ABSTRACT
Is science value free? Do the practices of scientific inquiry express the values of impartiality, neutrality, and autonomy? Impartiality: that a theory is accepted (of a domain) if, and only if, in relation to the appropriate empirical data, it manifests the cognitive values to a high degree according to the most rigorous available standards. Neutrality: that, for any viable value complex, there are theories (accepted in accordance with impartiality) which may be applied so as to further significantly the manifestation of the values that constitute it. Autonomy: that scientific practices proceed, and scientific communities and the institutions that support them are constituted, for the sake of furthering manifestations of impartiality and neutrality without direction (“interference”) from factors other than the data, the cognitive values and the ingenuity of the practitioners, in particular without direction from (non-cognitive) values.
