The Metarepresentational Role of Mathematics in Scientific Explanations

Several philosophers have argued that to capture the generality of certain scientific explanations, we must count mathematical facts among their explanantia. I argue that we can better understand these explanations by adopting a more nuanced stance toward mathematical representations, recognizing the role of mathematical representation schemata in representing highly abstract features of physical systems. It is by picking out these abstract but non-mathematical features that explanations appealing to mathematics achieve a high degree of generality. The result is a rich conception of the role of mathematics in scientific explanations that does not require us to treat mathematical facts as explanantia.

Epistemic pluralism and the justification of conceptual strategies in science

In recent years, epistemic pluralism has received considerable endorsement as an approach to constructing scientific explanations and pursuing empirical research programs. In this article, we briefly discuss the advantages of an epistemically pluralist approach before outlining our own model of epistemic pluralism. The model we present emphasizes the specific considerations that occur when determining and justifying the selection of conceptual strategies and how conceptual strategies work together to provide task-relevant insights. By clarifying these constraint relationships, we highlight the kinds of systematic considerations that must be taken into account when selecting conceptual strategies for research tasks. We present a case study based on gang research to demonstrate how such considerations occur and the epistemic and pragmatic benefits of doing so.

The importance of cultural psychological perspectives in pain research: Towards the palliation of Cartesian anxiety

Despite widespread awareness of the psychological dimensions of pain, researchers often and easily slip into essentializing understandings that treat pain as a purely physiological experience that can be isolated within experimental research. This drive towards scientific objectivity, while at times of tremendous utility, can also limit our understanding of pain to reductionistic conceptualizations that in effect deny the subjective and even the psychological dimensions of pain. In other words, researchers often attempt to understand pain by means of empirical, scientific explanations, while being simultaneously aware that such an approach cannot grasp the phenomenon in its entirety. This yearning for deeper, ontological understanding in a world that admits of only empirical, scientific explanations has been called Cartesian anxiety. In the current study, it is argued that cultural psychology can help to alleviate this Cartesian anxiety by helping us to appreciate the psychological aspects of pain as dynamic processes of meaning making.

IMPACT OF MOTHERS’ AND TEACHERS’ TESTIMONIES AND SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATIONS ON CHILDREN’S JUDGMENTS

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of mothers’ and teachers’ testimonies that conflict with scientific facts and scientific explanations on kindergartners’ judgments. The participants consisted of 104 young children in Şanlıurfa province in Turkey. Their ages ranged from 48 to 79 months, with a mean age of 61.48 months (SD = 5.58). The participants were randomly assigned to the following four groups: 1) Scientific explanation followed by teacher’s testimony, 2) teacher’s testimony; 3) scientific explanation followed by mother’s testimony, 4) mother’s testimony. The children responded to a question about a scientific fact. After the response, they watched their mothers’ or teachers’ testimonies which contradict the scientific fact. Findings revealed that when a scientific explanation was not provided, the children tended to show deference to their teachers’ and especially mothers’ testimony. A week later, a follow-up measurement revealed that this impact did not last a week.

Efektivitas Learning Cycle 3E Berkonteks Socioscientific Issues terhadap Pemahaman Konsep dan Penjelasan Ilmiah Siswa Sekolah Dasar

<p><strong>Abstract:</strong> This study aims to determine the effectiveness of the 3E learning cycle model in the context of socioscientific issues on conceptual understanding and scientific explanations of grade V students on science content. This study used a quasy experimental approach with posttest only control group design. The subjects of this study were fifth grade students in two public schools in Kalipare sub-district, namely SDN A and SDN B. The research instruments consisted a conceptual test of 20 multiple choice questions (α Cronbach’s = 0,842) and 5 scientific explanation test with essay questions (α Cronbach’s = 0,882). The answers of scientific explanations are categorized using SOLO Taxonomy and tested by Cohen Kappa. Data analysis using ANOVA, Post Hoc further test and effect size. Product moment correlation test is used to see the correlation between understanding concepts and scientific explanations. The results of the study show that the 3E learning cycle model has socioscientific issues contexts that are effective in improving students' understanding of concepts and scientific explanations. Correlation analysis between understanding concepts and scientific explanations has a positive correlation.</p><strong>Abstrak: </strong>Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui efektivitas model <em>learning cycle</em> 3E berkonteks <em>socioscientific issues</em> terhadap pemahaman konsep dan penjelasan ilmiah siswa kelas V pada muatan IPA. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan <em>quasy eksperimental </em>dengan <em>posttest only control group design</em>. Subjek penelitian adalah siswa kelas V di dua sekolah negeri kecamatan Kalipare, yaitu SDN A dan SDN B. Instrumen penelitian terdiri dari tes pemahaman konsep 20 soal pilihan ganda dan 5 soal <em>essay</em> tes penjelasan ilmiah. Jawaban penjelasan ilmiah dikategorikan menggunakan Taksonomi SOLO dan diuji <em>Cohen Kappa</em>. Analisis data menggunakan uji ANOVA, uji lanjut <em>Post Hoc,</em> dan <em>effect size</em>. Uji <em>korelasi product moment</em> digunakan untuk melihat hubungan antara pemahaman konsep dan penjelasan ilmiah. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa model <em>learning cycle</em> 3E berkonteks <em>socioscientific issues</em> efektif untuk meningkatkan pemahaman konsep dan penjelasan ilmiah siswa. Analisis korelasi antara pemahaman konsep dan penjelasan ilmiah memiliki hubungan positif.

The Outcomes of Fifth-Grade Emergent Bi/Multilinguals’ Introduction to a Visual Metalanguage When Constructing Scientific Explanations in Hong Kong

The visual mode provides emergent bi/multilinguals an essential resource to construct scientific explanations. Yet, while a metalanguage is used to describe the written mode of scientific language such as, claim, evidence, reason; there is little research that makes students aware of the metalanguage of a visual mode. We propose an introduction to the visual metalanguage will ensure emergent bi/multilinguals better access to the visual mode. This study employs an instrumental case study to examine the introduction of visual metalanguage to a fifth-grade science class. Two cameras record ten emergent bi/multilinguals as they construct scientific explanations in nine lessons. We use a framework informed by social semiotics to analyse the meanings made. The data revealed that an awareness of the visual metalanguage led to an enhanced commitment to illustrate the explanation of the phenomenon, illuminated key concepts and provided more context to the audience. In addition, teacher questioning became more focused.

Understanding and explanation. Paul Ricœur and human geography

The aim of my paper is to put Ricœur’s philosophy in dialogue with human geography. There are at least two good reasons to do so. The first concerns the epistemological foundation of geography: Whereas humanistic or phenomenological geographers inspired by Heidegger or, to a lesser extent, by Merleau-Ponty have sometimes taken on an anti-scientific approach, the Ricœurian articulation of understanding and explanation may contribute to building a bridge between the experiential side of place-meanings and the scientific explanations of spatial elements and their relationships. The second reason has to do with the application of the Ricœurian “model of the text” to landscape: It is a direction that Ricœur never explicitly took, but it is worth exploring, especially considering that “landscape as a text” was quite a popular metaphor among human geographers in the 1980s and 1990s. In this paper I will discuss both issues in order to outline a “Ricœurian path to geography,” which, while never explicitly developed by the philosopher, may represent an innovative and fruitful actualization of his thought.

Mathematical Explanations in Evolutionary Biology or Naturalism? A Challenge for the Statisticalist

This article presents a challenge that those philosophers who deny the causal interpretation of explanations provided by population genetics might have to address. Indeed, some philosophers, known as statisticalists, claim that the concept of natural selection is statistical in character and cannot be construed in causal terms. On the contrary, other philosophers, known as causalists, argue against the statistical view and support the causal interpretation of natural selection. The problem I am concerned with here arises for the statisticalists because the debate on the nature of natural selection intersects the debate on whether mathematical explanations of empirical facts are genuine scientific explanations. I argue that if the explanations provided by population genetics are regarded by the statisticalists as non-causal explanations of that kind, then statisticalism risks being incompatible with a naturalist stance. The statisticalist faces a dilemma: either she maintains statisticalism but has to renounce naturalism; or she maintains naturalism but has to content herself with an account of the explanations provided by population genetics that she deems unsatisfactory. This challenge is relevant to the statisticalists because many of them see themselves as naturalists.