About this item
This "intelligent treatise articulates why the pursuit of scientific truths, even if inevitably flawed . . . matters" in our post-truth world (Publishers Weekly) . What separates science from other disciplines? An attitude that respects evidence and is willing to evolve as new evidence arises. Attacks on science have become commonplace. Claims that climate change isnt settled science, that evolution is "only a theory," and that scientists are conspiring to keep the truth about vaccines from the public are staples of some politicians rhetorical repertoire. Defenders of science often point to its discoveries (penicillin! relativity!) without explaining exactly why scientific claims are superior. In this book, Lee McIntyre argues that what distinguishes science from its rivals is what he calls "the scientific attitude" - caring about evidence and being willing to change theories on the basis of new evidence. The history of science is littered with theories that were scientific but turned out to be wrong; the scientific attitude reveals why even a failed theory can help us to understand what is special about science. In this book, McIntyre explores: * Historical cases that illustrate both scientific success and failure * The transformation of medicine from a practice based on hunches to a science based on evidence * Scientific fraud and ideology-driven denialists, pseudoscientists, and "skeptics" * How social science should embrace the scientific attitude Ultimately, McIntyre says, the grounding of science in evidence offers a uniquely powerful tool in the defense of science itself.
About the Author
Lee McIntyre is a philosopher from the Boston area who writes fiction and nonfiction aimed at the general public. Though trained as a scholar, his writing seeks to engage a wide audience in philosophical topics that are relevant to current events. He has also edited several anthologies for philosophy teachers and scholars.His most recent book is The Scientific Attitude: Defending Science from Denial, Fraud, and Pseudoscience (MIT Press, 2019) . He is also the author of Post-Truth (MIT Press, 2018) , Respecting Truth: Willful Ignorance in the Internet Age (Routledge, 2015) , Dark Ages: The Case for a Science of Human Behavior (MIT Press, 2006) , and Laws and Explanation in the Social Sciences (Westview, 1996) . McIntyre is a Research Fellow at the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University and an Instructor in Ethics at Harvard Extension School. He has a Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) and has taught previously at Colgate, Tufts, Simmons, and Boston University. A black belt martial artist, he lives with two German Shepherds and the rest of his family just outside Boston.
