FYSIKKENS ERKENDELSESLÆRE OG MENNESKE-KULTURERNE: Med efterskrift af Jørgen Kalckar

Abstract

Niels Bohr: Physics’ Epistemology and

Human Cultures

The article is a reprint of the talk given by the

famous physicist when he addressed the

International Congress of Anthropology and

Ethnology at Kronborg, Elsinore, in August

1. Niels Bohr’s new theory of quantum

physics gave rise to the concept of

complementarity, and the Elsinore leeture

was the first occasion on which he publically

debated questions regarding evolution and

the mutual interplay of cultures. The topic

derives from Bohr’s reflections on the

complementarity of instinet and reason.

Furthermore, these thoughts were related to

the issue of nature versus nurture, on which

Bohr unambiguously sided with the latter.

The Elsinore leeture is more provocative and

a little less taetful than Bohr’s usual style,

and might be considered as a reaction to

racist ideology so prevalent in the 1930s. It is

worth noting, however, that these issues are

being debated in the 1990s. The wider

relevance of the concept of complementarity

and its applicability to disciplines outside the

natural Sciences occupied Bohr throughout

his life.