Theory and Reality

Theory and Reality

Author: Peter Godfrey-Smith

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2021-07-16

Total Pages: 412

ISBN-13: 022677113X

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How does science work? Does it tell us what the world is “really” like? What makes it different from other ways of understanding the universe? In Theory and Reality, Peter Godfrey-Smith addresses these questions by taking the reader on a grand tour of more than a hundred years of debate about science. The result is a completely accessible introduction to the main themes of the philosophy of science. Examples and asides engage the beginning student, a glossary of terms explains key concepts, and suggestions for further reading are included at the end of each chapter. Like no other text in this field, Theory and Reality combines a survey of recent history of the philosophy of science with current key debates that any beginning scholar or critical reader can follow. The second edition is thoroughly updated and expanded by the author with a new chapter on truth, simplicity, and models in science.


Book Synopsis Theory and Reality by : Peter Godfrey-Smith

Download or read book Theory and Reality written by Peter Godfrey-Smith and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2021-07-16 with total page 412 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How does science work? Does it tell us what the world is “really” like? What makes it different from other ways of understanding the universe? In Theory and Reality, Peter Godfrey-Smith addresses these questions by taking the reader on a grand tour of more than a hundred years of debate about science. The result is a completely accessible introduction to the main themes of the philosophy of science. Examples and asides engage the beginning student, a glossary of terms explains key concepts, and suggestions for further reading are included at the end of each chapter. Like no other text in this field, Theory and Reality combines a survey of recent history of the philosophy of science with current key debates that any beginning scholar or critical reader can follow. The second edition is thoroughly updated and expanded by the author with a new chapter on truth, simplicity, and models in science.


Theory and Reality

Theory and Reality

Author: Peter Godfrey-Smith

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2009-12-11

Total Pages: 287

ISBN-13: 0226300617

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How does science work? Does it tell us what the world is "really" like? What makes it different from other ways of understanding the universe? In Theory and Reality, Peter Godfrey-Smith addresses these questions by taking the reader on a grand tour of one hundred years of debate about science. The result is a completely accessible introduction to the main themes of the philosophy of science. Intended for undergraduates and general readers with no prior background in philosophy, Theory and Reality covers logical positivism; the problems of induction and confirmation; Karl Popper's theory of science; Thomas Kuhn and "scientific revolutions"; the views of Imre Lakatos, Larry Laudan, and Paul Feyerabend; and challenges to the field from sociology of science, feminism, and science studies. The book then looks in more detail at some specific problems and theories, including scientific realism, the theory-ladeness of observation, scientific explanation, and Bayesianism. Finally, Godfrey-Smith defends a form of philosophical naturalism as the best way to solve the main problems in the field. Throughout the text he points out connections between philosophical debates and wider discussions about science in recent decades, such as the infamous "science wars." Examples and asides engage the beginning student; a glossary of terms explains key concepts; and suggestions for further reading are included at the end of each chapter. However, this is a textbook that doesn't feel like a textbook because it captures the historical drama of changes in how science has been conceived over the last one hundred years. Like no other text in this field, Theory and Reality combines a survey of recent history of the philosophy of science with current key debates in language that any beginning scholar or critical reader can follow.


Book Synopsis Theory and Reality by : Peter Godfrey-Smith

Download or read book Theory and Reality written by Peter Godfrey-Smith and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2009-12-11 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How does science work? Does it tell us what the world is "really" like? What makes it different from other ways of understanding the universe? In Theory and Reality, Peter Godfrey-Smith addresses these questions by taking the reader on a grand tour of one hundred years of debate about science. The result is a completely accessible introduction to the main themes of the philosophy of science. Intended for undergraduates and general readers with no prior background in philosophy, Theory and Reality covers logical positivism; the problems of induction and confirmation; Karl Popper's theory of science; Thomas Kuhn and "scientific revolutions"; the views of Imre Lakatos, Larry Laudan, and Paul Feyerabend; and challenges to the field from sociology of science, feminism, and science studies. The book then looks in more detail at some specific problems and theories, including scientific realism, the theory-ladeness of observation, scientific explanation, and Bayesianism. Finally, Godfrey-Smith defends a form of philosophical naturalism as the best way to solve the main problems in the field. Throughout the text he points out connections between philosophical debates and wider discussions about science in recent decades, such as the infamous "science wars." Examples and asides engage the beginning student; a glossary of terms explains key concepts; and suggestions for further reading are included at the end of each chapter. However, this is a textbook that doesn't feel like a textbook because it captures the historical drama of changes in how science has been conceived over the last one hundred years. Like no other text in this field, Theory and Reality combines a survey of recent history of the philosophy of science with current key debates in language that any beginning scholar or critical reader can follow.


Theory of Reality

Theory of Reality

Author: David O. Wiebers

Publisher:

Published: 2012

Total Pages: 199

ISBN-13: 9780985937522

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"The Theory of Reality combines key elements of neuroscience, physics and metaphysical science to provide critical evidence for existence beyond the brain with practical everyday application for increased compassion, effectiveness and higher understanding in your life. Discover worldview-changing evidence regarding the most basic and profound questions of humankind, and explore the fundamental fabrics of our universe and the purpose of our lives. Equip yourself with new knowledge and empowering tools and techniques designed to help you "put it all together" and chart your own spiritual adventure. Take control of your own life journey and allow inspiration, uncommon creativity and greater happiness to unfold."


Book Synopsis Theory of Reality by : David O. Wiebers

Download or read book Theory of Reality written by David O. Wiebers and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 199 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The Theory of Reality combines key elements of neuroscience, physics and metaphysical science to provide critical evidence for existence beyond the brain with practical everyday application for increased compassion, effectiveness and higher understanding in your life. Discover worldview-changing evidence regarding the most basic and profound questions of humankind, and explore the fundamental fabrics of our universe and the purpose of our lives. Equip yourself with new knowledge and empowering tools and techniques designed to help you "put it all together" and chart your own spiritual adventure. Take control of your own life journey and allow inspiration, uncommon creativity and greater happiness to unfold."


Theory and Reality in Public International Law

Theory and Reality in Public International Law

Author: Charles De Visscher

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 2015-12-08

Total Pages: 398

ISBN-13: 1400875021

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This edition of the work regarded as a modern classic in the field of international law corresponds to the third French edition in which the author updates his attempt "to increase the authority of international law by bringing back into it the values upon which it was founded." While this edition remains faithful to the ideas expounded in earlier versions, the author included new currents of thought in judicial practice and doctrine. These relate chiefly to the development of international organization, to the progress of codification, and to the decisions of the International Court of Justice. Originally published in 1968. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.


Book Synopsis Theory and Reality in Public International Law by : Charles De Visscher

Download or read book Theory and Reality in Public International Law written by Charles De Visscher and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2015-12-08 with total page 398 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This edition of the work regarded as a modern classic in the field of international law corresponds to the third French edition in which the author updates his attempt "to increase the authority of international law by bringing back into it the values upon which it was founded." While this edition remains faithful to the ideas expounded in earlier versions, the author included new currents of thought in judicial practice and doctrine. These relate chiefly to the development of international organization, to the progress of codification, and to the decisions of the International Court of Justice. Originally published in 1968. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.


The Truth of Science

The Truth of Science

Author: Roger G. Newton

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 286

ISBN-13: 9780674910928

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It's not a scientific truth that has come into question lately but the truth--the very notion of scientific truth. Bringing a reasonable voice to the culture wars that have sprung up around this notion, this book offers a clear and constructive response to those who contend, in parodies, polemics and op-ed pieces, that there really is no such thing as verifiable objective truth--without which there could be no such thing as scientific authority. A distinguished physicist with a rare gift for making the most complicated scientific ideas comprehensible, Roger Newton gives us a guided tour of the intellectual structure of physical science. From there he conducts us through the understanding of reality engendered by modern physics, the most theoretically advanced of the sciences. With its firsthand look at models, facts, and theories, intuition and imagination, the use of analogies and metaphors, the importance of mathematics (and now, computers), and the "virtual" reality of the physics of micro-particles, The Truth of Science truly is a practicing scientist's account of the foundations, processes, and value of science. To claims that science is a social construction, Newton answers with the working scientist's credo: "A body of assertions is true if it forms a coherent whole and works both in the external world and in our minds." The truth of science, for Newton, is nothing more or less than a relentless questioning of authority combined with a relentless striving for objectivity in the full awareness that the process never ends. With its lucid exposition of the ideals, methods, and goals of science, his book performs a great feat in service of this truth.


Book Synopsis The Truth of Science by : Roger G. Newton

Download or read book The Truth of Science written by Roger G. Newton and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 1997 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It's not a scientific truth that has come into question lately but the truth--the very notion of scientific truth. Bringing a reasonable voice to the culture wars that have sprung up around this notion, this book offers a clear and constructive response to those who contend, in parodies, polemics and op-ed pieces, that there really is no such thing as verifiable objective truth--without which there could be no such thing as scientific authority. A distinguished physicist with a rare gift for making the most complicated scientific ideas comprehensible, Roger Newton gives us a guided tour of the intellectual structure of physical science. From there he conducts us through the understanding of reality engendered by modern physics, the most theoretically advanced of the sciences. With its firsthand look at models, facts, and theories, intuition and imagination, the use of analogies and metaphors, the importance of mathematics (and now, computers), and the "virtual" reality of the physics of micro-particles, The Truth of Science truly is a practicing scientist's account of the foundations, processes, and value of science. To claims that science is a social construction, Newton answers with the working scientist's credo: "A body of assertions is true if it forms a coherent whole and works both in the external world and in our minds." The truth of science, for Newton, is nothing more or less than a relentless questioning of authority combined with a relentless striving for objectivity in the full awareness that the process never ends. With its lucid exposition of the ideals, methods, and goals of science, his book performs a great feat in service of this truth.


A Theory of Reality

A Theory of Reality

Author: George Trumbull Ladd

Publisher:

Published: 1899

Total Pages: 592

ISBN-13:

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Book Synopsis A Theory of Reality by : George Trumbull Ladd

Download or read book A Theory of Reality written by George Trumbull Ladd and published by . This book was released on 1899 with total page 592 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:


The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science

The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science

Author: Michael Strevens

Publisher: Liveright Publishing

Published: 2020-10-13

Total Pages: 368

ISBN-13: 1631491385

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“The Knowledge Machine is the most stunningly illuminating book of the last several decades regarding the all-important scientific enterprise.” —Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of Plato at the Googleplex A paradigm-shifting work, The Knowledge Machine revolutionizes our understanding of the origins and structure of science. • Why is science so powerful? • Why did it take so long—two thousand years after the invention of philosophy and mathematics—for the human race to start using science to learn the secrets of the universe? In a groundbreaking work that blends science, philosophy, and history, leading philosopher of science Michael Strevens answers these challenging questions, showing how science came about only once thinkers stumbled upon the astonishing idea that scientific breakthroughs could be accomplished by breaking the rules of logical argument. Like such classic works as Karl Popper’s The Logic of Scientific Discovery and Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, The Knowledge Machine grapples with the meaning and origins of science, using a plethora of vivid historical examples to demonstrate that scientists willfully ignore religion, theoretical beauty, and even philosophy to embrace a constricted code of argument whose very narrowness channels unprecedented energy into empirical observation and experimentation. Strevens calls this scientific code the iron rule of explanation, and reveals the way in which the rule, precisely because it is unreasonably close-minded, overcomes individual prejudices to lead humanity inexorably toward the secrets of nature. “With a mixture of philosophical and historical argument, and written in an engrossing style” (Alan Ryan), The Knowledge Machine provides captivating portraits of some of the greatest luminaries in science’s history, including Isaac Newton, the chief architect of modern science and its foundational theories of motion and gravitation; William Whewell, perhaps the greatest philosopher-scientist of the early nineteenth century; and Murray Gell-Mann, discoverer of the quark. Today, Strevens argues, in the face of threats from a changing climate and global pandemics, the idiosyncratic but highly effective scientific knowledge machine must be protected from politicians, commercial interests, and even scientists themselves who seek to open it up, to make it less narrow and more rational—and thus to undermine its devotedly empirical search for truth. Rich with illuminating and often delightfully quirky illustrations, The Knowledge Machine, written in a winningly accessible style that belies the import of its revisionist and groundbreaking concepts, radically reframes much of what we thought we knew about the origins of the modern world.


Book Synopsis The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science by : Michael Strevens

Download or read book The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science written by Michael Strevens and published by Liveright Publishing. This book was released on 2020-10-13 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “The Knowledge Machine is the most stunningly illuminating book of the last several decades regarding the all-important scientific enterprise.” —Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of Plato at the Googleplex A paradigm-shifting work, The Knowledge Machine revolutionizes our understanding of the origins and structure of science. • Why is science so powerful? • Why did it take so long—two thousand years after the invention of philosophy and mathematics—for the human race to start using science to learn the secrets of the universe? In a groundbreaking work that blends science, philosophy, and history, leading philosopher of science Michael Strevens answers these challenging questions, showing how science came about only once thinkers stumbled upon the astonishing idea that scientific breakthroughs could be accomplished by breaking the rules of logical argument. Like such classic works as Karl Popper’s The Logic of Scientific Discovery and Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, The Knowledge Machine grapples with the meaning and origins of science, using a plethora of vivid historical examples to demonstrate that scientists willfully ignore religion, theoretical beauty, and even philosophy to embrace a constricted code of argument whose very narrowness channels unprecedented energy into empirical observation and experimentation. Strevens calls this scientific code the iron rule of explanation, and reveals the way in which the rule, precisely because it is unreasonably close-minded, overcomes individual prejudices to lead humanity inexorably toward the secrets of nature. “With a mixture of philosophical and historical argument, and written in an engrossing style” (Alan Ryan), The Knowledge Machine provides captivating portraits of some of the greatest luminaries in science’s history, including Isaac Newton, the chief architect of modern science and its foundational theories of motion and gravitation; William Whewell, perhaps the greatest philosopher-scientist of the early nineteenth century; and Murray Gell-Mann, discoverer of the quark. Today, Strevens argues, in the face of threats from a changing climate and global pandemics, the idiosyncratic but highly effective scientific knowledge machine must be protected from politicians, commercial interests, and even scientists themselves who seek to open it up, to make it less narrow and more rational—and thus to undermine its devotedly empirical search for truth. Rich with illuminating and often delightfully quirky illustrations, The Knowledge Machine, written in a winningly accessible style that belies the import of its revisionist and groundbreaking concepts, radically reframes much of what we thought we knew about the origins of the modern world.


Theory of Reality

Theory of Reality

Author: Eli Mendoza

Publisher:

Published: 2021-04-26

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 9781636769257

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Welcome to Rosedale High. New halls, new classes, same old bullies. Meet Emily, a closeted trans teen ostracized both at school and in his own home. Now meet new-to-Rosedale Cole, a Hispanic freshman excited by the prospect of living in a more diverse area. In such a populated school, there is no reason for their paths to cross, until they find a common enemy in the ruthless and unrelenting school bully, Robert. With the help of an ally, it seems there may be light at the end of the tunnel for Emily and Cole, but how far will Robert go to ensure they remain in their place as outcasts? In this first volume of Theory of Reality, Mendoza builds multi-dimensional characters in a world that explores the intersection of identity, mental illness, and environment. For those who have ever felt alone and underrepresented, Emily and Cole are waiting for you in a heart-wrenching story meant to remind all readers that "although our diverse identities mean we experience things differently, trauma doesn't discriminate."


Book Synopsis Theory of Reality by : Eli Mendoza

Download or read book Theory of Reality written by Eli Mendoza and published by . This book was released on 2021-04-26 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Welcome to Rosedale High. New halls, new classes, same old bullies. Meet Emily, a closeted trans teen ostracized both at school and in his own home. Now meet new-to-Rosedale Cole, a Hispanic freshman excited by the prospect of living in a more diverse area. In such a populated school, there is no reason for their paths to cross, until they find a common enemy in the ruthless and unrelenting school bully, Robert. With the help of an ally, it seems there may be light at the end of the tunnel for Emily and Cole, but how far will Robert go to ensure they remain in their place as outcasts? In this first volume of Theory of Reality, Mendoza builds multi-dimensional characters in a world that explores the intersection of identity, mental illness, and environment. For those who have ever felt alone and underrepresented, Emily and Cole are waiting for you in a heart-wrenching story meant to remind all readers that "although our diverse identities mean we experience things differently, trauma doesn't discriminate."


The Road to Reality

The Road to Reality

Author: Roger Penrose

Publisher: Vintage

Published: 2021-06-09

Total Pages: 1136

ISBN-13: 0593315308

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**WINNER OF THE 2020 NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS** The Road to Reality is the most important and ambitious work of science for a generation. It provides nothing less than a comprehensive account of the physical universe and the essentials of its underlying mathematical theory. It assumes no particular specialist knowledge on the part of the reader, so that, for example, the early chapters give us the vital mathematical background to the physical theories explored later in the book. Roger Penrose's purpose is to describe as clearly as possible our present understanding of the universe and to convey a feeling for its deep beauty and philosophical implications, as well as its intricate logical interconnections. The Road to Reality is rarely less than challenging, but the book is leavened by vivid descriptive passages, as well as hundreds of hand-drawn diagrams. In a single work of colossal scope one of the world's greatest scientists has given us a complete and unrivalled guide to the glories of the universe that we all inhabit. 'Roger Penrose is the most important physicist to work in relativity theory except for Einstein. He is one of the very few people I've met in my life who, without reservation, I call a genius' Lee Smolin


Book Synopsis The Road to Reality by : Roger Penrose

Download or read book The Road to Reality written by Roger Penrose and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2021-06-09 with total page 1136 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: **WINNER OF THE 2020 NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS** The Road to Reality is the most important and ambitious work of science for a generation. It provides nothing less than a comprehensive account of the physical universe and the essentials of its underlying mathematical theory. It assumes no particular specialist knowledge on the part of the reader, so that, for example, the early chapters give us the vital mathematical background to the physical theories explored later in the book. Roger Penrose's purpose is to describe as clearly as possible our present understanding of the universe and to convey a feeling for its deep beauty and philosophical implications, as well as its intricate logical interconnections. The Road to Reality is rarely less than challenging, but the book is leavened by vivid descriptive passages, as well as hundreds of hand-drawn diagrams. In a single work of colossal scope one of the world's greatest scientists has given us a complete and unrivalled guide to the glories of the universe that we all inhabit. 'Roger Penrose is the most important physicist to work in relativity theory except for Einstein. He is one of the very few people I've met in my life who, without reservation, I call a genius' Lee Smolin


The Fabric of Reality

The Fabric of Reality

Author: David Deutsch

Publisher: Penguin UK

Published: 2011-04-14

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 014196961X

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An extraordinary and challenging synthesis of ideas uniting Quantum Theory, and the theories of Computation, Knowledge and Evolution, Deutsch's extraordinary book explores the deep connections between these strands which reveal the fabric of realityin which human actions and ideas play essential roles.


Book Synopsis The Fabric of Reality by : David Deutsch

Download or read book The Fabric of Reality written by David Deutsch and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2011-04-14 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An extraordinary and challenging synthesis of ideas uniting Quantum Theory, and the theories of Computation, Knowledge and Evolution, Deutsch's extraordinary book explores the deep connections between these strands which reveal the fabric of realityin which human actions and ideas play essential roles.