Description
The Demons of Science, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2016
What They Can and Cannot Tell Us About Our World
Author: Weinert Friedel
Language: EnglishKeywords
Laplace's Demon; Maxwell's Demon; Nietzsche's Demon; Determinism and Indeterminism; Arrows of time; Mind and free will; Loschmidt's Demon; Paradoxes in classical mechanics; Paradoxes in special relativity; Entropy and information paradoxes; Thought experiments in science; Thought experiments in philosophy
Approximative price 105.49 €
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Description
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This book is the first all-encompassing exploration of the role of demons in philosophical and scientific thought experiments. In Part I, the author explains the importance of thought experiments in science and philosophy. Part II considers Laplace?s Demon, whose claim is that the world is completely deterministic. Part III introduces Maxwell?s Demon, who - by contrast - experiences a world that is probabilistic and indeterministic. Part IV explores Nietzsche?s thesis of the cyclic and eternal recurrence of events. In each case a number of philosophical consequences regarding determinism and indeterminism, the arrows of time, the nature of the mind and free will are said to follow from the Demons?s worldviews. The book investigates what these Demons - and others - can and cannot tell us about our world.
Friedel Weinert is professor of history and philosophy of science at the University of Bradford in the UK. He is the author of several books about the interactions of science and philosophy – The Scientist as Philosopher (2004); Copernicus, Darwin and Freud (2009); The March of Time (2013)– as well as editor of Laws of Nature (1995) and co-editor of Compendium of Quantum Physics (2009) and Evolution 2.0 (2012).
Demonstrates the central role that thought experiments can play in scientific reasoning and explores their deep philosophical consequences, with special emphasis on demons
Written primarily for an academic audience, but also accessible to the interested layperson
Inspires readers to question their existing assumptions about matters such as determinism and indeterminism
Also addresses the nature of the mind, free will, an the arrows of time
Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras