Centre for the Study of the Sciences and the Humanities

Contact information

Centre for the Study of the Sciences and the Humanities (SVT)

Visting address: Parkveien 9

Postal address: PB 7805, 5020 Bergen

Phone: +47 55 58 27 05

E-mail: post@svt.uib.no

Do you want to be on our mailing list? post@svt.uib.no

Research and teaching

The Centre for the Study of the Sciences and the Humanities (SVT) is an interdisciplinary and interfaculty centre at the University of Bergen with a responsibility for research, teaching and dissemination within the field of "theory of science", understood broadly as "research on research." Research at SVT is tightly coupled to the promotion of interdisciplinarity, aiming at a more holistic understanding of knowledge, values and society. There are two main foci within this study field: on the one hand the understanding of modernity, and on the other hand the study of the knowledge production in itself. Researchers at SVT coordinate and participate in several research projects on the ethical and societal aspects of science and technology.

As a member of the Norwegian Academic Council for Science and Technology Studies, SVT teaches Theory of Science and Ethics in UiB's PhD programmes. The Centre is also responsible for the content and administration of the Master of Philosophy in Sustainability.

Blog post

Summer unravels

This summer – that’s December and January 2023 – I went to New Zealand. I took my swimming ‘togs’ and expectations for wearing them.

Blog post

Pencil drawings of foliage and mushrooms in black on white paper

The Arboretet Primstav: carving out seasonal markers

Bergen Arboretet’s gardeners and scientists sat together in a workshop in November 2022 to settle on a set of shared seasonal reference points.

New research

A woman with brown, shoulder-length hair in a black top and jeans holding a PhD dissertation

What kind of government do we want?

On 24 May, SVT affiliate Cristina García Casañas successfully defended her PhD thesis "Imaginaries of innovation and science: critical analysis and sustainability concerns.”

Holberg Prize 2022

A woman with brown hair, a purple and orange sari and a read necklace

How can we study science and technology as social activities?

This question is central to the research of the 2022 Holberg Prize winner, Sheila Jasanoff, who has a long-standing collaboration with University of Bergen researchers.

Calendar

Supervisors' forum

Hotel Terminus, Zander Kaaes gate 6

20.04.2023 09:00–14:00

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The PhD training component in Theory of Science

The training component in theory of science ("vitenskapsteori") and ethics is an important and mandatory part of all PhD studies, required by the PhD regulations at the University of Bergen. The primary purpose of the training is to strengthen the ability and depth of reflection of the candidates in their research education and develop the candidates' knowledge of the characteristic features, strengths and limitations of their own field of inquiry, and how these can affect their encounters with other academic disciplines and sectors of society. SVT is in charge of this training component, the content, scope and practical organization of these course varies from faculty to faculty.

The Faculty of Social Science (VITSV900) The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (MNF990) The Faculty of Psychology(PS901) The Faculty of Humanities(VITHF900)

History of the Centre

The Centre for the Study of the Sciences and the Humanities (SVT) was established in 1987 as a permanent inter-faculty institution at the University of Bergen, Norway. The field of study, Theory of Science was (in accordance with the Jeløya Conference in 1975, which was under the auspices of the Norwegian Research Council) defined as research in the fields of philosophy, history and social science focusing on the roles these different sciences play in society; in addition it was defined as research into the theoretical and ethical aspects and uses of such scientific research.

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