hardly stretches the imagination to contemplate next-generation computers that are substantially smaller and more powerful than their predecessors. However, the goal of transforming computers into sentient beings is an entirely different matter.

What does the future hold? Though many have argued that humans are inevitably going to destroy themselves, McGettigan argues that this is no such thing as Fate. The future, McGettigan argues, is not pre-determined, and the crises that threaten to destroy humanity (overpopulation, pollution, global warming, pandemic, nuclear armageddon, etc.) should instead be perceived as opportunities. Humans will continue to thrive so long as they approach crises as invaluable opportunities to elevate their thinking.

Abstract Humans are unique as a species because, with the help of well-defined problematics, humans alone are capable of redefining reality. A problematic can be understood as an exceptionally-challenging intellectual objective (e.g., heavier-than-air flight, building the first atomic bomb, curing …

“The 100 Year Starship Mission will transform 20th century Star Trek science fiction into 21st century fact!” Nichelle Nichols Star Trek’s Lt. Uhura I have been to a lot of conferences in my day, but I have never been to …

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On July 4, 2012, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops concluded their Fortnight for Freedom, a pulpit political initiative that is intended to challenge certain aspects of President Obama’s Affordable Healthcare Act (AHA). The Bishops are cheezed off because, under …

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