Introduction to the Philosophy of Science

Part 1 Science as an intellectual activity: growth of knowledge objectivity and the external world prediction and explanation. Part 2 Induction: Baconian induction presuppositionless observation the role of imagination in scientific theorizing inductive proof. Part 3 Falsification: Popperian philosophy of science a Bayesian approach. Part 4 Science and non-science: the demarcation criterion are theories ever falsified? Kuhnian relativism the relationship between the history and philosophy of science. Part 5 Observation and theory: observational common ground between theories observation and theory empiricism unobservability and underdetermination of theory by data. Part 6 Scientific realism: positivism the inference to best explanation scientific laws and the representation of reality the absolute view of the world partial pictures - Schrodinger's cat. Part 7 Probability: probabilistic explanations interpretations of probability. Part 8 Scientific reductions: reductions in the physical sciences criteria for reduction. Part 9 Science and culture: science as mythology myths and science science and technology science and value.