AI methods are being touted as a powerful new source of scientific progress. Are they? If so, what kind of progress do they facilitate? To find out, we employed qualitative research methods to explore how space scientists conceive of AI. We show that space scientists are mainly concerned with whether AI can help them solve specific problems, and more generally, to extend their abilities in useful ways. Inspired by our qualitative data, we propose a new account according to which (at least one ty…
Read moreAI methods are being touted as a powerful new source of scientific progress. Are they? If so, what kind of progress do they facilitate? To find out, we employed qualitative research methods to explore how space scientists conceive of AI. We show that space scientists are mainly concerned with whether AI can help them solve specific problems, and more generally, to extend their abilities in useful ways. Inspired by our qualitative data, we propose a new account according to which (at least one type of) scientific progress is improving scientific abilities. We differentiate this view from others, address some objections, and show how it flexibly integrates insights from existing work.
