Picturing Objectivity

Publication information:

2006. “Picturing Objectivity”

Abstract

On the history of scientific objectivity, from the early 19th century to the present. In the early 1800s, scientific objectivity became a goal. Between 1830 and 1930, scienticic atlases helped define "mechanical objectivity" at the time—performing science according to a certain set of procedures without variation. But the fate of scientific objectivity kept changing. Twentieth-century scientists questioned mechanical objectivity and demanded more individual input and interpretation of results. With that shift came a new view of the "right" scientific self, one now explicitly making use of intuition, expertise, and the unconscious.

Full text

On the history of scientific objectivity, from the early 19th century to the present. In the early 1800s, scientific objectivity became a goal. Between 1830 and 1930, scienticic atlases helped define "mechanical objectivity" at the time—performing science according to a certain set of procedures without variation. But the fate of scientific objectivity kept changing. Twentieth-century scientists questioned mechanical objectivity and demanded more individual input and interpretation of results. With that shift came a new view of the "right" scientific self, one now explicitly making use of intuition, expertise, and the unconscious.
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