Consecrating science : wonder, knowledge, and the natural world / Lisa H. Sideris.

Author
Sideris, Lisa H. [Browse]
Format
Book
Language
English
Published/​Created
  • Oakland, California : University of California Press, [2017]
  • ©2017
Description
xi, 281 pages ; 23 cm

Availability

Available Online

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Firestone Library - Stacks GE24 .S54 2017 Browse related items Request

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    Subject(s)
    Summary note
    "In Consecrating Science, Lisa Sideris offers a searing critique of 'The New Cosmology, ' a complex network of overlapping movements that claim to bring together science and spirituality, all in the name of saving our planet from impending ecological collapse. Highly regarded in many academic circles, these movements have been endorsed by numerous prominent scholars, scientists, historians, and educators. Their express goal--popularized in numerous books, films, TED talks, YouTube videos, podcasts, and even introductory courses at places like Harvard or Washington University--is to instill in readers and audiences a profound sense of being at home in the universe, thereby fostering environmentally responsible behavior. Whether promoted as 'The New Story, ' 'The Universe Story, ' or 'The Epic of Evolution, ' they all offer humanity a new sacred story, a common creation myth for modern times and for all people: the evolutionary unfolding of the universe from the Big Bang to the present. Evolutionary science and religious cosmology--together at last! But as Sideris shows, however, the New Cosmology actually underwrites a staggeringly anthropocentric vision of the world. Instead of cultivating an ethic of respect for nature, the project of 'consecrating science' only increases human arrogance and indifference to nonhuman life. Going back to the work of Rachel Carson and other naturalists, the author shows how a sense of wonder, rooted in the natural world and our own ethical impulses, helps foster environmental attitudes and policies that protect our planet"--Provided by publisher.
    Bibliographic references
    Includes bibliographical references (pages 255-270) and index.
    Contents
    • Introduction : the return of mythopoeic science
    • Seeking what is good in wonder
    • The book of nature and the book of science : Richard Dawkins on wonder
    • E.O. Wilson's ionian enchantment : a tale of two realities
    • Evolutionary enchantment and denatured religious naturalism
    • Anthropic and anthropocene narratives of the new cosmology
    • Genesis 2.0 : the epic of evolution as religion of reality
    • Making sense of wonder.
    ISBN
    • 9780520294974 (hardcover ; : alkaline paper)
    • 0520294971 (hardcover ; : alkaline paper)
    • 9780520294998 (paperback ; : alkaline paper)
    • 0520294998 (paperback ; : alkaline paper)
    LCCN
    2017003514
    OCLC
    974795986
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