Chemical discovery and the logicians' program : a problematic pairing / Jerome A. Berson.
| Author/creator | Berson, Jerome A. |
| Format | Book |
| Publication Info | Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2003. |
| Description | xiii, 194 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm |
| Supplemental Content | Table of contents |
| Supplemental Content | Publisher description |
| Supplemental Content | Contributor biographical information |
| Supplemental Content | Cover |
| Supplemental Content | Table of contents |
| Subjects |
| Contents | 1. Introduction -- 2. Theories Built Up From Observations, The Inductivist Ideal -- 3. Theories from Anywhere: Popper's Philosophy of Conjectures and Refutations -- 4. Refutation by Internal Contradiction. Kekule's "Hypothesis of Embarrassment" and the Theory of Benzene -- 5. Are Crucial Experiments Conclusive? Refutations: Permanent, Temporary, and Virtual -- 6. Farewell to Stasis, Welcome to Metamorphosis: Refutation of Kekule's Rule of Minimal Structural Change in the Discovery of Molecular Rearrangements -- 7. Some Non-Refutative Motivations in Science -- 8. False but Nevertheless Fruitful Theories, Speculations on the Biogenesis of Alkaloids -- 9. Epilogue. |
| Abstract | What is it that turns a new observation into a true scientific discovery? And who may claim the credit? Theoreticians of science, the foremost thinkers of their times among them, have tried to answer these fundamental questions about the nature of scientific progress and discovery. With clear insight and the chemical as well as philosophical wisdom gained from over fifty years as a practising chemist, Jerome Berson puts their theories to the test. The development of chemistry into a "modern" science during the last two centuries provides him with ample cases to illustrate the way scientific progress really happens. Kekuľ's struggle to arrive at a structure for benzene, the paradigm change that was necessary to accept the reality of molecular rearrangements, and other episodes are retold here from the philosopher's as well as from the practitioner's perspective, shedding light on the way scientists think and act. Berson's account of the rather unphilosophical way in which scientific discoveries are made includes the realization that even a false hypothesis, such as Woodward's ideas about the biosynthesis of strychnine, may help rather than hinder scientific progress. Scientists of all ages, as well as many non-scientists, will find this a highly readable and unusual book. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and indexes. |
| Genre/form | History. |
| LCCN | 2003536811 |
| ISBN | 3527307974 (pbk.) |
| ISBN | 9783527307975 (pbk.) |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joyner | General Stacks | QD11 .B483 2003 | ✔ Available | Place Hold |