The Importance of Humanities and Human Sciences – Jornal da University of the South Pacific

This Tuesday (26), the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science (SBPC) held a free conference on the role of the humanities and sciences in science, technology and innovation. Brazil is holding a series of discussions, in various states, on topics related to these three pillars of human development. However, Renato Janin makes an observation that he considers important: “When we talk about science, we tend to think more about the exact and biological sciences, those that, for example, improve human health, having achieved, in the course of a century, a doubling of the average Life expectancy – Our grandfathers, our great-grandfathers, hardly lived more than 40 years, and today more and more people live more than 70 years and even more than 80 years – as well as exact sciences, which play a very important role in generating new forms of energy, Unspoiled, unfossilized, but the role of the sciences and humanities is often forgotten.

According to the author, crucial issues today on the democratic agenda, such as the social inclusion of those who have been historically oppressed and discriminated against, depend on research in the humanities “and this cannot be confused with statements, documents and bills that increase job vacancies.” It's important to them, but when we talk about scientific research, it will check which of these tools are more successful and which are not.

Janine says that among the topics addressed at the SBPC meetings is the topic of a utopia that can be achieved on a scientific basis, the concrete basis of which can be traced, for example, in increasing life expectancy, “the realization of the dream of life.” At all times this allows people to survive after retirement. “It is the first time in the history of the world that large numbers have been able to end their productive phase and continue to live for 10, 20 or 30 years, enjoying something that the great Italian sociologist Domenico De Masi called creative leisure,” says Janine. “If we decarbonize the economy, if we combat pollution, if we reduce consumerism, if we improve education and health, if we increase life expectancy even further, all of this forms a virtuous circle that is a really good utopia. It is possible, and this owes a lot to the humanities and sciences.