What is science? : an interdisciplinary view / Klaus Jaffe.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Jaffe, Klaus.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Science--Philosophy.

Science.

Physical Description:

xii, 104 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Lanham, Md. : University Press of America, [2010]

Summary:

In What is Science?, Jaffe seeks to define science conceptually. Understanding our environment and ourselves is and has been the most important intellectual activity of mankind. It was only after the emergence of the empirical science (i.e. experiment philosophy) that humanity achieved accelerated social, economic, and technological progress. The emergence of science made possible the industrial revolution and the development of a multitude of scientific disciplines, all very successful in advancing our understanding of the world and of ourselves. What is the key that makes science more efficient in advancing our knowledge than any other heuristics?

Contents:

1 The Ascent of Homo sapiens scientiarum 1

Negentropic Process of Evolution: A World for the Lucky 1

Natural History of Science 3

Creativity and Imagination 6

Origins of Knowledge: The Drive to Know 8

Emergence and Evolution of the Human Mind 10

Evolution of Rationality: The Modeling Mind 13

The Limits of Perception and Thought 16

Philosophy of Science 17

Paradigm Shifts 18

2 The Ascent of Empirical Science 22

The Roots of Logic 22

Induction, Deduction, and Rational Thought 23

Levels of The Knowable 25

Defining Science 27

Arrogance May Lead to Ignorance 29

The Experiment and Scientific Observation 32

Technology 34

Elements of Science: Observation, Descriptions, Modeling, and Communication 35

Limits of Scientists, Science, and Its Applications 36

3 Modern Science 39

On the Multidimensionality of Reality 39

Science of Complexity 43

The Interdisciplinary Perspective 44

Consilience 46

Simulations and Models 51

The Emergence of Meta-Science 55

Studying Social Dynamics 57

From Individual Consciousness to Social Knowledge 58

Future Questions for Metascience 60

4 What Science Is Not 63

What Characterizes Pseudoscience? 65

The Art of Charlatanry 67

The Limits of Reason 68

How Is Science Done with a Faulty Mind? 71

Intuition, Reductionism, and Synthetic Generalizations 71

5 Science and Society 73

The Impact of Science on Human Society 73

Modern Science, Society, and Economic Growth 79

Science and Art 83

Science and Ethics 84

The Social Sciences and the Excesses of Positivism 86

6 The Dangers Ahead 89

Neg-enthalping 89

Dogma, Myths, and Religions 90

Other Enemies of Scientific Progress 94

Meritocracy vs. Democracy 96

Patents, Creativity, and a Scientific Attitude 100

7 Natural Selection and the Scientific Method 102.

ISBN:

9780761846741

0761846743

9780761846734

0761846735

OCLC:

351307278