Free debate and universities

[prudencepuffin]

I thought this was an interesting article about free speech and universities, particularly in the wake of the Kathleen Stock events:
unherd.com/2022/01/how-our-universities-became-sheep-factories/

Particularly interesting to slide abortion in there. I do agree though, terrifying though I find the idea of access to abortion becoming a political issue in this country.

On the same theme, I though this was interesting:

www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10404229/Rising-use-emotional-language-like-feel-believe-displaced-rational-thought.html

The Mail reporting on American linguistics research into language used in the NYT. Emotions seem to be taking over from facts.

Needmoresleep - the changes in language mentioned in that article are fascinating as a mirror in how society is changing. University students seem to be tipping into intuition rather than reason if the view of the essay writer in Unherd is correct.

o-author Ingrid van de Leemput from WUR notes, 'Whatever the drivers, our results suggest that the post-truth phenomenon is linked to a historical seesaw in the balance between our two fundamental modes of thinking: Reasoning versus intuition.

'If true, it may well be impossible to reverse the sea change we signal. Instead, societies may need to find a new balance, explicitly recognizing the importance of intuition and emotion, while at the same time making best use of the much needed power of rationality and science to deal with topics in their full complexity.'

I disagree that if there is a shift towards 'intuition' from science that there will be a new balance between the two. If this is allowed to take hold science will be driven out and we will be entering a post enlightenment era where feelings trump reason. I'm not sure our civilisation would thrive let alone survive such an environment.

I image that if emotion overtakes reason, it will be limited to the West, and then China will be front and centre in the science world and money and investment will flow eastwards. I am unsure the Dow Jones and FTSE 100 will be that impressed.

I have noticed just how cloying things are becoming and it's driving me nuts. Is it because our educational established have realised just how easy it is to focus on emotion rather than actually having to educate?

@highame

I image that if emotion overtakes reason, it will be limited to the West, and then China will be front and centre in the science world and money and investment will flow eastwards. I am unsure the Dow Jones and FTSE 100 will be that impressed.

I have noticed just how cloying things are becoming and it's driving me nuts. Is it because our educational established have realised just how easy it is to focus on emotion rather than actually having to educate?

I do think that how students are educated plays a huge role. Right from early years education. Worse in North American than in the UK, but it's a problem across the board.

One element is that students are given increasingly little content. Particularly historical content with any real meat. What they get is filtered through a modern lens, no effort to understand why people thought differently or real historical processes.

But also, the main goal in schools now seems to be imparting certain views about society and tolerance. It's a very good and evil approach, it doesn't teach children just to treat others respectfully, or to think through sticky differences in a clear way. It's about a bunch of causes and the way you know who to defend is by seeing who has been oppressed. And you know that because you have been told.

This all gives certain people a lot of room to control what happens.