Science Studies and Studies in Ethics and Legal Theory
Head of PhD programme Science Studies: Professor Stig Andur Pedersen, sap(at)ruc.dk, +45 46742265
Head of PhD programme Studies in Ethics and Legal Theory: Professor Jesper Ryberg, ryberg(at)ruc.dk, +45 46742445
Science Studies
Scientific research and higher education are among the most influential institutions in modern societies, being in constant interchange with institutions for technological and industrial development and with institutions for cultural reflection. The Ph.D. programme in Science Studies is a cooperative effort between scholars from the humanities, the social sciences and the natural sciences. The aim for the programme is to provide a research environment for graduate studies in a variety of fields such as history of science, philosophy of science, sociology of science, popularisation of science, science policy studies, and ethics of science.
Main Research Areas
Research themes covered by the present faculty include
History of Science: History of 20th century life sciences, history of pre-modern mathematics and history of 19th and 20th century mathematics, relation between science and technology in the late 18th and early 19th century, history of late medieval and renaissance science and philosophy, history of 18th and 19th century linguistics.
Philophy of Science: Logic and philosophy of mathematics, philosophy of medicine, the relation between philosophy of science and cognitive science. Semiotics and philosophy of physics, philosophy of engineering science, philosophy of the humanities, and philosophy of legal and political sciences.
Sociology of Science and Science Popularisation: Sociology of knoeledge and studies of the popularisation of science in the mass media, communication of science, and the sociology of scientific meetings.
Science Policy Studies: Studies of science, research and education in industrial as well as in developing countries.
Organisation
The core faculty of the programme consists of around ten senior researchers in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Students wishing to enrol in the programme are expected to have a master’s degree in one or two fields (medicine, engineering, natural science, social science, or humanities). It is also recommended to have one year of training in history, philosophy, or sociology of science. Students are required to take specialised science courses corresponding to half a year’s work. The work on the dissertation is expected to last about 2 1/2 years. It is strongly recommended that at least half a year of the total study time of three years is being spend at a research institution abroad.
Cooperation with other PhD programmes
The Science Studies Programme is associated with the Danish Research School in Philosophy, History of Ideas and History of Science and the other PhD programmes associated with this research school. Exchange programmes are being negotiated with a number of European and American universities.
Studies in Ethics and Legal Theory