Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A 58:24-33 (2016)
Authors |
|
Abstract |
I claim that one way thought experiments contribute to scientific progress is by increasing scientific understanding. Understanding does not have a currently accepted characterization in the philosophical literature, but I argue that we already have ways to test for it. For instance, current pedagogical practice often requires that students demonstrate being in either or both of the following two states: 1) Having grasped the meaning of some relevant theory, concept, law or model, 2) Being able to apply that theory, concept, law or model fruitfully to new instances. Three thought experiments are presented which have been important historically in helping us pass these tests, and two others that cause us to fail. Then I use this operationalization of understanding to clarify the relationships between scientific thought experiments, the understanding they produce, and the progress they enable. I conclude that while no specific instance of understanding (thus conceived) is necessary for scientific progress, understanding in general is.
|
Keywords | Scientific understanding Thought experiments Scientific progress Maxwell's demon Einstein's clock in the box Darwin's vertebrate eye |
Categories | (categorize this paper) |
DOI | 10.1016/j.shpsa.2016.04.002 |
Options |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Download options
References found in this work BETA
Explanation and Scientific Understanding.Michael Friedman - 1974 - Journal of Philosophy 71 (1):5-19.
Is Understanding a Species of Knowledge?Stephen R. Grimm - 2006 - British Journal for the Philosophy of Science 57 (3):515-535.
A Contextual Approach to Scientific Understanding.Henk W. de Regt & Dennis Dieks - 2005 - Synthese 144 (1):137-170.
View all 31 references / Add more references
Citations of this work BETA
Beyond Explanation: Understanding as Dependency Modeling.Finnur Dellsén - 2018 - British Journal for the Philosophy of Science (4):1261-1286.
Toward a Pluralist Account of the Imagination in Science.Alice Murphy - 2020 - Philosophy of Science 87 (5):957-967.
Explicating Objectual Understanding: Taking Degrees Seriously.Christoph Baumberger - 2019 - Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie 1:1-22.
Thought Experiments.Yiftach J. H. Fehige & James R. Brown - 2010 - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 25 (1):135-142.
View all 15 citations / Add more citations
Similar books and articles
Introduction to Special Issue of Perspectives on Science.Yiftach Fehige & Michael T. Stuart - 2014 - Perspectives on Science 22 (2):167-178.
Thought Experiments in Science and in Science Education.Mervi A. Asikainen & Pekka E. Hirvonen - 2014 - In Michael R. Matthews (ed.), International Handbook of Research in History, Philosophy and Science Teaching. Springer. pp. 1235-1256.
The Role of Justification in the Ordinary Concept of Scientific Progress.Moti Mizrahi & Wesley Buckwalter - 2014 - Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie 45 (1):151-166.
Gedankenexperiment Und Erklärung / Thought Experiment and Scientific Explanation.Ulrich J. Kuehne - unknown
The Body, Thought Experiments, and Phenomenology.Yiftach J. H. Fehige & Harald Wiltsche - 2012 - In Thought Experiments in Philosophy, Science, and the Arts.
(Mis)Understanding Human Beings: Theory, Value, and Progress in Education Research.Karl Hostetler - 2010 - Educational Studies: A Jrnl of the American Educ. Studies Assoc 46 (4):400-415.
When Are Thought Experiments Poor Ones?Jeanne Peijnenburg & David Atkinson - 2003 - Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie 34 (2):305-322.
Scientific Progress: Knowledge Versus Understanding.Finnur Dellsén - 2016 - Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A 56:72-83.
Incommensurability and Scientific Progress.Mark Alan Stone - 1987 - Dissertation, The University of Rochester
On the Origins of the Philosophy of Thought Experiments: The Forerun.Yiftach Fehige & Michael T. Stuart - 2014 - Perspectives on Science 22 (2):179-220.
Analytics
Added to PP index
2016-06-10
Total views
55 ( #206,407 of 2,505,990 )
Recent downloads (6 months)
2 ( #277,268 of 2,505,990 )
2016-06-10
Total views
55 ( #206,407 of 2,505,990 )
Recent downloads (6 months)
2 ( #277,268 of 2,505,990 )
How can I increase my downloads?
Downloads