The Mission of the Center for Dialogue in Science …
,,, is to promote and catalyse Dialogue between scientists, amongst scientific fields, and betweeen science and society, in order to catalyse new scientific breakthroughs, further the role and standing of science in society, and contribute to the advance of human civilization-as-a-whole.
What Is ‘Dialogue’?
‘Dialogue’ might seem to be a strange thing to ask for ‘in Science’. Doesn’t Science definitively proceed by logic and experiment, while ‘Dialogue’ conventionally refers to conversation - which could go anywhere, without respecting either rationality or data! In fact, Dialogue here is a technical term, referring to a quality of group enquiry in which rationality, logic, and data are all respected. However, Dialogue allows for assumptions and presumptions (often unconscious) to be brought to light - and then often suspended (perhaps temporarily) - in pursuit of new and deeper understanding and action.
Why Does Science Need ‘Dialogue in Science’?!
Arguably, fundamental science has made no progress for fifty years: the last major theoretical advance was the statement of the Standard Model of particle physics. (This claim doesn’t limit ‘fundamental science’ to physics: the immediately-preceding ‘fundamental advance’ of a similar magnitude was the characterization of the structure and function of DNA, in biology.) Why has progress stalled? That question itself is a productive prompt for Dialogical enquiry! Of course, there could be many reasons. Perhaps we’ve got as far as human brains can get. Perhaps we await new technological advances, or pivotal experimental discoveries. Perhaps we are on the brink of something huge. Perhaps this question is unanswerable!
Setting aside ‘perhaps’, it is clear that Science has become more and more specialized. This has led to ‘silo-fication’ (now familiar to the corporate world, and similar in some ways to societal ‘echo chambers’: different scientific disciplines and even sub-disciplines have distinct and alien assumption-sets, outlooks, and ways-of-working). Although we can’t prove silo-fication is what’s preventing fundamental progress, it’s at least a plausible hypothesis. Cross-disciplinary Dialogue is one powerful antidote to the fragmentary character of silo-fication, and therefore one plausible avenue towards unlocking fundamental advances.
Why Does Society Need ‘Dialogue in Science’?
If ‘Dialogue in Science’ leads to productive outcomes for Science, likely Science will become more favorably disposed towards Dialogue - not only in Science, but also between Science and other societally-prominent worldviews, such as traditional religion, postmodern pluralism, and non-dual spirituality, And, whether it’s broadly aware of it or not, society does need the kind of respectful mutual enquiry between its worldviews, that Dialogue promotes and effects. Thus, society has a vested interest in Dialogue in Science, because this can only advance Dialogue amongst all humankind’s leading outlooks. (Of course, if Dialogue in Science serves Science’s own advance, society has an interest in that too - all else equal, a rising Science lifts all boats!)
Dialogue in Science and Consciousness Science
As an initiatory demonstration of the power of Dialogue for Science, the Center is applying a Dialogical process to the Science of Consciousness, engaging physics, neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy in a rigorous conversation.
Outputs from this project include Papers , Videos, and Books. The ongoing Process includes Working Groups and Workshops.