Malfunction, error, failure: How to learn from scientific mistakes?

Science is a human endeavour: it is made by, used by, reflected by, and shaped by scientists, philosophers, designers, sociologists, and many other professionals connected to science in some way. However, a common human trait is to be wrong, and science is no exception to the rule. In science, just like in any other human practice, there are endless possibilities of making mistakes: to design faulty artefacts that shape experiments or have wrong assumptions, or ignore facts in favour of other things, to name a few.

• What happens if, instead of the great, successful scientific case studies, we focus on the possible errors, flaws, and mistakes of scientific thinking? 

• Are there historical, philosophical, or epistemic rewards for analysing flawed scientific objects, refuted hypotheses, unsuccessful experiments, or controversial theories? 

• How to approach the notion of error in order to be able to grasp the different manifestations of scientific failures?

• How can we define malfunction and error in science? What is the meaning of failure in the context of the philosophy of science?

The workshop aims to focus on the epistemic, philosophical, practical, theoretical, and institutional consequences of error, flaws, and malfunction in design, science, and technology, emphasising the epistemic role of scientific artefacts. The multidisciplinary workshop fosters the possible dialogues between philosophers, historians, and scientists, representing the diversity of contemporary thinking about science. With invited speakers with different backgrounds, we aim to encourage debates and sharing of knowledge between participants to enrich our understanding of current scientific topics with an eye towards malfunction, error, and failure. We particularly interested in scientist’s view on malfunction, e.g. in biology, astronomy, and physics. 

Confirmed speakers: 

Jordi Cat (online), Indiana University

Harry Collins (online), Cardiff University

Catarina Dutilh Novaes (online), VU Amsterdam

Giora Hon, University of Haifa

László L. Kiss, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, ELKH

Ruth Lorand, University of Haifa

Deborah Mayo, Virginia Tech

Hans-Jörg Rheinberger, Max Planck Institute

Jutta Schickore, Indiana University

Philippe Stamenkovic, Uppsala University

Mark Thomas Young, University of Vienna

All proposals should contain a title and a 500 words abstract, and sent to karakas.alexandra@filozofia.bme.hu, and tubolyadamtamas@gmail.com. 

Deadline for submission of paper: January 6, 2023. 

Notification date: January 22, 2023.

Organizers:

Alexandra Karakas, karakas.alexandra@filozofia.bme.hu 

Adam Tamas Tuboly, tubolyadamtamas@gmail.com

Philippe Stamenkovic and Adam Tamas Tuboly are doing a Special Issue at Synthese about "The Legacy of the Value-Free Ideal of Science". For further details see please the webpage of the journal. LINK