Objectivity of Scientific Research as an Ethical and Political Position (Book Review: P.P. Tolochko. Ukraine between Russia and the West: Historical and Nonfiction Essays. Saint Petersburg: Saint Petersburg University of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2018)

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (11) ◽  
pp. 144-153
Author(s):  
Alexander S. Zapesotsky
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Scientific Research ◽  
The West ◽  
Full Member ◽  
Saint Petersburg ◽  
Political Position ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences ◽  
Nonfiction Essays ◽  
The Impact

Book Review: P.P. Tolochko. Ukraine between Russia and the West: Historical and Nonfiction Essays. Saint Petersburg: Saint Petersburg University of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2018. - 592 pp. ISBN 978-5-7621-0973-4This author discusses the problem of scientific objectivity and reviews a book written by the medievalist-historian P.P. Tolochko, full member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU), honorable director of the NASU Institute of Archaeology. The book was published by the Saint Petersburg University of Humanities and Social Sciences in the autumn of 2018. The book presents a collection of articles and reports devoted to processes in Ukraine and, first of all, in Ukrainian historical science, which, at the moment, is experiencing an era of serious reformation of its interpretative models. The author of the book shows that these models are being reformed to suit the requirements of the new ideology, with an obvious disregard for the conduct of objective scientific research. In this regard, the problem of objectivity of scientific research becomes the subject of this review because the requirement of objectivity can be viewed not only as a methodological requirement but also as a moral and political position, opposing the rigor of scientific research to the impact of ideological, political and moral systems and judgments. It is concluded that in this sense the position of P.P. Tolochko can be considered as the act of profound ethical choice.

scholarly journals The CLARIN project: a scientific research infrastructure for the humanities and social sciences

Digithum ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 0 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Núria Bel ◽  
Santiago Bel ◽  
Sergio Espeja ◽  
Montserrat Marimon ◽  
Marta Villegas
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Scientific Research ◽  
Research Infrastructure ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences

scholarly journals Jakiej naukometrii i bibliometrii potrzebujemy w Polsce?

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 135-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michał Kokowski ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Impact Factor ◽  
Digital Libraries ◽  
State Level ◽  
Scientific Basis ◽  
Scientific Policy ◽  
Integrated Science ◽  
Science Of Science ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences ◽  
The Impact

The aim of this research study and review article is to examine the scientific basis of scientometrics and bibliometrics, i.e. to show their real “detection and measurement” capabilities. The analysis is conducted from the author’s perspective of the integrated science of science and the history and methodology of the science of science following this perspective. Particular emphasis is placed on the history and methodology of scientometrics and bibliometrics and the history and methodology of science. This perspective is a new approach to the subject matter and determines a) how to select publications and their interpretations and b) which hierarchy the analyzed issues should follow. The article describes the view, dominant both in the world and in Poland, on the basics of scientometrics and bibliometrics and their numerous serious scientific restrictions, such as: a) the incompatibility of the so‑called scientometric laws and the Garfield law of concentration with the empirical data; b) the domain bias, the language bias and the geographical bias of indexation databases; c) various practices of scientific communication; d) the local (national or state‑ level) orientation of humanities, social sciences and citation indexes; e) the disadvantages of the impact factor (IF), the manipulations with its values and the “impact factor game”; f) the numerous problems with and abuses of citations, e.g. the Mendel syndrome, the “classic” publication bias, the palimpsestic syndrome, the effect of the disappearance of citations, the so‑called Matthew effect, the theft of citations, the so‑called secondary and tertiary citations, negative citations, “fashionable nonsenses”, forced citations, the pathologies of the so‑ called citation cartels or cooperative citations, the guest authorship and the honorable authorship; g) the distinction between the “impact of publication” and the “importance of publication” or the “significance” of publication; h) the effectiveness of indexation of publications in electronic and Internet databases and the technological modernity of publications. The discovery of such restrictions regarding scientometrics and bibliometrics has led to the creation of, among others, biobibliometrics, alternative metrics (“altmetrics”) and the open science movement. The analysis of this information results in a general conclusion that is relevant to the current scientific policy in Poland, i.e. it is necessary to resist the “tyranny of bibliometrics”, because it does not serve the development of science. As a consequence, the use of scientometric methods in evaluations of scientific activities should be limited, particularly in the humanities and social sciences. The article also advocates for implementing the idea, considered as priority, of the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, which is the promotion of the achievements of Polish humanities and social sciences at home and abroad. In order to achieve this aim, the following is proposed: a) developing the integrated science of science (as protection against the numerous errors of scientometrics and bibliometrics); b) expanding indexation databases of publications, digital libraries and digital repositories; c) intensifying the participation of Polish scientists in international research, including becoming actively involved in the international project aiming at building a European indexation database for humanities and social sciences, d) developing open access to scientific contents and e) modernizing Polish scientific journals and scientific publishing.

scholarly journals The renewal of the digital humanities. An overview of the transformation of professions in the humanities and social sciences

2021 ◽  
Vol Atelier Digit_Hum (Data deluge: which skills for...) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Laure Massot ◽  
Agnès Tricoche
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Digital Humanities ◽  
Scientific Research ◽  
French Speaking ◽  
Sciences Humaines ◽  
Humanities And Social Sciences ◽  
Sciences Humaines Et Sociales

This article presents a study of the French-speaking digital humanities. It is based on the experience of two research engineers from the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) who have been studying these issues for the last ten years. They conducted a survey at the École Normale Supérieure (ENS-Paris) which enabled them to draw up an overview of the transformation of the profession of humanities and social sciences research engineers in the context of the digital humanities. The Digit_Hum initiative, which they run in parallel with their respective activities at the ENS, also provided information for this overview thanks to its role as a space for discussion about the digital humanities along with training and structuring of this field at the ENS and the Université Paris Sciences & Lettres (PSL). Cet article est une réflexion sur les humanités numériques en contexte francophone. Elle s’appuie sur l'expérience de deux ingénieures du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique travaillant sur ces questions depuis une dizaine d'années. À travers l'enquête qu'elles ont menée à l'École normale supérieure (ENS-Paris), elles dressent un panorama de la transformation du métier d'ingénieur(e) en sciences humaines et sociales dans le contexte des humanités numériques. L'initiative Digit_Hum, qu'elles animent en parallèle de leurs activités respectives à l'École, nourrit également ce témoignage en constituant un espace de discussions, de formations et de structuration des humanités numériques au sein de l'ENS et de l’Université Paris Sciences & Lettres.

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