Philosophers of Science

Philosophers Of Science

The philosophy of science is concerned with all the assumptions, foundations, methods, implications of science, and with the use and merit of science. This discipline sometimes overlaps metaphysics, ontology and epistemology, viz., when it explores whether scientific results comprise a study of truth. In addition to these central problems of science as a whole, many philosophers of science consider problems that apply to particular sciences (e.g. philosophy of biology or philosophy of physics). Some philosophers of science also use contemporary results in science to reach conclusions about philosophy.

Philosophy of science has historically been met with mixed response from the scientific community. Though scientists often contribute to the field, many prominent scientists have felt that the practical effect on their work is limited; a popular quote attributed to physicist Richard Feynman goes, "Philosophy of science is about as useful to scientists as ornithology is to birds." In response, some philosophers (e.g. Craig Callender) have suggested that ornithological knowledge would be of great benefit to birds, were it possible for them to possess it.

Read more about Philosophers Of Science:  Demarcation, Scientific Realism and Instrumentalism, Scientific Explanation, Analysis and Reductionism, Philosophy of Particular Sciences, Positivism and Social Science, Sociology, Anthropology and Economics of Science, Continental Philosophy of Science, See Also

Other articles related to "philosophers of science, of science, philosophers, science":

Philosophers Of Science - See Also - Related Topics
... Correlation Criticism of science Curve fitting Explanation Free will and determinism Philosophy of mathematics Philosophy of space and time Problem of ...
Scientific Theory - Descriptions of Theories - Philosophers of Science
... Several philosophers and historians of science have, however, argued that Popper's definition of theory as a set of falsifiable statements is wrong because, as Philip Kitcher has pointed ... Kitcher agrees with Popper that "There is surely something right in the idea that a science can succeed only if it can fail." He also says that scientific ... According to Kitcher, good scientific theories must have three features Unity "A science should be unified… ...

Famous quotes related to philosophers of science:

    Philosophers of science constantly discuss theories and representation of reality, but say almost nothing about experiment, technology, or the use of knowledge to alter the world. This is odd, because ‘experimental method’ used to be just another name for scientific method.... I hope [to] initiate a Back-to-Bacon movement, in which we attend more seriously to experimental science. Experimentation has a life of its own.
    Ian Hacking (b. 1936)