A dissenting view on the scientific ethos.

The article presents a discussion on ethics of scientific knowledge. Scientific knowledge may be defined as knowledge which is collected and organized in accordance with four technical norms: empirical validity, logical clarity, logical consistency of propositions, and generality of principles. However, it may be argued that such technical norms do not guarantee the objectives of science. It has been pointed out that science has realized its basic objectives, and its technical norms have had relevance because of broader institutional values which articulate scientific endeavor. This value system, which is usually referred to as the scientific ethos, consists of universalism, organized scepticism, communality, ethical neutrality, and disinterestedness. It is this value system which provides the impetus for scientific activity and guarantees its validity. The emergence of the scientific ethos has been traced to the historical conditions of the seventeenth century. In retrospect, it is clear that the convergence of a number of trends such as secularization, rationalism, and cultural relativism combined to produce the facilitating conditions.