Differentiating Scientific Inquiry and Politics

Scientific Inquiry:

As a simple illustration of some important aspects of scientific inquiry let us consider Semmelweis' work on childbed fever. Ignaz Semmelweis, a physician of Hungarian birth, did this work during the years from 1844 to 1848 at the Vienna General Hospital. As a member of the medical staff of the First Maternity Division in the hospital, Semmelweis was distressed to find that a large proportion o...

Contingency, Politics, and the Nature of Inquiry

Contingent events are probabilistic. Acknowledging that realized contingencies alter observed political outcomes, however, does little to advance the systematic study of politics. This paper suggests that political science should focus on understanding how foreseeable contingencies, rather than truly “exogenous” unforeseeable events, alter political behavior. The most useful tool for understand...

Automatic Grading of Scientific Inquiry

The SAVE Science project is an attempt to address the shortcomings of current assessments of science. The project has developed two virtual worlds that each have a mystery or natural phenomenon requiring scientific explanation; by recording students’ behavior as they investigate the mystery, these worlds can be used to assess their understanding of the scientific method. Currently, however, the...

System Analysis as Scientific Inquiry

Information systems are understood as models or representations of an application domain. System analysis is a mode of inquiry for purposes of understanding the domain and effecting change in it. Scientific inquiry also aims for understanding and description of domain. In contrast to system analysis, scientific inquiry is based on a 4000-year history. Its processes and methods are well accepted...

Scientific inquiry and the First Amendment.