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Notes made by Professor Omar Hasan Kasule on January 15, 2022 at 7.30pm
We are studying the transdisciplinary approach from
Europe and America. The Russians also have their trans-disciplinary project but
it is not well translated into English.
For 3 centuries science has been dominated by Newtonian
and thermodynamic concepts that are analytic and reductionist. This is being
replaced by the holistic concept that is multidisciplinary.
The Newtonian revolution produced 3 universal laws. It
is reductionist reducing the universe to basic units and using them to build
the universe. The Newtonian system consists of matter and energy. The Newtonian
world was deterministic ie can predict anything from mathematical equations.
The Newtonian world is simplistic.
Specialization as a result of industrialization led to the fragmentation of knowledge. This resulted in reduction and disjunction.
Disciplines and sub-disciplines arose. This division is a way of organizing
knowledge but created blind spots to small things that cannot be seen through
the windows of disciplines and sub-disciplines. Disciplinary knowledge is characterized
by objectivity, certainty, universality, one way of looking at things,
either/or thinking rejecting ambiguity or paradox.
Trans-disciplinary knowledge is not the additive use of
knowledge to solve a problem. It is an attitude with 5 dimensions: inquiry-based, integrating, meta-paradigmatic, and not intra-paradigmatic, balances
rigor with imagination/creativity, and it is complex systems thinking.
Transdisciplinary inquiry integrates the inquirer in
the process. Thus, inquiry becomes a chance for self-inquiry and
self-development.
Transdisciplinarity has practical implications in
education by using a systems approach that covers more variables to increase
creativity. Transdisciplinary thought is the opposite of disciplinary thought
because of its holism.
Comment by Prof Hamza: this is a good presentation
that has crystallized transdisciplinarity. It will lead to principles of
Islamic trans-disciplinarity.
Question by Dr Nimulola: where does transdisciplinarity fit in the 3 paradigms of research: quantitative, qualitative,
and mixed. Prof Biraima answered that trans-disciplinarity covers all three
paradigms.
Prof Omar shared the Bayesian approach in medical
decision-making as opposed to the classical approach that is Newtonian.