Debating Science in Society (HPSC20024)

The university is not just a place to learn facts, it is also a place of argument, where ideas are contested. In this subject students will attend debates conducted by academics arguing about some of the most important issues in contemporary science and society. The subject places scientific debate in the context of current social and cultural issues, and illustrates how current social and cultural thinking is shaped by scientific controversy. Each week we will take up a contentious issue, and students will hear a lecture clearly arguing for one position, followed by a lecture clearly arguing for a different position. In each case your lecturers will do their best to persuade you of their position. The challenge for students in the tutorials and assessment tasks is to judge what is at issue, weigh the evidence, and determine which case is strongest.

Weekly debates will be selected from among the following controversial propositions:

1. Genetically modified crops are the only way to feed the masses.
2. Nuclear fuel is the future of energy production.
3. Science and technology is the path to utopia.
4. Humans will become Post-human.
5. The scientific method is the only way to truly know.
6. Catastrophic climate change can be averted.
7. There is a physical explanation for everything that exists and everything that happens.
8. Digital media is making us stupid.
9. A machine more intelligent than you will exist in your lifetime.
10. Our history is fundamentally shaped by science and technology.
11. This has been a waste of time: controversies cannot be resolved through rational debate.