Edited by Pierluigi Barrotta and Giovanni Scarafile
The relationship between science and democracy has become a much-debated issue. In recent years, we have even seen an exponential growth in literature on the subject. No doubt, the interest has partly been justified by the concern of public opinion over the technological repercussions of scientific… read more
This collective volume focuses on two closely connected issues whose common denominator is the embattled notion of the subject. The first concerns the controversies on the nature of the subject and related notions, such as the concepts of ‘I’ and ‘self’. From both theoretical and historical… read more
The preservation of biodiversity is one of the greatest concerns of our age. However, a satisfactory operational definition of biodiversity is still lacking, and it is likely that it won’t be achieved in the near future. In their practice of measurement scientists adopt a pluralistic and… read more
In 1963 a huge landslide covered the Vajont valley (north-east of Italy), where one of the tallest arch dams in the world had been put in place (completed in 1959). More than 2000 people died. The locals had repeatedly warned the scientists that the sides of the valley were too fragile to hold… read more
