"Who Won the Scientific Revolution?"
ISN Summer Seminar 2008: Details
What: The
Summer Seminar is four days of study and dialog on questions of science, natural philosophy, and their intersection following an historical outline. We begin with the beginnings of science in the ancient Greeks, Plato and Aristotle, and then follow the moderns in their turn with Galileo, Newton, Descartes and Bacon. Finally we arrive at more recent results that indicate the limits of the modern project and intimate the start of something new, something that combines the breadth and detail of the moderns with the depth and insight of the ancients to bring forth a new synthesis that promises to be both deep and wide, both wise and powerful.
In order to maximize the value of the week, students will be expected to read and assimilate approximately 250 pages of materials from scientific, philosophical, modern, and classical sources in the months leading up to the Summer Seminar. Careful reading of the materials in advance will vastly increase the value and quality of the Seminar for all concerned. Those readings will be posted on the
Seminar Plan and Schedule page by April 15th.
Who: Approximately 30-40 graduate and advanced undergraduate students currently studying within a modern scientific discipline or related fields. Post-docs and young (at heart) scientists are also welcome. Applications from students in other disciplines with a deep interest in science, history and philosophy of science, and/or natural philosophy will be seriously considered.
Tutors: ISN Fellows
Michael Augros, Lee Perlman,
Joe Audie,
James Barham,
Mark Ryland,
and Bernhardt Trout;
other lecturers and guest speakers TBA.
When: The Summer Seminar begins on Monday afternoon, June 9, at 3:00pm, and ends on Friday afternoon at 3:30 pm. Students are encouraged to stay and participate in the
Summer Conference, which will bring together a number of scientists and philosophers around a theme related to the Seminar. The Conference begins Friday afternoon and ends Saturday evening, and the Seminar board fee covers food through Saturday.
Where: The Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, Cambridge (near Boston), Massachusetts, will provide both lodging
and meeting space for the Seminar. Information about travel to and around
Cambridge can be found on the Conference logistics
page.
How: The fee for the Summer Seminar and
Conference is $200. Board will cost $175 and includes lunch and dinner for the
week and at least one special group dinner at a nearby restaurant. Room rates, set by MIT,
are $336 for six nights in a single room,
and $234 in a double. The fee and room and board costs can be reduced or
waived on show of need. Student are expected to cover their own travel expenses,
but exceptions will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Please click to download the Summer
Seminar application document in Microsoft Word (native or
zipped) or Adobe PDF
(native or
zipped) formats, and
preferably email us (jkeck [ at ] isnature.org) a filled-out Word document (or fax the filled-out PDF).
The application must be returned by May 1st, 2008.
Questions: Contact
John Keck, Director of the ISN.
Click here for an overview of the
Summer Seminar.
