IUHPST/DLMPST

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
DIVISION OF LOGIC, METHODOLOGY AND PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Statutes of the International Union of History and Philosophy of Science, Division of Logic, Methodology And Philosophy Of Science (2011)

(Adopted by the General Assembly of IUHPS/DLMPS; Moscow, August 18, 1987; Article 25 amended by General Assembly of IUHPS/DLMPS, Florence, Italy, August 23, 1995; Articles 9, 13 and 19 amended and new Articles 20 and 21 introduced, raising by 2 the numbering of subsequent articles, by General Assembly of IUHPS/DLMPS, Nancy, France, July 24, 2011.)

I. OBJECTIVES

ARTICLE 1

The objectives of the Division of the Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science of the International Union of History and Philosophy of Science, hereinafter designated as the Division, are:

  1. to promote contacts among logicians, philosophers of science and scientists interested in the foundational problems of their disciplines, and among institutions dedicated to logic, methodology, and philosophy of science;
  2. to encourage and sustain research and study of important problems in logic, methodology, and philosophy of science;
  3. to collect documents useful for the development of logic, methodology and philosophy of science;
  4. to organize, sponsor, and support international meetings of logic, methodology and philosophy of science (International Congresses and Symposia), and to publish reports, Conference Proceedings, and other works related to such meetings.

ARTICLE 2

The Division is affiliated, through the International Union of History and Philosophy of Science, to the International Council of Scienti­fic Unions (ICSU) for the purpose of achieving its scientific and scholarly objectives and furthering international understanding and cooperation in its field.

II. MEMBERSHIP

ARTICLE 3

The Division comprises two kinds of members:

  1. Ordinary Members,
  2. international bodies (international scientific organizations).

ARTICLE 4

An Ordinary Member shall be an Academy of Sciences, sci­entific society, national committee or other scientific institution or association of such institutions recognized by the General Assembly of the Division or by a majority of its members. Institutions and committees representing scientific activities in a definite territory or country may be accepted as Ordinary Members, but no country may be represented by more than one Ordinary Member except where the General Assembly decides otherwise.

ARTICLE 5

Any country may become and remain affiliated to the Division in the way indicated in Article 4, provided that it observes the require­ments of the present Statutes. Each Ordinary Member of the Division creates a Committee for Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science which advises the member organization in matters concerning the Divi­sion. The Committee shall communicate to the Secretary of the Division the name of its Chairman or Secretary.

ARTICLE 6

The application for membership in the Division is made to the Executive Committee, which makes a recommendation on the application to the members of the Division at a meeting of the General Assembly or by correspondence. The members shall accept or reject the application in the light of this recommendation at a meeting of the General Assembly or by correspondence; in the latter case acceptance requires support by a majority of the votes accorded to the members. If such a majority of votes is not cast, the vote is considered invalid. The Ordinary Members are classified in 5 membership categories, A - E, with the corresponding voting powers and annual subscriptions (specified in Articles 10 and 23). The organization which seeks membership in the Division must specify the category which it proposes for its classification. The proposal may be rejected by the members of the Division if it is judged to be manifestly inappropriate. An Ordinary Member may change its classification with the approval of the members of the Division upon recommendation of the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE 7

Membership status may be terminated:

  1. by a letter of resignation,
  2. by exclusion; this must be carried by a majority of two-thirds of the votes cast at the General Assembly on a motion of the Executive Committee and for the following reasons:
  • non-payment of subscriptions for three consecutive years;
  • absence of scientific activity;
  • for serious reasons prejudicial to the interests of the Division.

The proposal for exclusion may be carried only after inclusion in the agenda of the General Assembly and notification to the member in question at least four months before the General Assembly, and after the General Assembly has heard the explanation of the member, or the member has signified its incapacity by failing to respond to a registered letter mailed at least four months previously.

III. ADMINISTRATION AND VOTING RIGHTS

ARTICLE 8

The administrative authority of the Division is exercised by:

  1. the General Assembly;
  2. the Council;
  3. the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE 9

The General Assembly consists of the delegates of the Ordi­nary Members, delegates of the international scientific organizations, and delegates of the Division's Commissions, including Inter-Division and Inter-Union Commissions.

ARTICLE 10

The Ordinary Members of the Division are classified in five categories, A, B, C, D and E. At the General Assembly, the number of votes accorded to the delegates of each Ordinary Member depends on its category as follows:

Category A B C D E
Votes 1 2 3 4 5

Voting by the General Assembly shall be by delegations, but each delegation may cast its votes either as a unit or divided in a way determined by the delegation. In voting by correspondence, each member casts its vote as a unit, counted as many times as its category indicates.

ARTICLE 11

Except where specified to the contrary in the Statutes, the decisions of the General Assembly are taken by a majority of votes recorded. If the number of votes cast for and against a proposal are equal, the President may use a casting vote in addition to any vote which he may have as a member of a delegation. Specially stipulated majorities are calculated as proportions of the number of votes recorded.

Members of the Council attend sessions of the General Assembly and take part in the discussions but their status as members of the Council gives them no voting right.

ARTICLE 12

The Ordinary General Assembly is convened at least every fourth year by the President in office, normally during an International Congress of Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science. At the request of a majority of the Ordinary Members or a majority of the Executive Committee, the President shall within six months convene an Extraordinary General Assembly.

ARTICLE 13

The ordinary General Assembly of the Division has the fol­lowing responsibilities:

  1. electing the members of the Council and of the Executive Committee;
  2. appointing the delegates charged with representing the Division within other international bodies;
  3. establishing or dissolving the Commissions of the Division, including Inter-Division or Inter-Union Commissions;
  4. determining the number of votes to be accorded to each international scientific organization belonging to the Division. This number may not exceed twice the number of votes possessed by an Ordinary Member, and it may be modified only by an ordinary General Assembly. The total number of votes accorded to the international bodies may not exceed the number of votes accorded to the Ordinary Members;
  5. accepting new members in the Division. These must have sent their request for affiliation at least five months before the date of the meeting of the General Assembly (however, as stated in Article 6, new members may also be accepted by correspondence between the Ordinary Members and the Executive Committee);
  6. determining the international or representative character of a group or an organization;
  7. receiving and considering reports from the Executive Committee and from the Commissions;
  8. establishing the programme of activities of the Division for the four years following the General Assembly;
  9. fixing the dates and places of the meetings of the next session;
  10. establishing plans for the budget of the Division and determining the level of the unit of subscription of Ordinary Members as well as the subscriptions of international bodies belonging to the Division;
  11. approving the accounts of the Division.

The General Assembly may create scientific commissions and committees for the Division.

The General Assembly may delegate to the Council or the Executive Committee a part of its powers for a period not exceeding four years.

ARTICLE 14

The summonses to each General Assembly with the complete agenda must be sent by the Secretary to all Ordinary Members and to all the international bodies adhering to the Division at least four months before the date of the meeting. Any question not appearing on the agenda may not be considered except with the prior assent of two-thirds of the votes cast, or, in the case of a proposal to modify the Statutes of the Union or the Division, of three-quarters of the votes cast.

ARTICLE 15

The General Assembly is validly constituted only if delegates possessing at least half of the valid voting power are present: Any Ordinary Member or international member organization may be represent­ed by proxy, provided that due notification of this intention and the name of the delegate are communicated in writing to the Secretary before the General Assembly.

ARTICLE 16

The Council consists of the 6 members of the Executive Committee and at least 6 assessors.

ARTICLE 17

The Executive Committee consists of the President, the First Vice-President, the Second Vice-President, the Secretary, the Treasurer, and the (immediate) Past President of the Division.

The members of the Executive Committee and the Council are elected at a General Assembly to serve in office for a period of four years. They are not eligible for immediate re-election to the same office with the exception of the Secretary and the Treasurer.

In the event that the President of the Division is unable to exercise his functions he is automatically replaced by the First Vice-President, in which case the Second Vice-President acquires the status of the First Vice-President. In the event that the Secretary or the Treasurer cannot exercise his functions, the President will nominate a person to replace him in his functions and as member of the Council and of the Executive Committee, subject to confirmation of two-thirds of the Council (excluding the member nominated).

ARTICLE 18

The Council can establish the rules of procedure for the nominations, elections, and administrative procedures of the Division in conformity with these Statutes. The rules can take effect immediately, but must be ratified by the next General Assembly.

The Council is also responsible for ensuring the continuity of the Division's policies and activities in the four-year interval between successive ordinary meetings of the General Assembly.

ARTICLE 19

The Executive Committee is charged with the administration of the Division's business and finance, and with the implementation of the resolutions taken by the General Assembly and the policies of the Council. It is responsible for ensuring the appointment of Chairs or Presidents of the Division's Commissions, and for approving the payment of subsidies to these Commissions. Three members of the Committee, other than the Past President, constitute a quorum.

ARTICLE 20

The Commissions of the Division shall have full freedom in arranging their own internal structure and work within the framework of the Statutes of the Division. If special funds are provided for their use, they may make their own financial arrangements, subject to the approval of the Executive Committee. Each Commission will be entitled to one delegate and one vote at General Assemblies.

ARTICLE 21

The Inter-Division Commissions of the Division include the DHST-DLMPS Joint Commission. The main responsibility of the DHST-DLMPS Joint Commission is to explore research fields of interest both to historians of science and technology, and to logicians and philosophers of science, by means of Joint Conferences and/or symposia. The members of the Joint Commission are the Chair of the Joint Commission, together with each Division's President and Secretary General who serve as ex officio members. The Chair of the Joint Commission holds office for two years, and is appointed alternately by the DHST and the DLMPS. The Chair of the Joint Commission appointed by a Division takes up office at the beginning of the calendar year before the international congress of that Division.

IV. FINANCE

ARTICLE 22

The revenues of the Division are made up from:

  1. subscriptions by Ordinary Members and international organizations;
  2. subventions from ICSU;
  3. other subventions, gifts and legacies, subject to approval by the Executive Committee;
  4. the sale of publications.

ARTICLE 23

Each Ordinary Member pays the Division an annual sub­scription which depends on its category as follows:

Category A B C D E

Number of subscription units 1 2 4 8 16

The level of the unit of subscription is determined by the General Assembly.

The subscriptions for the international scientific organizations are determined by the General Assembly.

ARTICLE 24

Each Ordinary Member is responsible for the payment of the required subscription. If it has not done so for two years preceding the year of the General Assembly, it will not be permitted to vote in that Assembly.

V. GENERAL REMARKS

ARTICLE 25

The official domicile of the Division is Montpellier, France.

ARTICLE 26

These Statutes may only be amended by the General Assembly, with the provision that the total number of votes in favour of the change proposed is equal to at least two-thirds of the number of votes cast.

ARTICLE 27

Proposals formulated by a member for amendment of the Statutes of the Union or the Division must be sent to the Secretary at least five months before the date of the General Assembly at which they will be considered. The Secretary must bring to the knowledge of all Ordinary Members and all international bodies belonging to the Division at least four months before the General Assembly, any proposal of this nature that he has received.

ARTICLE 28

The life of the Division may be terminated only by an Extraordinary General Assembly and with the approval of at least two-thirds of the total number of votes assigned to the Ordinary Members and scientific organizations.

In the event of dissolution the assets of the Division shall be trans­ferred to an international organization having activities similar to those of the Division.

ARTICLE 29

Any Ordinary Member or international scientific organization which leaves the Division automatically forfeits all rights and privileges of membership.

ARTICLE 30

The present English and French texts of these statutes are valid for any interpretation of their provisions.