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From the 19th century the philosophy of science has been shaped by a group of influential figures. Who were they? Why do they matter? This introduction brings to life the most influential thinkers in the philosophy of science, uncovering how the field has developed over the last 200 years.
Taking up the subject from the time when some philosophers began to think of themselves not just as philosophers but as philosophers of science, a team of leading contemporary philosophers explain, criticize and honour the giants. Now updated and revised throughout, the second edition includes:
· Easy-to-follow overviews of pivotal thinkers including John Stuart Mill, Rudolf Carnap, Thomas Kuhn, Karl Popper, and many more
· Coverage of central issues such as experience and necessity, logical empiricism, falsifiability, paradigms, the sociology of science, realism, and feminist critiques
· An afterword looking ahead to emerging research trends
· Study questions and further reading lists at the end of each chapter
Philosophy of Science: The Key Thinkers demonstrates how the ideas and arguments of these figures laid the foundations of our understanding of modern science.
List of contents
Acknowledgements
Notes on Contributors
Preface
Introduction,
James Robert Brown (University of Toronto, Canada)1. Experience and Necessity: The Whewell and Mill Debate,
Laura Snyder (St. John's University, USA)2. Conventionalism: Poincaré, Duhem, Reichenbach,
Torsten Wilholt (
Leibniz Universität Hannover, Germany)3. The Vienna Circle: Moritz Schlick, Rudolf Carnap, Otto Neurath,
Friedrich Stadler (University of Vienna, Austria)4. Carl G. Hempel: Logical Empiricist,
Martin Curd (Purdue University, USA)5. Anti-Inductivism as Worldview: The Philosophy of Karl Popper,
Steve Fuller (University of Warwick, UK)6. Historical Approaches: Kuhn, Lakatos and Feyerabend,
Martin Carrier (Bielefeld University, Germany)7. The Contingency of the Causal Nexus: Ghazali and Modern Science,
Arun Bala (National University of Singapore, Singapore)8.Sociology of Science: Bloor, Collins, Latour,
Martin Kusch (University of Vienna, Austria)9. One Cannot Be Just a Little Bit Realist: Putnam and van Fraassen,
Stathis Psillos (University of Athens, Greece)10. Beyond Theories: Hacking and Cartwright,
William Seager (University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada)11. Feminist Critiques: Harding and Longino,
Janet Kourany (University of Notre Dame, USA)Afterword
Index
About the author
James Robert Brown is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Toronto, Canada.
Summary
From the 19th century the philosophy of science has been shaped by a group of influential figures. Who were they? Why do they matter? This introduction brings to life the most influential thinkers in the philosophy of science, uncovering how the field has developed over the last 200 years.
Taking up the subject from the time when some philosophers began to think of themselves not just as philosophers but as philosophers of science, a team of leading contemporary philosophers explain, criticize and honour the giants. Now updated and revised throughout, the second edition includes:
· Easy-to-follow overviews of pivotal thinkers including John Stuart Mill, Rudolf Carnap, Thomas Kuhn, Karl Popper, and many more
· Coverage of central issues such as experience and necessity, logical empiricism, falsifiability, paradigms, the sociology of science, realism, and feminist critiques
· An afterword looking ahead to emerging research trends
· Study questions and further reading lists at the end of each chapter
Philosophy of Science: The Key Thinkers demonstrates how the ideas and arguments of these figures laid the foundations of our understanding of modern science.
Additional text
In this classic introductory textbook, now at its second edition, Jim Brown brings together a stellar array of philosophers of science. Each chapter is organised around a central theme — from conventionalism to realism and feminist philosophy of science, among several others — and introduces some classic authors in the field. Study questions and Further Reading suggestions accompany each chapter. This book will continue to be an extremely valuable resource for students approaching the field for the first time and for anyone else wishing to have an introduction to philosophy of science.
