Stephen G Brush

Making 20th Century Science

How Theories Became Knowledge

• Gebundenes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

A large-scale historical look at the implementation of the scientific method, and how scientific theories come to be accepted.

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Produktdetails

• Verlag: Oxford University Press
• Seitenzahl: 552
• Erscheinungstermin: 13. April 2015
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 237mm x 176mm x 41mm
• Gewicht: 916g
• ISBN-13: 9780199978151
• ISBN-10: 0199978158
• Artikelnr.: 47864767

Autorenporträt

Stephen G. Brush studied chemistry and physics (at Harvard and Oxford) and did research in theoretical physics at the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. His group at Livermore showed that a gas of electrons (ignoring quantum effects) could condense to a solid at low temperatures and high densities. Inspired by a graduate seminar with Thomas Kuhn at Harvard, he also conducted research in history of science, and switched to that field full-time in 1968. He has published historical works on the kinetic theory of gases, planetary physics, and other topics.

Inhaltsangabe

* Table of Contents
* Illustrations
* Preface
* PART I THE RECEPTION AND EVALUATION OF THEORIES IN THE SCIENCES
* Chapter I.1 Who Needs "The Scientific Method"?
* I.1.1 The Rings of Uranus
* I.1.2 Maxwell and Popper
* I.1.3 What is a "Prediction"? A Mercurial Definition
* I.1.4 Hierarchy and Demarcation
* I.1.5 What's Wrong with Quantum Mechanics?
* I.1.6 Was Chemistry (1865-1980) more scientific than Physics?
* Mendeleev's Periodic Law
* I.1.7 Scientific Chemists: Benzene and Molecular Orbitals
* I.1.8 The Unscientific (but very successful) method of Dirac and
Einstein:
* Can We Trust Experiments to Test Theories?
* I.1.9 Why was Bibhas De's paper rejected by Icarus?
* I.1.10 The Plurality of Scientific Methods
* Persons mentioned in this Chapter
* Chapter I.2 Reception Studies by Historians of Science
* I.2.1 What is "Reception"?
* I.2.2 The Copernican Heliocentric System
* I.2.3 Newton's Universal Gravity
* I.2.4 Darwin's Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection
* I.2.5 Bohr Model of the Atom
* I.2.6 Conclusions and Generalizations
* Persons mentioned in this Chapter
* Chapter I.3 The Role of Prediction-Testing in the Evaluation of
Theories:
* A Controversy in the Philosophy of Science
* I.3.1 Introduction
* I.3.2 Novelty in the Philosophy of Science
* I.3.3 What is a Prediction? (Revisited)
* I.3.4 Does Novelty Make a Difference?
* I.3.5 Evidence from case histories
* I.3.6 Are Theorists less trustworthy than Observers?
* I.3.7 The Fallacy of Falsifiability: Even the Supreme Court was
Fooled
* I.3.8 Conclusions
* Persons mentioned in this chapter
* Chapter I.4 The Rise and Fall of Social Constructionism 1975-2000
* I.4.1 The Problem of defining "Science and Technology Studies"
* I.4.2 The Rise of Social Constructionism
* I.4.3 The Fall of Social Constructionism
* I.4.4 Post Mortem
* I.4.5 Consequences for "Science Studies"
* Persons mentioned in this Chapter
* PART II ATOMS, MOLECULES, AND PARTICLES
* Chapter II.1. Mendeleev's Periodic Law
* II.1.1 Mendeleev and the Periodic Law
* II.1.2 Novel Predictions
* II.1.3 Mendeleev's Predictions
* II.1.4 Reception by Whom?
* II.1.5 Tests of Mendeleev's Predictions
* II.1.6 Before the Discovery of Gallium
* II.1.7 The Impact of Gallium and Scandium
* II.1.8 The Limited Value of Novel Predictions
* II.1.9 Implications of the Law
* II.1.10 Conclusions
* Persons mentioned in this chapter
* Chapter II.2 The Benzene Problem 1865-1930
* II.2.1 Kekulé's Theory
* II.2.2 The first Tests of Kekulé's Theory
* II.2.3 Alternative Hypotheses
* II.2.4 Reception of Benzene Theories 1866-1880
* II.2.5 New Experiments, New Theories 1881-1900
* II.2.6 The Failure of Aromatic Empiricism 1901-1930
* Persons mentioned in this Chapter
* Chapter II.3 The Light Quantum Hypothesis
* II.3.1 Black-Body Radiation
* II.3.2 Planck's Theory
* II.3.3 Formulation of the Light-Quantum Hypothesis
* II.3.4 The Wave Theory of Light
* II.3.5 Einstein's "Heuristic Viewpoint"
* II.3.6 What did Millikan Prove?
* II.3.7 The Compton Effect
* II.3.8 Reception of Neo-Newtonian Optics before 1923
* II.3.9 The Impact of Compton's Discovery
* II.3.10 Rupp's Fraudulent Experiments
* II.3.11 Conclusions
* Persons Mentioned in this Chapter
* Chapter II.4 Quantum Mechanics
* II.4.1 The Bohr Model
* II.4.2 The Wave Nature of Matter
* II.4.3 Schrödinger's Wave Mechanics
* II.4.4 The Exclusion Principle, Spin, and the Electronic Structure of
Atoms
* II.4.5 Bose-Einstein Statistics
* II.4.6 Fermi-Dirac Statistics
* II.4.7 Initial Reception of Quantum Mechanics
* II.4.8 The Community is Converted
* II.4.9 Novel Predictions of Quantum Mechanics
* II.4.10 The Helium Atom
* II.4.11 Reasons for accepting Quantum Mechanics after 1928
* Persons mentioned in this Chapter
* II. 5 New Particles
* II.5.1 Dirac's Prediction and Anderson's Discovery of the Positron
* II.5.2 The Reception of Dirac's Theory
* II.5.3 The Transformation of Dirac's Theory
* II.5.4 Yukawa's Theory of Nuclear Forces
* II.5.5 Discovery of the Muon and Reception of Yukawa's Theory
* II.5.6 The Transformation of the Yukon
* II.5.7 Conclusions
* Persons Mentioned in this Chapter
* Chapter II.6 Benzene and Molecular Orbitals 1931-1980
* II.6.1 Resonance, Mesomerism, and the Mule 1931-1945
* II.6.2 Reception of Quantum Theories of Benzene 1932-1940
* II.6.3 Chemical Proof of Kekulé's Theory
* II.6.4 Anti-Resonance and the Rhinoceros
* II.6.5 The Shift to Molecular Orbitals after 1950
* II.6.6 Aromaticity
* II.6.7 The Revival of Predictive Chemistry
* II.6.8 Reception of Molecular Orbital Theory by Organic Chemists
* II.6.9 Adoption of MO in Textbooks
* II.6.10 A 1996 Survey
* II.6.11 Conclusions
* Persons Mentioned in this Chapter
* PART III SPACE AND TIME
* Chapter III.1. Relativity
* III.1.1 The Special Theory of Relativity
* III.1.2 General Theory of Relativity
* III.1.3 Empirical Predictions and Explanations
* III.1.4 Social-Psychological Factors
* III.1.5 Aesthetic-Mathematical Factors
* III.1.6 Early Reception of Relativity
* III.1.7 Do Scientists Give Extra Credit for Novelty? The Case of
* Gravitational Light Bending
* III.1.8 Are Theorists less Trustworthy than Observers?
* III.1.9 Mathematical/Aesthertic Reasons for Accepting Relativity
* III.1.10 Social-Psychological Reasons for Accepting Relativity
* III.1.11 A Statistical Summary of Comparative Reception
* III.1.12 Conclusions
* Persons Mentioned in this Chapter
* Chapter III.2. Big Bang Cosmology
* III.2.1 The Expanding Universe is Proposed
* III.2.2 The Age of the Earth
* III.2.3 The Context for the Debate: Four "New Sciences"
* and One Shared Memory
* III.2.4 Cosmology Constrained by Terrestrial Time
* III.2.5 Hubble Doubts the Expanding Universe
* III.2.6 A Radical Solution: Steady-State Cosmology
* III.2.7 Astronomy Blinks: Slowing the Expansion
* III.2.8 Lemaître's Primeval Atom and Gamow's Big Bang
* III.2.9 Arguments for Steady State Weaken
* III.2.10 The Temperature of Space
* III.2.11 Discovery of the Cosmic Microwave Background
* III.2.12 Impact of the Discovery on Cosmologists
* III.2.13 Credit for the Prediction
* III.2.14 Conclusions
* Persons mentioned in this Chapter
* PART IV HEREDITY AND EVOLUTION
* Chapter IV.1 Morgan's Chromosome Theory
* IV.1.1 Introduction
* IV.1.2 Is Biology like (Hypothetico-Deductive) Physics?
* IV.1.3 Precursors
* IV.1.4 Morgan's Theory
* IV.1.5 The Problem of Universality
* IV.1.6 Morgan's Theory in Research Journals
* IV.1.7 Important Early Supporters
* IV.1.8 Bateson and the Morgan Theory in Britain
* IV.1.9 The Problem of Universality Revisited
* IV.1.10 Books and Review Articles on Genetics, Evolution and Cytology
* IV.1.11 Biology Textbooks
* IV.1.12 Age Distribution of Supporters and Opponents
* IV.1.13 Conclusions
* Persons mentioned in this Chapter
* Chapter IV.2 The Revival of Natural Selection 1930-1970
* IV.2.1 Introduction
* IV.2.2 Fisher: A new Language for Evolutionary Research
* IV.2.3 Wright: Random Genetic Drift, A Concept Out of Control
* IV.2.4 Haldane: A Mathematical-Philosophical Biologist Weighs in
* IV.2.5 Early Reception of the Theory
* IV.2.6 Dobzhansky: The Faraday of Biology?
* IV.2.7 Evidence for Natural Selection, before 1941
* IV.2.8 Huxley: A New Synthesis is Proclaimed
* IV.2.9 Mayr: Systematics and the Founder Principle
* IV.2.10 Simpson: No Straight and Narrow Path for Paleontology
* IV.2.11 Stebbins: Plants are also Selected
* IV.2.12 Chromosome Inversions in Drosophila
* IV.2.13 Ford: Unlucky Blood Groups
* IV.2.14 Resistance to Antibiotics
* IV.2.15 Two "Great Debates": Snails and Tiger Moths
* IV.2.16 Selection and/or Drift? The Changing Views of Dobzhansky and
Wright
* IV.2.17 The Views of other Founders and Leaders
* IV.2.18 The Peppered Moth
* IV.2.19 The Triumph of Natural Selection?
* IV.2.20 Results of a Survey of Biological Publications
* IV.2.21 Is Evolutionary Theory Scientific?
* IV.2.22 Context and Conclusions
* Persons mentioned in this Chapter
* PART V CONCLUSIONS
* Chapter V.1 Which Works Faster: Prediction or Explanation?
* V.1.1 Comparison of Cases Presented in this Book
* V.1.2 From Princip to Principe
* V.1.3 Can Explanation be Better than Prediction?
* V.1.4 Special Theory of Relativity: Explaining "Nothing"
* V.1.5 The Old Quantum theory: Many Things are Predicted, but Few are
Explained
* V.1.6 Quantum Mechanics: Many Things are Explained, Predictions are
Confirmed too late
* V.1.7 Millikan's Walk
* Notes for Part I
* Notes for Part II
* Notes for Part III
* Notes for Part IV
* Notes for Part V
* Selected Bibliography: Includes works cited more than once in a
chapter
* Index