S3 Ep 10 - Aja Watkins & Miguel Ohnesorge on 'Philosophy of the Geosciences'

Today we are joined by Miguel Ohnesorge and Aja Watkins to talk about a new subfield of HPS - The Philosophy of the Geosciences. 

Miguel and Aja recently co-authored an article titled 'What is the Philosophy of the Geosciences?'  In today's episode, we discuss many of the themes introduced in the paper, including common problems found across such diverse geoscientific disciplines as palaeontology, seismology and climate science.

Aja and Miguel highlight how the geosciences have had to develop similar strategies for studying such large and often inaccessible phenomena. As global sciences, they also face many common ethical challenges, including rectifying a history of often extractive and exploitative practices, as well as navigating the continued ramifications of their research on human welfare and the environment.

A transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/s3-ep-10-aja-watkins-miguel-ohnesorge-on-philosophy-of-the-geosciences

Relevant links:

• Aja's Website: Aja Watkins (ajawatkins.org)
• Miguel's Website: Miguel Ohnesorge (mohnesorgehps.com)
• Open Access Paper: What is Philosophy of the Geosciences? | Ohnesorge & Watkins | 2024 Philosophy Compass
• Research Group: Philosophy of the Geosciences Research Group | Alisa Bokulich
• Colloquium: Philosophy of the Geosciences Colloquium | Boston University
• Recording: Aja Watkins | Using Paleoclimate Analogues to Inform Climate Projections 
• Recording: Miguel Ohnesorge | Bringing Gravitation Down to Earth: Severe Testing in Laplace’s Mécanique Céleste
• Recording: Rachel Laudan | Cinderella Science: Intellectual Obstacles Facing History & Philosophy of Geology 
• Recording: Carol Cleland | Rethinking Mineral Taxonomy from a More Historical Perspective 
• Paper: Ahmad Elabbar | Varying Evidential Standards as a Matter of Justice | The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science

Thanks for listening to The HPS Podcast with current producers, Samara Greenwood and Carmelina Contarino. You can find more about us on our blog, website, bluesky, twitter, instagram and facebook feeds. Music by ComaStudio.

This podcast would not be possible without the support of School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne.

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