“I’m interested not just in science for understanding the world, but in science for changing it”

After being awarded with the 18th BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Humanities, Prof. Nancy Cartwright presents her contributions to the philosophy of science and her commitment to connecting philosophical theory with real scientific practice. She explains her view of a scientific world not governed by universal laws, but composed of different domains in which theories operate contextually, as well as her work on key concepts such as causality and causal inference. She also reflects on the application of these ideas in fields such as economics and public health, and on the importance of generating useful knowledge that can improve decision-making in real-world contexts.

The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Humanities category has gone in this 18th edition to Nancy Cartwright (Durham University, United Kingdom, and University of California San Diego, United States) for what the committee calls her “decisive contributions” to the philosophy of science