Science in the Context of Application: Methodological Change, Conceptual Transformation, Cultural Reorientation

Abstract

The heavy application pressure under which science operates, its increased dependency on technical apparatus for experimentation, visualization, and modelling, and its technological ambitions to manage the complexities of highly developed societies have prompted claims to the effect that science as such has undergone a profound methodological and institutional transformation during the past decades. Application-oriented research is not the same as “applied science” in that it does not consist in the transfer of basic knowledge to practical challenges. Instead, application-oriented research emphasizes intervention to the point that theoretical representation may be receding into the background. Shaping the world, rather than understanding it, appears to be the chief objective of contemporary science. The contributions to the volume attempt to identify, explore and assess the changing conditions of scientific research. The three central questions asked are: Does science proceed differently, and if so, how? Does science affect society differently, and if so, how? Is science conceived differently, and if so, how?