The Nature of Explanation by Peter Achinstein
Offering a new approach to scientific explanation, this book focuses initially on the explaining act itself. From that act, a "product" emerges: an explanation. To understand what that product is, as well as how it can be evaluated in the sciences, reference must be made to the concept of the explaining act. Following an account of the explaining act, its product, and the evaluation of explanations, the theory is brought to bear on these issues: Why have the standard models of scientific explanation been unsuccessful, and can there be a model of the type sought? What is causal explanation, and must explanation in the sciences be causal? What is a functional explanation? The "illocutionary" theory of explanation developed at the outset is used in discussing these issues, and contrasting philosophical viewpoints are assessed.
A first-rate contribution to the history of nineteenth-century physics...Physicists need to read this book. * Foundations of Physics *
Peter Achinstein is Professor of Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University, Director of the Johns Hopkins Center for History and Philosophy of Science, and Jay and Jeannie Schottenstein University Professor at Yeshiva University. He is the author of six books in the philosophy of science, including
Particles and Waves, which received the Lakatos Award in 1993. A festschrift in his honor, Philosophy of Science Matters: The Philosophy of Peter Achinstein was published by Oxford University Press in 2011.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780195037432 |
| ISBN 10 | 019503743X |
| Title | The Nature of Explanation |
| Author | Peter Achinstein |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press Inc |
| Year published | 1986-06-12 |
| Number of pages | 394 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |