Understand Philosophy of Science a Teach Yourself Guide

✍ Scribed by Thompson, Mel R

• Publisher: McGraw-Hill
• Year: 2012
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 222
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Investigate the history of science

A modern understanding of the world is unthinkable without science, but what exactly is it? What does it mean to say that something is scientific? How are its results justified? From the genetic basis of life, to the structures of the universe and the atom, "Understand Philosophy of Science" explores how the key ideas that shape our world have been developed.
This book gives you a broad overview of the history of science in the West and the rise of modern science from the 17th century. It contains an in-depth exploration of the issues of science and authority and its social, political and economic contexts. This fully updated new edition covers recent developments including quantum theory and the mapping of the human genome.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover......Page 1
Book title......Page 4
Contents......Page 6
Meet the author......Page 8
In one minute......Page 9
1 Introduction to the philosophy of science......Page 12
Philosophers and scientists......Page 14
The role of the philosophy of science......Page 15
What this book examines......Page 18
2 The history of science......Page 22
Early Greek thinkers......Page 23
The medieval world-view......Page 27
The rise of modern science......Page 32
Nineteenth-century developments......Page 43
Relativity and thermodynamics......Page 49
The impact of quantum mechanics......Page 52
Genetics......Page 54
The digital revolution......Page 55
3 Reasoning and evidence......Page 60
Observation and objectivity......Page 61
Induction......Page 65
A mathematical universe......Page 73
Experiments......Page 75
Hypothesis and confirmation......Page 77
Abductive reasoning......Page 79
What counts as science?......Page 80
Background......Page 82
Falsification......Page 85
Certainty or quest?......Page 89
Paradigms and ‘normal science’......Page 92
Progress......Page 94
The status of scientific theories......Page 96
5 Realism, language and reductionism......Page 102
Reality and observation......Page 103
Language......Page 109
Reductionism and its implications......Page 114
6 Relativism, instrumentalism and relevance......Page 118
Theory-laden observations......Page 119
Instrumentalism......Page 124
Relevance......Page 126
Science and authority......Page 128
7 Predictability and determinism......Page 134
Predictability and determinism......Page 135
Probability......Page 141
Chaos and complexity......Page 146
8 The philosophy of biology......Page 152
Natural selection......Page 153
Causes and purposes......Page 156
The genetic basis of life......Page 158
Some implications of genetics......Page 161
9 Cosmology......Page 170
Dimensions and structures......Page 171
Towards a theory of everything......Page 178
The human perspective......Page 180
10 Science and humankind......Page 188
The human machine......Page 189
Human origins and evolution......Page 190
The status of social and psychological theories......Page 194
Cognitive science and neuroscience......Page 198
The social function of science......Page 202
Postscript......Page 212
Further reading......Page 215
L......Page 218
S......Page 219
W......Page 220
Index......Page 221

✦ Subjects

Philosophy;Nonfiction;Science