N-rays and the semantic view of scientific progress
Document Type
Journal article
Source Publication
Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A
Publication Date
6-1-2008
Volume
39
Issue
2
First Page
277
Last Page
278
Keywords
Scientific progress, Goal of inquiry, Value problem, Alexander Bird
Abstract
This paper challenges a recent argument of Bird’s, which involves imagining that Réné Blondlot’s belief in N-rays was true, in favour of the view that scientific progress should be understood in terms of knowledge rather than truth. By considering several variants of Bird’s thought-experiment, it shows that the semantic account of progress cannot be so easily vanquished. A key possibility is that justification is only instrumental in, and not partly constitutive of, progress.
DOI
10.1016/j.shpsa.2008.03.010
Print ISSN
00393681
E-ISSN
18792510
Publisher Statement
Copyright © 2008 Elsevier Ltd
Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Rowbottom, D. P. (2008). Intersubjective corroboration. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A, 39(2), 277-278. doi: 10.1016/j.shpsa.2008.03.010