Contents
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1. Epistemology Incognito 1. Epistemology Incognito
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2. Controversies About Truth and Realism 2. Controversies About Truth and Realism
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3. The Search for Method 3. The Search for Method
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4. Ideal Subjects and Actual Knowers 4. Ideal Subjects and Actual Knowers
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5. Homely Motivations and Philosophical Worries 5. Homely Motivations and Philosophical Worries
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6. Historicism and Skepticism 6. Historicism and Skepticism
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7. Epistemology Proclaimed: A Sociohistorical Account of Scientific Knowledge 7. Epistemology Proclaimed: A Sociohistorical Account of Scientific Knowledge
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References References
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13 Scientific Knowledge
Get accessPhilip Kitcher is John Dewey Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University; he is a past President of the American Philosophical Association (Pacific Division), a former editor‐in‐chief of the journal Philosophy of Science, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2006 he was selected as the first recipient of the Prometheus Prize, awarded by the American Philosophical Association for lifetime achievement in expanding the frontiers of philosophy and science. He is the author of many articles in philosophy of science, epistemology, ethics, and social philosophy, and has published eight books, including The Advancement of Science (1993), Science, Truth, and Democracy (2001), Living with Darwin: Evolution, Design, and the Future of Faith (2007), and Joyce's Kaleidoscope: An Invitation to Finnegans Wake (2007).
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Published:02 September 2009
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Abstract
This article offers an approach to scientific knowledge that is more systematic than many current approaches in the epistemology of science. It challenges arguments against the truth of the theoretical claims of science. In addition, it attempts to discover reasons for endorsing the truth of such claims. It tries to apply current “scientific method” to this end, but doubts that any context-independent method gives warrant to the theoretical claims of science. It suggests that the discovery of reasons might succeed if one asks why anyone thinks the theoretical claims one accepts are true and then looks for answers that reconstruct actual belief-generating processes. To this end, this article presents the “homely argument” for scientific truth. It entails that when a field of science is continually applied to yield precise predictions, then it is at least approximately true.
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