Event overview
Seminar: "Semantic-epistemic transformations and the quantitative hermeneutics of Science: a big data analysis" with Leonardo Costa Ribeiro (UFMG, Brazil)
Join us for the hybrid seminar "Semantic-epistemic transformations and the quantitative hermeneutics of Science: a big data analysis" with Leonardo Costa Ribeiro, Associate Professor of Economics at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) in Brazil. Leonardo has an academic background in physics and economics, conducting interdisciplinary research on complex economic systems, the economics of science and technology, and the application of quantitative and data-driven methods — including artificial intelligence and big data — to analyse scientific, technological and health-related phenomena.
Abstract:
The evolution of scientific knowledge is a complex, semantic process that has eluded direct measurement. We introduce quantitative hermeneutics, a framework that maps the structure of scientific meaning by analysing 53 million publications. By aligning yearly language models into a unified semantic space, we trace the trajectories of disciplines over decades. This reveals a fundamental epistemic asymmetry: the present interprets the past with stability, but the past cannot reciprocally resolve the future’s fine-grained distinctions. We further uncover dynamic regimes where disciplines globally converge while simultaneously undergoing domain-specific divergence. This work provides a new paradigm for the Science of Science, demonstrating that scientific progress is driven by the continuous reconfiguration of meaning, not just the accumulation of facts.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Apr 2026 | 3:00pm - 5:00pm |
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