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LTT: D. Dasgupta
March 17 @ 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EDT
Title: Replacing STEM with Natural Philosophy: Reconfiguring the Science/Philosophy Relationship
Abstract:
The idea of this project is to seek to replace the current notions of STEM with the classical ideal of natural philosophy and to see if a contemporary form of natural philosophy could be evolved in our present-day teaching and research contexts. The broad idea here is to cultivate an interface that is neither just STEM nor just Humanities but something in between. I claim that STEM is more a function of our current need for big capital in scientific research and the urgency to create a professional workforce rather than science per se in the sense of curiosity and understanding. STEM thus thrives on its separation from other houses of thought but produces in the end only short-term projects focused on expertise. Such projects need to be supplemented by wisdom-based projects.
This replacement ideal is next articulated under three different heads – first, by creating some teaching modules that follow a hybrid pattern, spreading between the arts and the sciences. I try this approach in Chemistry, which is currently taught mainly via physics. Instead, I think Chemistry should be seen as an interface to understand all change and transformation phenomena in nature, thus appealing to our practical as well as to our aesthetic instincts. It also links Chemistry with its origins in many craft traditions and with many traditional bodies of knowledge. The second is to see if ethical and responsible conduct in research (ERCR) courses could be taught by using projects of creative imagination. The third, and the most difficult part, is to try to build alliances with various traditional bodies of knowledge, which might hold different ontologies but perhaps could co-operate in the contexts of creating sustainable ways of life. I end by giving some examples of such sustainability from the work of Sonam Wangchuk, an Indian engineer and innovator, currently active in Ladakh, India.
This talk will also be available live streamed on You Tube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrRp47ZMXD7NXO3a9Gyh2sg.