A New Organon: Science Studies in Interwar Poland

The journal Nauka Polska and the working group Koło Naukoznawcze provided a forum for sociologists, philosophers, pedagogues, and scientists to debate the advancement of science and the academic system in Poland. They asked how scientific creativity could be generated and stabilized, what a socio-psychological "science of knowledge" should look like, and how society could profit from a "science of science." Most of these ideas are unknown today, and the volume reconstructs the forgotten history of this Warsaw-based sociology of knowledge and science.

Format: Hardback
Length: 401 pages
Publication date: 04 June 2024
Publisher: Mohr Siebeck

Poland's independence in 1918 brought with it a pressing need to establish a clear understanding of how the state and society should be organized. To address this, the journal Nauka Polska and the working group Koło Naukoznawcze served as a platform for sociologists, philosophers, pedagogues, and scientists to discuss the advancement of science and the academic system. Among the topics explored were the generation and stabilization of scientific creativity (Antoni B. Dobrowolski), the development of a socio-psychological "science of knowledge" (Florian Znaniecki), and the potential benefits of a "science of science" (Maria Ossowska and Stanisław Ossowski). Unlike similar contemporary contributions, many of these ideas have been largely forgotten today. This volume seeks to rectify this by reconstructing the forgotten history of Warsaw-based sociology of knowledge and science, presenting pivotal articles in English translation for the first time.

Weight: 726g
ISBN-13: 9783161543159