The "Racial" Economy of Science: Toward a Democratic Future

Race, Gender, and Science

by Sandra G. Harding (Editor)

"The classic and recent essays gathered here will challenge scholars in the natural sciences, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, and women's studies to examine the role of racism in the construction and application of the sciences. Harding... has also created a useful text for diverse classroom settings." --Library Journal

"A rich lode of readily accessible thought on the nature and practice of science in society. Highly recommended." --Choice

"This is an excellent collection of essays that should prove useful in a wide range of STS courses." --Science, Technology, and Society

..". important and provocative... " --The Women's Review of Books

"The timeliness and utility of this large interdisciplinary reader on the relation of Western science to other cultures and to world history can hardly be overemphasized. It provides a tremendous resource for teaching and for research... " --Ethics

"Excellent." --The Reader's Review

"Sandra Harding is an intellectually fearless scholar. She has assembled a bold, impressive collection of essays to make a volume of illuminating power. This brilliantly edited book is essential reading for all who seek understanding of the multicultural debates of our age. Never has a book been more timely." --Darlene Clark Hine

These authors dispute science's legitimation of culturally approved definitions of race difference--including craniology and the measurement of IQ, the notorious Tuskegee syphilis experiments, and the dependence of Third World research on First World agendas.

Genres: Race, Science, Feminism

544 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Sandra G. Harding was an American philosopher of feminist and postcolonial theory, epistemology, research methodology, and philosophy of science. She directed the UCLA Center for the Study of Women from 1996 to 2000, and co-edited Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society from 2000 to 2005. Until her deceassed, she was a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Education and Gender Studies at UCLA and a Distinguished Affiliate Professor of Philosophy at Michigan State University. In 2013 she was awarded the John Desmond Bernal Prize by the Society for the Social Studies of Science (4S).

Reviews

[Weiling · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good compilation of articles that argue for diversity and reliability in social and natural sciences. The book, as well as its editor, takes a transformative perspective in viewing today's scholarship. This should be the attitude scholars hold to challenge the values that we have taken for granted.