HH3032 SCIENCE & RELIGION IN HISTORY

Many people, including historians of science in earlier ages, believed that science and religion are contraries. Science is often considered the paradigm of humans' rational thoughts that fight against all kinds of ignorance, bigotry, and superstition, which may include religious thoughts and practices. However, many historians of science after the late twentieth century have found that the relationship between science and religion is far more complex. In some cases, religions do hamper and suppress some scientists' claims and activities, but religions can also be a positive factor in the construction of scientific ideas and worldviews, including those for the rise of modern science. This course aims at your deeper understanding of this complexity in a historical depth.