Overview
- A fresh vision of the (as yet) unknown
- Well written and clearly structured investigation of how we arrive at secure scientific knowledge
- Stands out for its wide range of examples, beginning with physics but extending to neuroscience, ecology and economics
- Employs fuzzy logic and other methods developed in information science to handle uncertainty in science
- Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras
Part of the book series: The Frontiers Collection (FRONTCOLL)
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Table of contents (5 chapters)
Keywords
About this book
This book explores the limits of our knowledge. The author shows how uncertainty and indefiniteness not only define the borders confining our understanding, but how they feed into the process of discovery and help to push back these borders. Starting with physics the author collects examples from economics, neurophysiology, history, ecology and philosophy.
The first part shows how information helps to reduce indefiniteness. Understanding rests on our ability to find the right context, in which we localize a problem as a point in a network of connections. New elements must be combined with the old parts of the existing complex knowledge system, in order to profit maximally from the information. An attempt is made to quantify the value of information by its ability to reduce indefiniteness.
The second part explains how to handle indefiniteness with methods from fuzzy logic, decision theory, hermeneutics and semiotics. It is not sufficient that the new element appears in an experiment, one also has to find a theoretical reason for its existence. Indefiniteness becomes an engine of science, which gives rise to new ideas.
Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: The Unknown as an Engine for Science
Book Subtitle: An Essay on the Definite and the Indefinite
Authors: Hans J. Pirner
Series Title: The Frontiers Collection
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18509-5
Publisher: Springer Cham
eBook Packages: Physics and Astronomy, Physics and Astronomy (R0)
Copyright Information: Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2015
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-18508-8Published: 10 June 2015
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-38637-9Published: 17 October 2016
eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-18509-5Published: 28 May 2015
Series ISSN: 1612-3018
Series E-ISSN: 2197-6619
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XVII, 146
Number of Illustrations: 23 b/w illustrations
Topics: History and Philosophical Foundations of Physics, Philosophy of Science, Mathematical Logic and Foundations