期刊名称：Hyle : International Journal for Philosophy of Chemistry
印刷版ISSN：1433-5158
出版年度：2017
卷号：23
期号：1
页码：107-109
出版社：HYLE Publications, Karlsruhe and University of Karlsruhe
摘要：Eric Scerri’s new book makes strong claims that science proceeds in an exclusivelyevolutionary manner and that ideas of lesser known scientist and sometimesoutsiders contribute to scientific knowledge and progress. Describingthe contributions of seven scientists working at the beginning of the 20thcentury on problems related to atomic electron configurations leads him toreject both the notion of scientific revolutions as advocated by Thomas Kuhn(1962) and the importance if “some particular scientist was right or wrong.What really matters is that science, in the form of the scientific communitymakes progress as a whole” (p. 22). Part of his rejection of the concept ofscientific revolutions is because “viewing theory change as revolutionary maymask the essential biological-like growth of sciences that I am defending inthis book” (p. 196). The fact that biological evolution is described as a punctuatedequilibrium by S.J. Gould (2007) is mentioned only once, in passing,near the end of the book. This could be the basis of a serious discussion as itcould be the basis of an evolutionary epistemology which together withKuhn’s theory of the dynamics of disciplinary and sub-disciplinary changescan recognize the contributions of ‘scientific foot soldiers’ and famous scientistsas well as accept evolutionary and revolutionary scientific changes.
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