Читать книгу Twentieth-Century Philosophy of Science: A History (Third Edition) - Thomas J. Hickey - Страница 10

Basic-science research practices can be classified into four topics that include the essential functions performed in basic research. They are also topics typically discussed in the literature of philosophy of science.

The institutionalized aim of basic science is the culturally shared aim that guides development of explanations, which in turn are the final products of basic-scientific research. The institution of science has evolved considerably over the last several centuries, and will continue to evolve in unforeseeable ways with the future advancement of science.

Discovery refers to the processes of constructing new theories. Pragmatists define theory language pragmatically, i.e., functionally, as universally quantified statements expressible in conditional form including equations (a.k.a. “models”) that are proposed for empirical testing.

Theories are universally quantified hypotheses proposed for empirical testing.

Criticism refers to the decision criteria used for the evaluation of theories. Pragmatists accept only the empirical criterion. Empirical testing is the pragmatics of theory language, and it uses modus tollens conditional deductive argument form. A scientific law is an empirically tested and nonfalsified theory.

Test-designs are universally quantified discourse presumed for empirical testing a theory, in order to identify the subject of the theory and to describe the procedures for performing the test.

Explanation is language that describes the occurrence of individual events and conditions as caused by the occurrence of other described events and conditions according to law statements. It uses modus ponens conditional deductive argument form, which includes universally quantified statements expressible in conditional form that are scientific laws. Whenever possible the explanation is predictive.