Darrell Rowbottom (Lingnan University) writes in:
I was recently fortunate enough to win a large grant for a project on Philosophy of Contemporary and Future Science. The abstract for this is as follows:
Science has changed considerably in recent decades and continues to change at a remarkable rate. Many of the changes concern how science is done. Computer simulations are used to make predictions and to propose explanations. Gigantic databases of information – collections of ‘big data’ – are analyzed for patterns, to generate and test hypotheses. New areas of interdisciplinary science are forming, which involve attempts to integrate approaches from the older natural scientific disciplines of chemistry, physics, and biology. And artificial intelligence (AI) is being used to perform tasks that humans simply cannot. On the horizon are AI scientists.
This project will involve philosophers and scientists working together. It will examine some of the difficulties created by these new approaches and emerging developments, and tackle some of the interesting questions that they raise about the future of science. Some of the results will be of practical significance for science, e.g. concern how problems in collaborations involving different areas of science may be addressed, and other results will be of intellectual significance, e.g. in understanding the limits of current and future science.
Some of the specific questions this project will address are as follows. To what extent can experiments done on computers – computer simulations – stand in for experiments done ‘for real’, in the laboratory or the field? How can conflicts about what counts as a good method of inquiry, between scientists working in different areas, be resolved effectively? How does the changing social structure of science bear on what we should expect future science to produce? What are the advantages and disadvantages of having AI perform specific functions in future science? How might AI best be deployed?
The project will involve a team of ten collaborators from the natural sciences and philosophy, based in HK and Europe.
I am now looking for two postdoctoral fellows to work on the project over the course of three years. (They will later be joined by another postdoc and a funded PhD student.) The ideal start date would be August 2022, but I have some flexibility about bringing that backwards or forwards. The fellows will be based in HK but spend some time in the UK on placements with scientists and philosophers working in cognate areas.
The ideal candidate would have expertise in philosophy of science or epistemology, and also have some background in biology, chemistry, or physics. Experience of working with scientists in the past or knowledge of interdisciplinary areas of science would also be advantageous.
I’d very much like to hear from anyone who is interested in these posts, including, of course, those who expect to complete their PhDs before the planned project start date. Please send me an e-mail with your CV – to [email protected] – and I’ll get back to you within the next couple of weeks.
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