#457 Michael Strevens - The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science
RECORDED ON FEBRUARY 1st 2021.
Dr. Michael Strevens is Professor of Philosophy at New York University. He works on the philosophy of science, where his interests include explanation, complex systems, probability, confirmation, the social structure of science, and causation; the psychology of concepts; and the philosophical applications of cognitive science. He is the author of The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science.
In this episode, we focus on The Knowledge Machine. We first talk about science before the scientific revolution, and what is the scientific method. We discuss the ways Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn thought about science. We discuss the central thesis of the book, that science is based on irrationality. We also discuss how people decide how to interpret scientific data. We talk about the importance of replication and peer-review. We ask if science is counterintuitive. Finally, we talk about the relationship between philosophy and science, and we ask if science can be (morally) prescriptive.
Time Links:
Intro
Science before the scientific revolution
Is there a scientific method?
Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn
The irrationality of science
Interpreting scientific data
Replication and peer-review
Is science counterintuitive?
A distinction between public scientific argument and private scientific reasoning
The relationship between philosophy and science
The demarcation problem
Can science be (morally) prescriptive
Follow Dr. Strevens’ work!
Follow Dr. Strevens’ work:
Faculty page http://bit.ly/38hUl1r
Website: http://bit.ly/2YzWVvs
PhilPeople profile: http://bit.ly/36v3vYd
Amazon page: https://amzn.to/3j5s5nA
The Knowledge Machine: http://amzn.to/2WtRhK9