Getting Science Wrong: Why The Philosophy Of Science Matters

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When Galileo dropped cannon-balls from the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa he did more than overturn centuries of scientific orthodoxy At a stroke he established a new conception of the scientific method based upon careful experimentation & rigorous observation
- & also laid the groundwork for an ongoing conflict between the critical open-mindedness of science & the recalcitrant dogmatism of religion that would continue to the modern day The problem is that Galileo never performed his most celebrated experiment in Pisa In fact he rarely conducted any experiments at all The Church publicly celebrated his work & Galileo enjoyed patronage from the great & the powerful; his ecclesiastical difficulties only began when disgruntled colleagues launched a campaign to discredit their academic rival But what does this tell us about modern science if its own foundation myth turns out to be nothing more than political propaganda? Getting Science Wrong discusses some of the most popular misconceptions about science & their continuing role in the public imagination Drawing upon the history & philosophy of science it challenges wide-spread assumptions & misunderstandings from creationism & climate change to the use of statistics & computer modelling The result is an engaging introduction to contentious issues in the philosophy of science & a new way of looking at the role of science in society