I really appreciated the fact that Dr. Cogan asked us to reflect upon what factors attribute to a scientific revolution. When it comes to the background of the scientists of the time, they tended to be wealthy, educated males who were naturally curious and competitive, wanting all the recognition for themselves. The state of the field of scientific study was also very exclusive, with the many scientific cohorts, and the majority of the discoveries at the time were accidental. However, I was taken back when Dr. Cogan asked whether all the greatest discoveries have already been made. Today, we can’t tinker around in our kitchen and make a new discovery; it’s already been done. Yet, there’s still so much about space, the ocean, etc. that remains unknown. Thus, are there more scientific revolutions to come? Are we technically already apart of a scientific revolution currently as we speak?
Yes, Gabby, I think we are in the midst of multiple scientific revolutions as we speak. Even areas of research where many like me may have thought were exhausted are actually active and productive. For example, Dale mentioned that we are discovering more dinosaurs today than we have at any time in history.
One area I think about being very modern is the concept of sustainability. The perceived importance splits almost evenly down age status. Older individuals, who did not grow up with the concept seemingly have more limited capacity to appreciate things like climate change or pollution of the earth with plastics. Younger people seem to grasp these concepts quite easily. This seems similar to how Priestly could not let go of phlogiston since it was in the very framework of his learning. Lavoisier, on the other hand, discarded it without issue, when he saw it did not fit the data he was gathering.