The Nature of Science

Integrating Historical, Philosophical, and Sociological Perspectives

By (author) Fernando Espinoza

Not available to order

Publication date:

16 October 2011

Length of book:

184 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9781442209534

The role of science in society, along with its nature and development, are commonly misunderstood by students in the social sciences and humanities, and even those studying in the field. Fernando Espinoza shines light on these misconceptions to give readers a deeper understanding of science and its effect and influence upon society, through historical, philosophical, and sociological perspectives. This book incorporates the mandates by national organizations such as the National Research Council and National Science Teachers Association and is a useful text for required courses of general education majors and science courses for preservice teachers.

Preface
Introduction
Chapter 1: The Need for Scientific Literacy
Chapter 2: The Origins of Accomplishing Tasks: From Individual to Organized Efforts
Chapter 3: The Earliest Comprehensive and Rationalistic Syntheses
Chapter 4: Knowing, Doing and the Inevitability of Curiosity and Exploration
Chapter 5: From the Transcendent to the Temporal - A Transformative Experience
Chapter 6: From Qualities to Quantities: The Mathematization of Nature
Chapter 7: Internalizing Naturalistic Explanations: Benefit or Threat?
Chapter 8: Dispensing with Philosophy and Entertaining Limits to Human Knowledge
Chapter 9: Scientifically Speaking, We Know a Lot—or Do We?
Chapter 10: The Need for a Context
Chapter 11: The Rightful Place of Science in Society
Chapter 12: Concluding Reflections
Appendices
Notes
Index
About the Author

The book offers a timely reminder of the tremendous advance in and limitations of science's grasp of reality. The author shows how the teaching of science needs to be aware of the historical, philosophical, and sociological contexts of scientific practice. Especially informative is the author's discussion of how to understand the role of mathematics in modern science's encounter with the world. The book will serve as a useful guide for science teachers.