Philosophy of Science: A Contemporary Introduction PDF
Preview Philosophy of Science: A Contemporary Introduction
i Philosophy of Science Any serious student attempting to better understand the nature, methods, and justifica- tion of science will value Alex Rosenberg and Lee McIntyre’s updated and substantially revised fourth edition of Philosophy of Science: A Contemporary Introduction. Weaving lucid explanations with clear analyses, the volume is a much- used, thematically oriented introduction to the field. The fourth edition has been thoroughly rewritten based on instructor and student feedback, to improve readability and accessibility, without sacrificing depth. It retains, however, all of the logically structured, extensive coverage of earlier editions, which a review in the journal Teaching Philosophy called “the industry standard” and “essential reading.” Key Features of the Fourth Edition: • Revised and rewritten for readability based on feedback from student and instructor surveys. • Updated text on the problem of underdetermination, social science, and the realism/ antirealism debate. • Improved continuity between chapters. • Revised and updated Study Questions and annotated Suggested Readings at the end of each chapter. • Updated Bibliography. For a list of relevant online primary sources, please visit: www.routledge.com/ 9781138331518. Alex Rosenberg is R. Taylor Cole Professor and Chair in the Philosophy Department at Duke University. He is also co-d irector of Duke’s Center for Philosophy of Biology. Rosenberg has held fellowships from the National Science Foundation, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation. In 1993, Rosenberg received the Lakatos Award in the philosophy of science. Lee McIntyre is a Research Fellow at the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University. He is the author of Respecting Truth (2015); Post- Truth (2018); and The Scientific Attitude (2019). ii Routledge Contemporary Introductions to Philosophy Series editor: Paul K. Moser, Loyola University of Chicago This innovative, well- structured series is for students who have already done an introductory course in philosophy. Each book introduces a core general sub- ject in contemporary philosophy and offers students an accessible but substan- tial transition from introductory to higher-l evel college work in that subject. The series is accessible to non- specialists and each book clearly motivates and expounds the problems and positions introduced. An orientating chapter briefly introduces its topic and reminds readers of any crucial material they need to have retained from a typical introductory course. Considerable attention is given to explaining the central philosophical problems of a subject and the main com- peting solutions and arguments for those solutions. The primary aim is to edu- cate students in the main problems, positions and arguments of contemporary philosophy rather than to convince students of a single position. Recently Published Volumes: Virtue Ethics Liezl van Zyl Philosophy of Language 3rd Edition William G. Lycan Philosophy of Mind 4th Edition John Heil Philosophy of Science 4th Edition Alex Rosenberg and Lee McIntyre For a full list of published Routledge Contemporary Introductions to Philosophy, please visit www.routledge.com/ Routledge- Contemporary- Introductions- to- Philosophy/ book- series/ SE0111. iii Praise for Previous Editions “Sets the industry standard. This book is essential reading for any serious stu- dent of the philosophy of science. [...] Rosenberg provides a comprehensive, sophisticated presentation of the current state of the field, and yet it is clear enough to be accessible to students. Rosenberg’s text gets my highest recom- mendation for courses with students who are academically well prepared and motivated.” W. Russ Payne in Teaching Philosophy iv v Philosophy of Science A Contemporary Introduction Fourth Edition Alex Rosenberg and Lee McIntyre vi Fourth edition published 2020 by Routledge 52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017 and by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2020 Taylor & Francis The right of Alex Rosenberg and Lee McIntyre to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. First edition published by Routledge 2000 Third edition published by Routledge 2012 Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data Names: Rosenberg, Alexander, 1946– author. | McIntyre, Lee C., author. Title: Philosophy of science : a contemporary introduction / Alex Rosenberg and Lee McIntyre. Description: Fourth edition. | New York, NY : Routledge, 2020. | Includes bibliographical references and index. | Identifiers: LCCN 2019028291 (print) | LCCN 2019028292 (ebook) | ISBN 9781138331488 (hardback) | ISBN 9781138331518 (paperback) | ISBN 9780429447266 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Science–Philosophy. Classification: LCC Q175 .R5475 2020 (print) | LCC Q175 (ebook) | DDC 501–dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019028291 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019028292 ISBN: 978- 1- 138- 33148- 8 (hbk) ISBN: 978- 1- 138- 33151- 8 (pbk) ISBN: 978- 0- 429- 44726- 6 (ebk) Typeset in Times New Roman by Newgen Publishing UK Visit the eResources: www.routledge.com/ 9781138331518 vii Contents Preface to the Fourth Edition xiii 1 The Relationship between Philosophy and Science 1 This chapter is devoted to explaining and motivating topics central to the philosophy of science and the book’s approach to these topics. The chapter concludes with an overview of what lies ahead. Overview 1 What Is Philosophy? 2 Philosophy and the Emergence of the Sciences 3 Science and the Divisions of Philosophy 5 What If There Are No Questions Left Over when Science Is Finished? 6 A Short History of Philosophy as the Philosophy of Science 8 Summary 18 Study Questions 18 Suggested Readings 19 2 Why Is Philosophy of Science Important? 20 The differences between scientific questions and philosophical questions about science are explored. Science is an epistemic phenomenon with deep implications for philosophy, but philosophy can also help us to explore the epistemic and cultural aspects of science. Overview 20 Scientific Questions and Questions about Science 20 Modern Science Has Implications for Philosophy 23 The Cultural Significance of Science 29 Why Is Science the Only Feature of Western Culture Universally Adopted? 31 Summary 33 Study Questions 34 Suggested Readings 34 viii viii Contents 3 Scientific Explanation 36 Explanation is the backbone of science. This chapter explores whether the discovery of scientific laws is essential for this, or whether there are other (better) ways of understanding scientific explanation. Overview 36 Defining Scientific Explanation 37 The Role of Laws in Scientific Explanation 39 The Covering Law Model 41 Problems for the Covering Law Model 44 A Competing Conception of Scientific Explanation 49 Summary 53 Study Questions 54 Suggested Readings 54 4 Why Do Laws Explain? 56 If laws are an essential feature of scientific explanation, what are they? This chapter explores the strengths and weaknesses of various accounts, involving the notions of necessity and counterfactual conditionals. Overview 56 What Is a Law of Nature? 57 Counterfactual Support as a Symptom of the Necessity of Laws 58 Counterfactuals and Causation 60 Coming to Grips with Nomic Necessity 61 Denying the Obvious? 68 Summary 71 Study Questions 72 Suggested Readings 72 5 Causation, Inexact Laws, and Statistical Probabilities 74 The question of how to come to terms with the notion of causation is central to this chapter. Can a probabilistic/ statistical account help us to understand how it might be that there could be scientific laws based on something less than certainty? Overview 74 Causes as Explainers 75 Ceteris Paribus Laws 80 Statistical Laws and Probabilistic Causes 82 Explanation as Unification 86 Summary 87 Study Questions 88 Suggested Readings 88 ix Contents ix 6 Laws and Explanations in Biology and the “Special Sciences” 90 Scientific inquiry in biology and the social sciences presents a special challenge to the idea that explanations must involve laws. What aspects of explanation are necessary in the “special sciences”? Overview 90 Dissatisfaction with Causal Explanations 91 Proprietary Laws in the “Special Sciences” 93 Functional Laws and Biological Explanations 95 Explaining Purposes or Explaining Them Away? 99 From Intelligibility to Necessity 100 Summary 103 Study Questions 104 Suggested Readings 105 7 The Structure of Scientific Theories 106 The role of theories is a central topic in the philosophy of science. What are theories and how do they work? The example of Newtonian theory is explored here, and considered within Hempel’s hypothetico- deductive model. Overview 106 How Do Theories Work? The Example of Newtonian Mechanics 107 Theories as Explainers: The Hypothetico- Deductive Model 112 The Philosophical Significance of Newtonian Mechanics and Theories 118 Summary 123 Study Questions 123 Suggested Readings 124 8 Epistemic and Metaphysical Issues about Scientific Theories 125 The reduction of higher- level theories to more basic ones is a vexing issue for explanation. Can scientific explanations be given only in foundational terms? But what does this foundation consist of? This chapter also explores the problem of the ontological status of theoretical entities and its implications for the “realism/antirealism” debate in the philosophy of science. Overview 125 Reduction, Replacement, and the Progress of Science 126 The Problem of Theoretical Terms 133 Scientific Realism vs. Antirealism 140 Summary 147 Study Questions 148 Suggested Readings 149
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