A Philosopher Looks At Work

A survey on the nature of work, integrating conceptual analysis, historical reflection, autobiography and social commentary.

A fresh, provocative and engaging treatment of what science really amounts to in society, and of what it can do.

What is science and what can it do? Nancy Cartwright here takes issue with three common images of science: that it amounts to the combination of theory and experiment; that all science is basically reducible to physics; and that science and the natural world which it pictures are deterministic. The author's innovative and thoughtful book draws on examples from the physical, life, and social sciences alike, and focuses on all the products of science – not just experiments or theories – and how they work together. She reveals just what it is that makes science ultimately reliable, and how this reliability is nevertheless still compatible with a view of nature as more responsive to human change than we might think. Her book is a call for greater intellectual humility by and within scientific institutions. It will have strong appeal to anyone who thinks about science and how it is practised in society.

Explores how digital technologies have raised new ethical issues for communication.

Considers why humans consider themselves superior to all other animals, and whether they are right to do so.

A Philosopher Looks at The Sense of Humor by Richard C. Richards is intended as a starting point for a philosophical discussion. A colleague once said that Richards writes about humor in a humorous way. He said there are serious books about humor, and humorous books, but a combination of the two occurs rarely. In this tour of the wide, wonderful world of the humorous, he touches upon such issues as what causes a sense of humor, whether it can be taught, what its value may be, how it is connected with happiness, and whether it should be placed on the endangered species list. He out of necessity explores the habitat of the amusing, the entertaining, and the comedic. There is considerable laughter in the world, and a more than abundant supply of things to laugh at. But since laughter and humor are only partially and not essentially connected, this may end up being a eulogy for the death of humor. Perhaps this book will cause it. We can only hope. This book may also be useful as a textbook in a classroom setting.

Argues that the fundamental goals of architecture remain valid despite constant changes in human activities, technologies, and styles.

This book sheds light on important philosophical assumptions made by professionals working in clinical and research medicine. In doing so, it aims to make explicit how active philosophy is in medicine and shows how this awareness can result in better and more informed medical research and practice. It examines: what features make something a scientific discipline; the inherent tensions between understanding medicine as a research science and as a healing practice; how the “replication crisis” in medical research asks us to rethink the structure of knowledge production in our modern world; whether explanations have any real scientific values; the uncertainties about probabilistic claims; and whether it is possible for evidence-based medicine to truly be value free. The final chapter argues that the most important question we can ask is not, “How can we separate values from science?” but, “In a democratic society, how can we decide in a politically and morally acceptable way what values should drive science?” Key features: introduces complex philosophical issues in a manner accessible to non-professional academics; critically examines philosophical assumptions made in medicine, providing a better understanding of medicine that can lead to better healthcare; integrates medical examples and historic contexts so as to frame the rationale of philosophical views and provide lively illustrations of how philosophy can impact science and our lives; uses inter-connected chapters to demonstrate that disparate philosophical concepts are deeply related (e.g., it shows how the aims of medicine inform how we should understand theoretical reasoning).