The evolution of science through the ages has often been marred by people's misconceptions. From pre-historic times, when myths played a major role in people's lives, to present-day debates concerning the environment, people have sought ways to explain the world around them and have often come up with incorrect answers. Science has grown through the correction of these misconceptions. This unique reference source can be used by students, teachers, and other interested researchers to explore this growth as it pertains to both the field of science and the process of scientific experimentation. Readers will discover how misunderstandings led to further experimentation and eventually to scientific facts. These "false paths" to scientific knowledge are not treated as deliberate misconduct, but rather as a lack of knowledge and a misunderstanding of the science and technology involved, both of which were sooner or later corrected by men and women of science. Krebs explores the conception and development of scientific thought in five different fields: Medicine and Health; Life Science; Chemistry and Physics; Astrology, Astronomy, and Cosmology; and Conservation, Ecology, and Environmentalism. Within each of these categories, he explores more specific areas, such as the circulatory system, geology, and inner planets. This arrangement provides easy access for the researcher interested in a particular area of science as well as those looking for general information, illuminating how our modern understanding of science is based on much of the developments in our ancient past.

This book traces the evolution of our understanding and utilization of light from classical antiquity and the early thoughts of Pythagoras to the present time. From the earliest recorded theories and experiments to the latest applications in photonic communication and computation, the ways in which light has been put to use are numerous and astounding. Indeed, some of the latest advances in light science are in fields that until recently belonged to the realm of science fiction. The author, writing for an audience of both students and other scientifically interested readers, describes fundamental investigations of the nature of light and ongoing methods to measure its speed as well as the emergence of the wave theory of light and the complementary photon theory. The importance of light in the theory of relativity is discussed as is the development of electrically-driven light sources and lasers. The information here covers the range o f weak single-photon light sources to super-high power lasers and synchrotron light sources. Many cutting-edge topics are also introduced, including entanglement-based quantum communication through optical fibers and free space, quantum teleportation, and quantum computing. The nature and use of "squeezed light" - e.g. for gravitational wave detection - is another fascinating excursion, as is the topic of fabricated metamaterials, as used to create invisibility cloaks. Here the reader also learns about the realization of extremely slow speed and time-reversed light. The theories, experiments, and applications described in this book are, whenever possible, derived from original references. The many annotated drawings and level of detail make clear the goals, procedures, and conclusions of the original investigators. Where they are required, all specialist terms and mathematical symbols are defined and explained. The final part of the book covers light expe riments in the free space of the cosmos, and also speculates about scenarios for the cosmological origins of light and the expected fate of the photon in a dying universe.

This book examines the relationship between medicine and the media in 1960s Britain, when the first wave of heart transplants were as much media as medical events and marked a decisive period in post-war history. Public trust in their doctors was significantly undermined, and medicine was held publicly to account as never before.

This book examines the latest manifestations of resource competition. The energy transition and the digitalization of the global economy are both accelerating even as geopolitics driven by Sino-American hyper-competition become increasingly contentious. The volume brings together an interdisciplinary group of scholars, policy makers, institutional stakeholders, and industry experts to analyze not only the transition itself, but also the implications that the need for uninterrupted access to unprecedented levels of raw materials generates. By framing the challenges ahead for global society, governance, industry, international power politics, and the environment, the book asks hard questions about the choices that need to be made to reach net zero by mid-century. Moreover, it sheds light on different facets of the growing risks to what have been global interdependent supply chains in a way that is nuanced, balanced, and practical, thus pushing back on some of the most sensational headlines that breed confusion and may lead policymakers to make more narrow and less effective decisions. The volume is an outcome of "Rich Rocks, the Climate Crisis and the Tech-imperium" a Summer Institute at Caltech and the Huntington that took place in July 2021.

The authors' novel approach to some interesting mathematical concepts - not normally taught in other courses - places them in a historical and philosophical setting. Although primarily intended for mathematics undergraduates, the book will also appeal to students in the sciences, humanities and education with a strong interest in this subject. The first part proceeds from about 1800 BC to 1800 AD, discussing, for example, the Renaissance method for solving cubic and quartic equations and providing rigorous elementary proof that certain geometrical problems posed by the ancient Greeks cannot be solved by ruler and compass alone. The second part presents some fundamental topics of interest from the past two centuries, including proof of G del's incompleteness theorem, together with a discussion of its implications.

Sinceits founding by Jacques Waardenburg in 1971, Religion and Reason has been a leading forum for contributions on theories, theoretical issues and agendas related to the phenomenon and the study of religion. Topics include (among others) category formation, comparison, ethnophilosophy, hermeneutics, methodology, myth, phenomenology, philosophy of science, scientific atheism, structuralism, and theories of religion. From time to time the series publishes volumes that map the state of the art and the history of the discipline.

Since its founding by Jacques Waardenburg in 1971, Religion and Reason has been a leading forum for contributions on theories, theoretical issues and agendas related to the phenomenon and the study of religion. Topics include (among others) category formation, comparison, ethnophilosophy, hermeneutics, methodology, myth, phenomenology, philosophy of science, scientific atheism, structuralism, and theories of religion. From time to time the series publishes volumes that map the state of the art and the history of the discipline.

This book reflects on the various ways in which intelligence can manifest itself in the wide range of diverse contexts in which people live. Intelligence is often viewed as being tantamount to a score or set of scores on a decontextualized standardized intelligence test. But intelligence always acts within a sociocultural context. Indeed, early theorists defined intelligence in terms of adaptation to the environment in which one lives. The tradition of decontextualization is old, dating back to the very beginning of the 20th century with the development of the Binet-Simon Intelligence Scales. This tradition is not only old, however, but obsolete. Because people live in different sociocultural as well as physical environments, intelligence can take somewhat different forms in different places and even at different times. The chapters in this edited volume show that intelligence viewed in the abstract is a somewhat vacuous concept - it needs to be contextualized in terms of people's physical and sociocultural surroundings.

This book examines the ways in which studies of science intertwined with Cold War politics, in both familiar and less familiar "battlefields" of the Cold War. Taken together, the essays highlight two primary roles for science studies as a new field of expertise institutionalized during the Cold War in different political regimes. Firstly, science studies played a political role in cultural Cold War in sustaining as well as destabilizing political ideologies in different political and national contexts. Secondly, it was an instrument of science policies in the early Cold War: the studies of science were promoted as the underpinning for the national policies framed with regard to both global geopolitics and local national priorities. As this book demonstrates, however, the wider we cast our net, extending our histories beyond the more researched developments in the Anglophone West, the more complex and ambivalent both the "science studies" and "the Cold War" become outside these more familiar spaces. The national stories collected in this book may appear incommensurable with what we know as science studies today, but these stories present a vantage point from which to pluralize some of the visions that were constitutive to the construction of "Cold War" as a juxtaposition of the liberal democracies in the "West" and the communist "East."

The critically acclaimed laboratory standard, Methods in Enzymology, is one of the most highly respected publications in the field of biochemistry. Since 1955, each volume has been eagerly awaited, frequently consulted, and praised by researchers and reviewers alike. The series contains much material still relevant today - truly an essential publication for researchers in all fields of life sciences.

In this monograph, Steffen Ducheyne provides a historically detailed and systematically rich explication of Newton's methodology. Throughout the pages of this book, it will be shown that Newton developed a complex natural-philosophical methodology which encompasses procedures to minimize inductive risk during the process of theory formation and which, thereby, surpasses a standard hypothetico-deductive methodological setting. Accordingly, it will be highlighted that the so-called 'Newtonian Revolution' was not restricted to the empirical and theoretical dimensions of science, but applied equally to the methodological dimension of science. Furthermore, it will be documented that Newton's methodology was far from static and that it developed alongside with his scientific work. Attention will be paid not only to the successes of Newton's innovative methodology, but equally to its tensions and limitations. Based on a thorough study of Newton's extant manuscripts, this monograph will address and contextualize, inter alia, Newton's causal realism, his views on action at a distance and space and time, the status of efficient causation in the /Principia/, the different phases of his methodology, his treatment of force and the constituents of the physico-mathematical models in the context of Book I of the /Principia/, the analytic part of the argument for universal gravitation, the meaning and significance of his regulae philosophandi, the methodological differences between his mechanical and optical work, and, finally, the interplay between Newton's theology and his natural philosophy.

This book examines the textual, social, cultural, practical and institutional environments to which the expression "teaching and learning contexts" refers. It reflects on the extent to which studying such environments helps us to better understand ancient or modern sources, and how notions of "teaching" and "learning" are to be understood.
Tackling two problems: the first, is that of certain sources of scientific knowledge being studied without taking into account the various "contexts" of transmission that gave this knowledge a long-lasting meaning.

The second is that other sources are related to teaching and learning activities, but without being too precise and demonstrative about the existence and nature of this "teaching context." In other words, this book makes clear what is meant by "context" and highlights the complexity of the practice hidden by the words "teaching" and "learning." Divided into three parts, the book makes accessible teaching and learning situations, presents comparatist approaches, and emphasizes the notion of teaching as projects embedded in coherent treatises or productions.

The series Religion and Society (RS) contributes to the exploration of religions as social systems- both in Western and non-Western societies; in particular, it examines religions in their differentiation from, and intersection with, other cultural systems, such as art, economy, law and politics. Due attention is given to paradigmatic case or comparative studies that exhibit a clear theoretical orientation with the empirical and historical data of religion and such aspects of religion as ritual, the religious imagination, constructions of tradition, iconography, or media. In addition, the formation of religious communities, their construction of identity, and their relation to society and the wider public are key issues of this series.

Sinceits founding by Jacques Waardenburg in 1971, Religion and Reason has been a leading forum for contributions on theories, theoretical issues and agendas related to the phenomenon and the study of religion. Topics include (among others) category formation, comparison, ethnophilosophy, hermeneutics, methodology, myth, phenomenology, philosophy of science, scientific atheism, structuralism, and theories of religion. From time to time the series publishes volumes that map the state of the art and the history of the discipline.

Originally published in 1935. J G Crowther has chosen five of the greatest scientists of the nineteenth century - Davy, Faraday, Clerk-Maxwell, Joule, Lord Kelvin and examines every aspect of their lives and work. Nineteenth century science appears in a different light from that in which its contemporaries regarded it, and Crowther shows that it is now possible to judge which were the most important discoveries, which the most significant personalities of the period; and how the passage of time has revealed many unsuspected connections between a scientist's discoveries and the social life and industry of his day.

Originally published in 1952. Following on from British Scientists of the Nineteenth Century, this volume covers six eminent British scientists whose work and personality have not receded into the same depth of perspective as their predecessors of the Nineteenth Century, but the tremendous changes following the two world wars have already cut them off sharply from this generation. Crowther concludes that these six scientists arose out of various phases of capitalist development and imperialism.

Originally published in 1983.This volume outlines some of the important innovations in astronomy, natural philosophy and medicine which took place in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and shows how the transformation in world-view during the period was affected by broader historical terms. Themes such as the spread of Puritanism, the decline of witchcraft and magic, and the incorporation of science as an integral part of the intellectual milieu of late seventeenth-century England.

Learned societies, such as the Royal Society of London and the Dublin Philosophical Society were a central feature of the scientific revolution of the seventeenth century. This volume shows that a study of the work and membership of these groups is essential before any realistic assessment can be made of the scientific world at this time. Based on a wide range of manuscript and other sources, this book illuminates, by means of an examination of a particular group of natural philosophers, on problems of general interest to all those concerned with the wider aspects of science in this period.

Originally published in 1967. The origin of the Royal Society has long been obscured by baffling discrepancies in the evidence. This volume investigates its underlying purpose and creation, at the same time uncovering the real nature of its debt to Francis Bacon and its role in the scientific revolution of the seventeenth century.

History and Philosophy of Science reprints a distinguished selection of important texts published in this field over the last century. This set presents a unique opportunity to gain comprehensive coverage of all aspects of the history and philosophy of science. It covers all major fields of scientific thought throughout history from Physics, Biology, and Cosmology to ESP and Alchemy. It includes texts on all the great historical scientific figures including Darwin, Copernicus, Archimedes and Hooker and covers all main themes in science taking in creation, evolution, the development of scientific methodology and the future of science. For further information on this collection please email [email protected].

Sinceits founding by Jacques Waardenburg in 1971, Religion and Reason has been a leading forum for contributions on theories, theoretical issues and agendas related to the phenomenon and the study of religion. Topics include (among others) category formation, comparison, ethnophilosophy, hermeneutics, methodology, myth, phenomenology, philosophy of science, scientific atheism, structuralism, and theories of religion. From time to time the series publishes volumes that map the state of the art and the history of the discipline.

This anthology opens new perspectives in the domain of history, philosophy, and science teaching research. Its four sections are: first, science, culture and education; second, the teaching and learning of science; third, curriculum development and justification; and fourth, indoctrination. The first group of essays deal with the neglected topic of science education and the Enlightenment tradition. These essays show that many core commitments of modern science education have their roots in this tradition, and consequently all can benefit from a more informed awareness of its strengths and weaknesses. Other essays address research on leaning and teaching from the perspectives of social epistemology and educational psychology. Included here is the first ever English translation of Ernst Mach's most influential 1890 paper on 'The Psychological and Logical Moment in Natural Science Teaching'. This paper launched the influential Machian tradition in education. Other essays address concrete cases of the utilisation of history and philosophy in the development and justification of school science curricula. These are instances of the supportive relation of HPS&ST research to curriculum theorising. Finally, two essays address the topic of Indoctrination in science education; a subject long-discussed in philosophy of education, but inadequately in science education. This book is a timely reminder of why history and philosophy of science are urgently needed to support understanding of science. From major traditions such as the Enlightenment to the tensions around cultural studies of science, the book provides a comprehensive context for the scientific endeavour, drawing on curriculum and instructional examples. Sibel Erduran, University of Oxford, UK The scholarship that each of the authors in this volume offers deepens our understanding of what we teach in science and why that understanding matters. This is an important book exploring a wide set of issues and should be read by anyone with an interest in science or science education. Jonathan Osborne, Stanford University, USA This volume presents new and updated perspectives in the field, such as the Enlightenment Tradition, Cultural Studies, Indoctrination in Science Education, and Nature of Science. Highly recommended. Mansoor Niaz, Universidad de Oriente, Venezuela This volume provides an extremely valuable set of insights into educational issues related to the history and philosophy of science. Michael J Reiss, University College London, UK

This book sheds new light on the biographical approach in the history of physics by including the biographies of scientific objects, institutions, and concepts. What is a biography? Can biographies also be written for non-human subjects like scientific instruments, institutions or concepts? The respective chapters of this book discuss these controversial questions using examples from the history of physics. By approaching biography as metaphor, it transcends the boundaries between various perspectives on the history of physics, and enriches our grasp of the past.