In our next Perspectives on Science Seminar, Robert Northcott (Birkbeck, University of London) will give a talk titled “Cherry-picking – in history and beyond”.
The seminar will take place online on Zoom, and in Metsätalo room 10 from 14:15 to 15:45 on Monday, February 23, 2026. The speaker will join us only online via Zoom.
Perspectives on Science is a research seminar that brings together experts from the philosophy of science and several fields of science studies. It is organized by TINT – Centre for Philosophy of Social Science at the University of Helsinki. More information about the seminar can be found on the TINT webpage https://tint.helsinki.fi.
What: “Cherry-picking – in history and beyond” by Robert Northcott
When: Monday 23.02.2026, from 2 to 4 pm (EEST, Helsinki time).
Where: Zoom and Metsätalo room 10. The speaker is online.
Zoom link: Contact mirja-leena.zgurskaya@helsinki.fi for the Zoom link.
Abstract:
“Cherry-picking – in history and beyond”
What distinguishes good historical work from bad, and scholarship from propaganda? It is not (always) that bad work tells lies, for bad work may ostensibly follow all professional norms. Nor are political ulterior motives necessarily a problem. The crucial epistemic vice, I argue, is cherry-picking. I will also discuss several further, interrelated issues: when is knowledge of history an aid to prediction? Is history more vulnerable to cherry-picking than other fields are? Is cherry-picking why knowledge in some fields seems easier to dispute than in others? How can cherry-picking be avoided? And might cherry-picking sometimes even be useful?
Bio:
Robert Northcott is Professor of Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London. He is the author of numerous articles, mainly in philosophy of science. He is especially interested at the moment in the prospects for knowledge in ‘messy’ fields such as history and social science. His book ‘Science for a Fragile World’ was published by Oxford University Press last summer. He previously taught at the University of Missouri, St Louis, and received his PhD from the London School of Economics.
____
If you have any questions about the seminar, do not hesitate to contact mirja-leena.zgurskaya@helsinki.fi.