Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2plfb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-28T05:00:43.628Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

1 - Introduction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 September 2023

David B. Teplow
Affiliation:
University of California, Los Angeles
HTML view is not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the 'Save PDF' action button.

Summary

The central message of the introduction is one must understand science if one wants to do science well. This requires a holistic educational approach, one that not only teaches the whats and hows of science, but most critically, it's whys. Why is the sky blue? Why do normal cells turn into cancer cells? Why do we use the scientific method and from where did it come? Why would one want to be a scientist in the first place? Why is science done in the way it is, that is, what is the gestalt of science? The whats and whys of science are practical in nature. The whys, in contrast, encompass theoretical, philosophical, historical, and social underpinnings of science. The whys are particularly important now when the probity and veracity of science are being attacked, and people seek to replace actual facts with "alternative facts" (falsehoods) for political, religious, or economic purposes or out of plain ignorance.

Type
Chapter
Information
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

  • Introduction
  • David B. Teplow, University of California, Los Angeles
  • Book: The Philosophy and Practice of Science
  • Online publication: 17 September 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781107360129.004
Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

  • Introduction
  • David B. Teplow, University of California, Los Angeles
  • Book: The Philosophy and Practice of Science
  • Online publication: 17 September 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781107360129.004
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Introduction
  • David B. Teplow, University of California, Los Angeles
  • Book: The Philosophy and Practice of Science
  • Online publication: 17 September 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781107360129.004
Available formats
×