With a New Preface by the Author
"...a searching look at how science interacts with and is influenced by other areas of human endeavor... . one thought-provoking discussion after another. ..." -
Publishers Weekly
"[Susan Haack is] one of those rare contemporary philosophers I can read with pleasure." -
Steven Weinberg, Nobel Laureate in Physics, from Facing Up: Science and Its Cultural Adversaries
"I greatly relished reading this book. I very much admire Haack's comprehensive defense of science; it is appropriately argued without resort to clichés - pleasurable prose."
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Jacques Barzun, former Provost and Seth Low Professor of History, Columbia University; author of From Dawn to Decadence.
"Reading Susan Haack's book is to witness a rarity: the level-headed appraisal of current issues and ideas, seen through the eyes of a widely informed and sensible philosopher who explores the middle ground between competing extremes, providing the guidance of a civilized mind." -
Gerald Holton, Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics and History of Science, Emeritus, Harvard University
Sweeping in scope, penetrating in analysis, and generously illustrated with examples from the history of science, this new and original approach to familiar questions about scientific evidence and method tackles vital questions about science and its place in society. Avoiding the twin pitfalls of scientism and cynicism, noted philosopher Susan Haack argues that, fallible and flawed as they are, the natural sciences have been among the most successful of human enterprises-valuable not only for the vast, interlocking body of knowledge they have discovered, and not only for the technological advances that have improved our lives, but as a manifestation of the human talent for inquiry at its imperfect but sometimes remarkable best.
This wide-ranging, trenchant, and illuminating book explores the complexities of scientific evidence, and the multifarious ways in which the sciences have refined and amplified the methods of everyday empirical inquiry; articulates the ways in which the social sciences are like the natural sciences, and the ways in which they are different; disentangles the confusions of radical rhetoricians and cynical sociologists of science; exposes the evasions of apologists for religious resistance to scientific advances; weighs the benefits and the dangers of technology; tracks the efforts of the legal system to make the best use of scientific testimony; and tackles predictions of the eventual culmination, or annihilation, of the scientific enterprise.
Writing with verve and wry humor, in a witty, direct, and accessible style, Haack takes readers beyond the "Science Wars" to a balanced understanding of the value, and the limitations, of the scientific enterprise.
MORE ACCLAIM FOR DEFENDING SCIENCE - WITHIN REASON
"This is original work from a scholar of world reputation on the nature of science and its impact upon cultural issues that engage the public interest. It is both deep and accessible, with arguments offered in a signature, honest prose of great clarity .... "
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Paul R. Gross, former Provost and University Professor of Life Sciences, University of Virginia
"In this very scholarly and thoughtful book, Haack offers a fair and balanced appraisal of the scientific enterprise, analyzing its complexities, recognizing its limitations..... Highly recommended." -
ChoiceBook Binding: Paperback
Pages: 411
ISBN: 1-59102-458-7
Shipping Weight: 1lbs
Author Bio:
Susan Haack (Coral Gables, FL) is Cooper Senior Scholar in Arts and Sciences, professor of philosophy, and professor of law at the University of Miami. She is the author of numerous highly acclaimed books including Defending Science—Within Reason; Philosophy of Logics; Evidence and Inquiry; Deviant Logic, Fuzzy Logic: Beyond the Formalism; and Manifesto of a Passionate Moderate: Unfashionable Essays.
