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Unit of study_
SCIE1001: Sydney Science 2050: Towards the Future
2025 unit information
Sydney Science 2050: Towards the Future is an innovative interdisciplinary course that invites you to explore the multifaceted nature of science. Rather than focusing exclusively on traditional views of science, you’ll learn how different paradigms, cultures, and worldviews can contribute to understanding, practising, and thinking scientifically. Led by a multidisciplinary teaching team, you’ll examine a range of topics that include broader perspectives on mathematics, physics, Indigenous knowledges and biology. By challenging established perspectives, this unit will enable you to develop a deeper and more rigorous approach to scientific inquiry—equipping you to tackle the challenges of the future.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Science
| Study level | Undergraduate |
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| Academic unit | History and Philosophy of Science Academic Operations |
| Credit points | 6 |
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Prerequisites:
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None |
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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None |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. Use epistemic concepts such as objectivity and evidence and explain how they are relevant to scientific research.
- LO2. Explore the use, misuse and limitations of science, mathematics and statistics in decision making. Topics covered will include the authority and mystic of science, false positives and negative test results, the counter intuitive nature of statistical outcomes, and uncertainties inherent in the scientific process.
- LO3. Explain and appreciate the uncertainties inherent in the scientific process and the place of conditional probabilities and Bayesian logic
- LO4. Articulate the power of science for understanding and manipulating the world and the impact on local, global and international communities. Examples to be used include Sydney Science contributions such as gravitational waves, rust in wheat, renewable energy.
- LO5. Describe the influence of social, moral and political contexts on science and be inclusive of knowledge systems which are non-science and are important in decisions.
- LO6. Use technologies and design experiments to collect data and solve simple and complex science problems on the Camperdown campus.
- LO7. Analyse and appreciate how mathematical models explain systems and the values associated with their use.
- LO8. Identify, describe and communicate the nature of interdisciplinary problems where science has made impact in industry, and regulatory practice. For example, asbestos, neuronal disorders, climate change, health and well-being.
- LO9. Describe scientific knowledge is used in policy formulation and the constraints on policy-makers and other real-world actors.
Unit availability
This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.
The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.
| Session | MoA ? | Location | Outline ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Semester 1 2025
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Normal day | Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney | |
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Semester 2 2025
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Normal day | Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
This refers to the Mode of attendance (MoA) for the unit as it appears when you’re selecting your units in Sydney Student. Find more information about modes of attendance on our website.
