Science is developing rapidly, but the ability to divide the process of becoming into concrete steps that correlate with the transformation of basic strategies plays an important role. Such steps in the scientific community are called revolutions. In this article, we will talk about leading scientific revolutions and the changing types of rationality.
What is it about
Theoretical reinforcement provides a certain level of increase in information, which continues until individual features of the questions studied fit into the whole fabric of the universe, and research methods do not contradict accepted provisions. Since science does not stand still, very often it encounters something categorically unknown, which requires from it not just a different approach, but also a new vision. The discovery may simply not fit into the established framework, so you should discard them and look with a fresh look.
Novelty also requires a reorganization of cognitive methods, which are most often represented by certain theories. A paradigm shift in science is possible in two ways. The first is a revolution leading to the transformation of some part of our worldview without a radical change within normal limits. The second is the revolution, during which not only the general canvas, but also all existing provisions, needs to be reviewed.
What are the revolutions
A scientific revolution is called a turning point in the development of science, which leads to progressive development, but at the same time completely changes the previously formed foundations. Consider 3 types of scientific revolutions.
The former are characteristic of one branch of knowledge. Most often, their root causes are the use of other cognitive methods.
The second occur between disciplines. They arise in the process of mutual work and exchange of scientific information between scientists and knowledge groups. At the dawn of scientific development, all this happened through the fact that one worldview was superimposed on another. This allowed us to see nature more multifaceted. However, in the real world, the interaction between disciplines is different. Now every science has a separate point of view, therefore, interaction is possible not by merging, but by taking into account similar and excellent indicators of any judgments and ideas.
Still others are revolutions of a planetary scale, after which there is a complete revision of existing knowledge. They also lead to a historical change in the types of scientific rationality. In science, world scientific shifts are very clearly visible. The template after them changes, gradually forming views that seem impossible before that.
First
This revolution lasted from the end of the 17th century to the beginning of the 18th century, and is known for developing natural science in its classical form. The key features of this revolution include the generally accepted mechanical picture of the universe, which was considered effective for the entire community of scientists and researchers. The object here was a small system - a mechanical device that had clearly defined connections that correlated with the properties of its parts. In order to comprehend knowledge objectively, it was not necessary to pay attention to the subject and the process of cognition itself, since these factors were simply excluded. In all natural manifestations they searched for mechanical sources, the whole essence of life was reduced to the fundamental principles of mechanics.
Second
The second scientific and technological revolution began at the sunset of the 18th century and lasted until the beginning of the 19th century. It is characterized by a transition from natural science to an organized baggage of information, divided into specialized branches. The key features of this interpretation were the rejection of a mechanistic fundamental scientific theory and the formation of research levels such as biology and chemistry, which were not limited to mechanics. Each subject began to be considered in the context of a specific branch of science. All objects were recreated not only within the boundaries of mechanics, because such definitions as position, formation and matter appeared. They assumed the evolution and variability of an object during its life cycle. This was completely contrary to mechanistic theory. Various phenomena began to be considered, breaking them into elements.
It was believed that true knowledge can be obtained after the addition of the studied constituent elements. At the same time, the question of a large number of methods comes up, as well as the complexity of combining information and classifications. However, previously accepted theses that are characteristic of the scientific world in its classical form continue to exist.
Third
The third scientific revolution in science is the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. It is characterized by a change in the fundamental principles of classical science and the emergence of non-classical natural science. It was at this time that significant changes took place - the doctrine of genetics appeared, the first concepts of quantum chemistry, the idea of an unsteady universe, cybernetics, systems theory, quantum and relativistic theories formed.
This is what the scientific revolution and the changing types of rationality have led to. In short, scientists have realized that it is impossible to consider an object or process solely from a biological, chemical or mechanical point of view. Any object is a much more multifaceted system. At this stage, scientists no longer seek to come to the only correct conclusion, since they understand that knowledge is something dynamic and not always stable.
The integration of a number of industries begins on the basis that nature is understood as a single complex. The object is no longer equal to itself. Now it is a certain process with a certain stable factor. The single is no longer equal to the sum of its elements. The focus is now on objectively possible causal contacts. The subject is considered on the basis of the belief that he is inside the observed world.
Also, the need to record new conditions and improve surveillance tools is growing. More and more difficulties arise in view of setting goals and the formation of new methods of cognition. Scientists understand that truth, objectivity and outcome depend on the correctness and correctness of the study itself. Instead of the only correct assumption, scientists are talking about several theories at once, which can be equally true and objective for describing the same process.
Fourth
The modern scientific revolution is the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries. It is characterized by cardinal paradigm shifts in fundamental aspects. Post-nonclassical science appears. The main events are full computerization, the active growth of interdisciplinary integrations, the improvement of study methods, the creation of coupled measures, the merging of empirical, practical, theoretical principles, the study of the issue of synergetics. All scientific revolutions and paradigms begin to interact in order to put together a puzzle of the whole from separate fragments. The process is carried out due to paradigm injections, which means supplementing key theories with thoughts from other disciplines so that they fit and complement each other.
Hard boundaries are completely erased between all branches of science. The main interest is caused by unique systems that are distinguished by complete publicity and personal development. They also have historical development and evolutionary transformations. New bits of knowledge obtained as a result of this now correlate not only with the funds that were spent on studying, but also with the value base and goals of the activity. Ecological agents are being introduced into all sectors, indicating that scientists are aware of the need for the presence of the subject.
Competence is no longer positioned as something specific and detached from humanity. Now it is being studied in the context of the entire social history of mankind, in undivided correlation with the worldview and orientations of society. This combines all that is knowable into a single whole. The type of scientific rationality is classical, which corresponds to two categories - up to disciplinary and disciplinary in an organized type.
Togetherness
Non-classical rationality and post-non-classical are manifested. In other words, the fourth revolution combines the decisions made during the past centuries of the paradigm, but creates something else unique. The type of rationality no longer refutes its predecessor, but only partially narrows it, but at the same time confirms objectivity. The work of scientists receives a clearly constructed vector for the continuous multiplication of real information.
Classic rationality
The main scientific revolutions served to form a deep scientifically supported worldview. It is based on the principle that science can coexist with what it previously considered wrong, erroneous, or even fiction. Many facts that once seemed fantastic at the last turn of development acquire a sound scientific explanation.
What is a scientific revolution and a change in the types of rationality? You can briefly answer this question by understanding what rationality is.
Its classic type is emphasized on the object itself. Using classical rationality, researchers try to separate everything that is not directly related to the subject, and to study it separately. This kind of distinction in the scientific community is called elimination. It is one of the necessary components for obtaining a true vision. Strategies and tactics still depend on the dominant worldview in culture and ostentatious priorities. But classical science cannot comprehend these dependencies, because it does not perceive itself as part of an experiment that affects the final outcome.
Non-classical rationality
Scientific revolutions and scientific rationality in a nonclassical context take into account the connections that are formed in the object and all those techniques that are used to study it. The nature of these connections is not discarded, but taken into account to create a real image. But all the same, rather strong correlations are formed between the scientific and social spheres. Non-classical rationality admits a connection between nature and research methods, but does not exclude all possible interference that occurs in cognition. This type of research has a certain pathos, which consists in a close study of reality. If from the point of view of classical rationality we distinguish objectivity and completeness of an object, then in nonclassical one we already understand that objects or phenomena are something dynamic and plastic that changes in relation to reality and the observed object.
Postclassical rationality
The greatest achievements of the scientific and technological revolution were made precisely with the post-non-classical type, which makes it possible to expand the field of reflection over one’s actions. It collects and correlates all available knowledge, proceeding not only from the specifics of working methods and features of data acquisition methods, but also from value characteristics. This type clearly demonstrates that the term rationality itself is something much more comprehensive than rationality limited by official knowledge. The token implies not only logic and evaluation, but also the study of behaviorism.
Scientific revolutions and a change in the types of rationality lead us to the fact that scientists resort to the use of other orientations, for example, nonlinearity, nonequilibrium, irreversibility and chaos. Now they do not shrug off categories such as uncertainty, heuristics, intuition, and other non-traditional characteristics that were previously considered pure fiction or distortion.
In many ways, the object sphere is growing due to the fact that new systems, such as virtual reality and artificial intelligence, are being integrated into it, because they themselves are the results of progress. In fact, this is a radical expansion that occurs in conjunction with humanization. That is why we can conclude that scientific revolutions and changes in the types of rationality eventually led to a unity of subjective and objective, which cannot be considered in isolation from sociocultural aspects. The general system is formed from subjects and objects, all the elements of which acquire their meaning only when they are in interdependence and interaction.
It should be noted that any shift in the field of science indicates a change in the types of scientific rationality, so you always need to be prepared that science can be wrong, and the future can surprise us with absolutely incredible knowledge, which seems impossible only because we still do not see absolute justifications.