On Cognitive and Social Values: A Reply to My Critics

This article is a response to six critics of my article, Scientific Understanding and the Control of Nature, published as the lead article in this issue: Douglas Allchin, Roger C. Cross, William Herfel, Seng Piew Loo, Peter Machamer & Heather Douglas, and Ernan McMullin. It clarifies themes in the earlier article, responds to criticisms, and reaffirms the significance of distinguishing between cognitive and social values for the sake of gaining a better grasp of scientific understanding.