Philosophy of Science

This anthology of selections from the works of noted philosophers affords the student an immediate contact with the unique historical background of the philosophy of science. The selections many of which have not been readily accessible follow the development of the philosophy of science from 1786 to 1927. Each selection is preceded by a brief introduction by the editor designed to familiarize the reader with a particular philosopher and provide insights into his work. Joseph J. Kockelmans divides the selections into several sections. Part 1 from 17861850 includes chapters by Immanuel Kant on the metaphysical foundations of natural science John Frederick William Herschel on experience and the analysis of phenomena William Whewell on the nature and conditions of inductive science and John Stuart Mill on induction and the law of universal causation; part 2 from 18701899 includes chapters by Hermann Von Helmholtz on the origin and significance of geometrical axioms William Stanley Jevons on the philosophy of inductive inference John Bernard Stallo on the kinetic theory of gasses and the conditions of the validity of scientific hypotheses Ernst Mach on the economical nature of physical inquiry Karl Pearson on perceptual and conceptual space Emile Boutroux on mechanical laws Heinrich Hertz on the appropriateness correctness and permissibility of scientific theories and Ludwig Boltzmann on the fundamental principles and basic equations of mechanics. The third part covering the first decade of the twentieth century includes chapters by Henri Jules Poincare on science and reality Charles Peirce on Induction Pierre Marie Duhem on the laws of physics William Ostwald on energetism and mechanics Emile Meyerson on identity of thought and nature as the final goal of science Ernst Cassirer on functional concepts of natural science; part 4 from 19101927 includes chapters by Charles Dunbar Broad on phenomenalism Alfred North Whitehead on time space and material Bertrand Russell on the world of physics and the world of sense Norman Robert Cambbell on the meaning of science Moritz Schlick on basic issues of the philosophy of natural science and Percy Williams Bridgman on the concepts of space time and causality. Philosophy of Science provides a concise single volume text to the discipline and enables students to understand and evaluate the various trends in our contemporary philosophy of science. Joseph J. Kockelmans is professor emeritus of philosophy at the Pennsylvania State Univers . Language: English