From a Scientific Point of View : Reasoning and Evidence Beat Improvisation Across Fields.

Intro -- Contents -- Preface -- 1. The Scientific Worldview -- 2. Should Scientists Listen to Philosophers? -- 3. Interdependence of Epistemology and Metaphysics -- 4. Human Nature is Unnatural -- 5. The Study of Early Societies -- 6. Reframing Mental Disorders -- 7. Technology  Applied Science -- 8. Liberties and Democracies: Authentic and Bogus -- 9. Amateurs and Professionals -- 10. Crime, Criminology, and Penology -- 11. Gravitational Waves and the Nature of Space -- 12. Is Scientific Philosophy Possible? -- References -- Permission Acknowledgements -- Index.

This book deals with the scientific viewpoint, which is illustrated here through a number of topical cases in modern science, from gravitational waves to mental disorders to social policies. The scientific perspective involves rationality, realism, and reism - the thesis that the universe is composed of concrete things like atoms, force fields, people, and social organizations. The book shows that the scientific worldview underlies all current scientific and technological research projects. It also claims that any subject involving knowledge can be approached scientifically, and contends that the scientific viewpoint can trump both dogma and improvisation - the standbys of amateurs and demagogues.

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Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, 2024. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries.