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Born
Helen Longino is an American philosopher and educator known for her role of values in science, social interaction in scientific objectivity and social epistemology. Helen was born on Jul 13th, 1944 in Jacksonville, FL to parents Helen I. Longino and James Charles Jr.
“Helen Longino - Encyclopedia of Scientonomy.” Encyclopedia of Scientonomy, www.scientowiki.com/Helen_Longino#:%7E:text=Longino%20believes%20in%20a%20form,the%20observed%20state%20of%20affairs. Accessed 14 Mar. 2022. -
Education/Career
Helen attended Barnard College where she received her BA in 1966. She earned her Master of Arts degree from the University of Sussex in 1967. Helen then attended John's Hopkin's University where she received her PHD in Philosophy in 1973. While earning her Master's she was an assistant professor at UCSD, ultimately becoming a professor at Stamford. -
Science As A Social Knowledge
In 1990 Longino writes her first book titled 'Science As A Social Knowledge.' In this book she argues that a "methodology powerful enough to account for theories of any scope and depth is incapable of ruling out the social and cultural values in the very structure of knowledge." “Science as Social Knowledge.” Princeton University Press, press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691020518/science-as-social-knowledge. Accessed 13 Mar. 2022. -
Science as a Social Knowledge pt 2
This book is pivotal because it acknowledges the significance of human error in science. She challenges that certain conclusions are only drawn from background assumptions. These conclusions can differ based off of the personal experience and background knowledge of each individual experiencing. -
The Fate of Knowledge
in 2001 she publishes her second book. In this book she challenges the assumption that social forces are a source of bias and irrationality by arguing that social interaction is actually what assists us in securing rationally based knowledge. It offers positive views of integrating social considerations in to epistemology. -
Studying Human Behavior
Longino is a long time advocator for more awareness in the simple fact that there is a wide range of perspectives out there and that they are contributing factors to results. In her latest book she goes into detail about 5 approaches to the study of human behavior bringing awareness to the scientific community by highlighting the underlying assumptions of these disciplines. -
Critical Contextual Empiricism, Diversity and Inclusiveness
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XysYymrh7IE Link included to a Zoom call done with Helen Longino last year on sociology in science. It is a long one with some technical difficulties due to Zoom, but if you hang in there it's a great talk.