This author delves into the history and sociology of science, examining scientists' ethical choices and the foundations of scientific credibility. They have reshaped the understanding of experimentation by investigating where and by whom experiments are conducted. Their work has been pivotal in restructuring how the field approaches major scientific concepts like truth, trust, scientific identity, and moral authority. Central to their perspective is the idea that science relies on public faith, necessitating clear explanations of how sound knowledge is generated and who participates in the process.
The authors bring the perspectives of sociology and anthropology to bear on key historical developments in various fields of science, demonstrating that it is possible to study science in the same way as other forms of culture - art, music, and literature. They show that our understanding of science, and the development of scientific knowledge, can be enriched by these perspectives, and that the history of science can benefit from case studies, such as those presented here.
This book addresses issues of crucial importance to present-day discussions about the nature of knowledge and how it is produced. 54 halftones. Line art.
Shapin and Schaffer work out the implications of these debates [between Hobbes
and Boyle] for the history of science with great skill of interpretation and
exposition. They use their findings and their analysis to give an explanation
of the experimental enterprise in general, which, although it is not
philosophical in nature, always takes philosophy most seriously. This is
simply one of the most original, enjoyable and important books published in
the history of science in recent years.--Owen Hannaway, Technology and Culture
Historical Studies of Science as if It Was Produced by People with Bodies, Situated in Time, Space, Culture, and Society, and Struggling for Credibility and AuthoritySteven Shapin argues that science, for all its immense authority and power, is and always has been a human endeavor, subject to human capacities and limits. Put simply, science has never been pure. To be human is to err, and we understand science better when we recognize it as the laborious achievement of fallible, imperfect, and historically situated human beings.Shapin's essays collected here include reflections on the historical relationships between science and common sense, between science and modernity, and between science and the moral order. They explore the relevance of physical and social settings in the making of scientific knowledge, the methods appropriate to understanding science historically, dietetics as a compelling site for historical inquiry, the identity of those who have made scientific knowledge, and the means by which science has acquired credibility and authority. This wide-ranging and intensely interdisciplinary collection by one of the most distinguished historians and sociologists of science represents some of the leading edges of change in the scholarly understanding of science over the past several decades.
Who are scientists, and what qualities define them? They are highly respected experts tasked with interpreting the natural world and transforming knowledge into power and profit. However, are they morally different from others? The narrative explores our perceptions of scientists and the significance of these views. Conventional wisdom suggests that scientists are neither better nor worse than anyone else, and that personal virtue does not necessarily accompany technical expertise. Yet, the author argues that the uncertainties inherent in scientific research make individual virtues essential to scientific work. Tracing the evolution from early twentieth-century corporate research laboratories to today's scientific entrepreneurship, the text illustrates how contemporary science's radical uncertainties have heightened the importance of personal virtues. It also uncovers how modern science's novel aspects have deep historical roots. This elegantly crafted history of the scientific career and character prompts a reevaluation of the technical and moral landscapes we inhabit. Drawing on insights from previous influential works and featuring a captivating array of characters, the narrative offers bold claims that are essential for anyone interested in understanding late modern American culture and its formation.
In this classic of science history, Shapin takes into account the culture -
the variety of beliefs, practices, and influences - that in the 1600s shaped
the origins of the modern scientific worldview.
The book explores the deep connection between food and identity, examining historical perspectives on eating practices in the West. It traces the evolution of dietary thought from traditional dietetics, which intertwined health advice with moral living, to the rise of scientific nutrition in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. This shift introduced a focus on macronutrients rather than holistic well-being. Ultimately, it reflects on how these changing ideas have shaped contemporary attitudes toward food, blending objective knowledge with personal experience.
