Filamer Christian University

GRADUATE SCHOOL
Roxas City

HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE

Brenda D. Diaz, LPT

Jhomay P. Delatina, LPT
Roffa Mae D. Domo-os, LPT

History of Science

The history of science covers the development of science from ancient times to the present.
Science is an empirical, theoretical, and procedural knowledge about the universe, produced by
scientists who formulate testable explanations and predictions.

Science (from the Latin word “scientia”, meaning “knowledge” is a systematic enterprise that
builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions of the
universe.

The earliest roots of science can be traced to Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia in around 3000
to 1200 BCE. Their contributions to mathematics, astronomy, and medicines entered and
shaped Greek natural philosophy of classical antiquity, whereby formal attempts were made to
provide explanations of events in the physical world based on natural causes.

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, knowledge of Greek conceptions of the world
deteriorated in Western Europe during the early centuries (400 to 1000 CE) of the Middle Ages,
but was presented in the Muslim world during the Islamic Golden
Age. The recovery and assimilation of Greek works and Islamic inquiries into Western Europe
from the 10th to 13th century revised “natural philosophy”, which was later transformed by the
Scientific Revolution that begun in the 16th century as new ideas and discoveries departed from
previous Greek conceptions and traditions. The scientific method soon played a greater role in
knowledge creation and it was not until the 19th century that many of the institutional and
professional features of science began to take shape, along with the changing of “natural
philosophy” to “natural science”.

Modern sciences is typically divided into three branches that consist of the natural sciences
(e.g., biology, chemistry and physics) which study nature in the broadest sense; the social
sciences (e.g., economics, psychology, and sociology), which study individual societies; and the
formal sciences (e.g., logic, mathematics, and theoretical computer science), which deal with
symbols governed by rules. There is disagreement, however, on whether the formal sciences
actually constitute a science as they do not rely on empirical evidence. Disciplines that use
existing scientific knowledge for practical purposes, such as engineering and medicine, are
described as applied sciences.

New knowledge in science is advanced by research from scientists who are motivated by
curiosity about the world and a desire to solve problems. Contemporary scientific research is
highly collaborative and is usually done by teams in academic and research institutions,
government agencies, and companies. The practical impact of their work has led to the
emergence of science policies that seek to influence the scientific enterprise by prioritizing the
development of commercial products, armaments, health care public infrastructure, and
environmental protection.

History of science coalesced only gradually as a recognizable discipline in the twentieth

century, with its own distinctive program of training, institutions (journals, professional
societies, university positions), and scholarly standards.

The history of science can often be characterized as a sequence of revolutions and reactions.
The birth of cognitive science can be traced to the cognitive revolution of the mid-20th century,
which was a reaction against the behaviorist revolution of the 20th century. Behaviorism in turn
was a reaction to the introspections tradition of the late 19 th and early 20th centuries. More
recently, the connectionist revolution was a reaction to some of the symbolic assumptions of the
computational core of cognitive science.

A Brief History of Science

Humankind has always been inquisitive, needing to understand why things behave in a certain
way, and trying to link observation with prediction. For example, since prehistoric times it was
observed that heavens tried to make sense of the seasonal changes in the position of the sun,
moon and stars. In about 4000 BC, the Mesopotanians tried to explain their observations by
suggesting that the Earth was at the center of the Universe, and that the other heavenly bodies
moved around it. Humans have always been interested in the nature and origin of the Universe.

Metallurgy
But they weren’t only interested in astronomy. The extraction of iron, which led to the Iron
Age, is a chemical process which early metallurgists developed without understanding any of the
science involved. Nevertheless, they were still able to optimize the extraction by trial and error.
Before this, copper and tin were extracted (which led to the Bronze Age) and later, zinc. Exactly
how each of these processes was discovered is lost in the mists of time, but it is likely that they
were developed using observation and experiment in a similar way to that used by today’s
scientists.

Medicine
Early humankind also observed that certain plants could be used to treat sickness and disease,
and herbal medicines were developed, some of which are still used by modern pharmaceutical
companies to provide leads for new synthetic drugs.

The Greeks
The first people to try to develop the theory behind their observations were the Greeks: people
such as Pythagoras, who concentrated on a mathematical view of the world. Similarly, Aristotle
and Plato developed logical methods for examining the world around them. It was the Greeks
who first suggested that matter was made up of the atoms – fundamental particles that could not
be broken down further.

But it wasn’t only the Greeks who moved science on. Science was also being developed in
India, China, the Middle East and South America. Despite having their own cultural view of the
world, they each independently developed materials such as gun powder, soap and paper.
However, it wasn’t until the 13th century that much of the scientific work was brought together in
European universities, and that it started to look more like science as we know is today. Progress
was relatively slow at first. For example, it took until the 16 th century for Copernicus to
revolutionize the way that we look at the universe, and for Harvey to put forward his ideas on
how blood circulated round the human body. This slow progress was sometimes the result of
religious dogma, but it was a product of troubled times.

The Birth of Modern Science

It was in the 17 th century that modern science was really born, and the world began to be
examined more closely, using instruments such as the telescope, microscope, clock and
barometer. It was also at this time that scientific laws started to put forward for such phenomena
as gravity and the way that the volume, pressure and temperature of a gas are related. In the 18 th
century much of the basic biology and chemistry was developed as part of the Age of
Enlightenment.

The 19th century saw some of the great name of science: people like the chemist John
Walton, who developed the atomic theory of matter, Michael Faraday and James Maxwell who
both put forward theories concerning electricity and magnetism, and Charles Darwin, who
proposed the controversial theory of evolution. Each of these developments forced scientists
radically to re-examine their views of the way in which the world worked.

The last century brought discoveries such as relativity and quantum mechanics, which
required scientists to look at things on a completely different way. It makes them wonder what
the iconoclastic discoveries of this century will be.

Philosophy of Science
Philosophy of science is a branch of philosophy concerned with the foundations, methods,
and implications of science. The central questions of this study concern what qualities as a
science, the reliability of scientific, theories, and the ultimate purpose of science. It is also the
study from a philosophical perspective, of the elements of scientific inquiry.
(Philosophical Assumptions)
Ontology - (“theory of being”) - refers to ideas, beliefs and concepts about the nature of existing
and becoming as well as the basic categories of being and their relations.

What is the substantial nature of the world?

 Spiritualism vs Materialism
There is only spiritual existence vs all existence is materiel
 Idealism vs Realism
We produce reality through perception vs reality exists independent of us
 Logical structure vs Symbolic structure of the world
The world is logically structured vs we structure the world using symbols
Epistemology - (“theory of knowledge”) – refers to the fundamental notions about how
knowledge can be gamed, the nature of knowledge and justified belief, their possibilities, scope
and general basis.

 Skepticism- the attitude of doubting knowledge claims set forth in various areas.
Skeptics have challenged the adequacy or reliability of these claims by asking what
principles they are based upon or what they actually establish. They have questioned
whether some such claims really are, as alleged, indubitable or necessarily true, and they
have challenged the purported rational grounds of accepted assumptions. In everyday
life, practically everyone is skeptical about some knowledge claims; but philosophical
skeptics have doubted the possibility of any knowledge beyond that of the contents of
directly felt experience. The original Greek meaning of skeptikos was “an inquirer,”
someone who was unsatisfied and still looking for truth.
 Constructivism- is a view in the philosophy of science that maintains that scientific
knowledge is constructed by the scientific community, which seeks to measure and
construct models of the natural world.
 Solipsism- in philosophy, an extreme form of subjective idealism that denies that the
human mind has any valid ground for believing in the existence of anything but itself.
Axiology - Assumptions about the goal a of research

Meta-theory – refers to the critical analysis and taxonomic categorization of theories and
conceptual frameworks, their foundations and structures.

Methodology – refers to the system of principles underlying the conduct of scientific inquiry.

Approaches – refers to the theoretical underpinning of ways to tackle research question to make
particular operations suited and rationales.

Foundations and structures – refers to the researchers’ implicit and explicit beliefs and basic
assumptions:
a. What are research questions
b. What are objects of research
c. What are facts and data
With all these, it will developed specific concepts – theories – model

Branches of Philosophy
•Metaphysics: study of existence.
•Epistemology: study of knowledge.
•Logic: study of art.
•Axiology: study of values.
Ethics: issues of wright and wrong.
Aesthetics: the nature of beauty and art.
 IMPORTANCE OF PHILOSOPHY
• The study of Philosophy enables us to think carefully and clearly about important issues.
• In studying Philosophy, we learn to step back from our everyday thinking and to explore
the deeper, bigger question which underpins our thought.
• The focus in the study of Philosophy is to learn not what to believe , but how to think.
• Studying Philosophy sharpens your analytical abilities, enabling you to identify and
evaluate the strengths and weaknesses in any position.
• It prompts you to works across disciplinary boundaries and to think flexibly and
creatively about problems which do not present immediate solutions.

NATURE OF PHILOSOPHY
 . Philosophy is a set of views or beliefs about life and the universe which are often held
uncritically.
 Philosophy is a process of reflecting on and criticizing our most deeply held conceptions
and beliefs.
 Philosophy is a rational attempt to look at the world as a whole.
 Philosophy is the logical analysis of language and the clarification of the meaning of
words and concepts. Philosophy is a group of perennial problems that interest people and
for which philosophers always have sought answers.

Modern Philosophy
Naturalism- the system of thought holding that all phenomena can be explained in terms of
natural causes and laws. Believed by most philosopher’s like Thales, Anaximander, Leucippus,
Democritus, etc

Natural Philosophy
On some accounts, something like science emerged among the ancient Greeks in Miletus around
650 BCE.
There a group began to ask: What is everything made of?
Thales: Everything is made of water
Anaximander: Everything is made of “the boundless
Anaximenes: Everything is made of air
Democritus: Everything is made of atoms
Pythagoras: Everything is made of numbers
Metaphysics- the fundamental nature of reality and the existence and/ or the essence of things.
Aristotle, Plato and Socrates
Realism- theory that things exist objectively: the theory that things such as universals, moral
facts, and theoretical scientific entities exist independently of people's thoughts and perceptions
theory of objectively existing world: the theory that there is an objectively existing world, not
dependent on our minds, and that people are able to understand aspects of that world through
perception theory that statements have truth values: the theory that every declarative statement is
either true or false, regardless of whether this can be verified
Mysticism is the pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an
ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, instinct or
insight. ..
The beliefs, ideas, or thoughts of mystics; A doctrine of direct communication or spiritual
intuition of divine truth; A transcendental union of soul or mind with the divine reality or
divinity; St Peter Damian and and saint Bernard of Clairvaux
Humanism- is any outlook or way of life centered on human need and interest. Sub-categories
of this type include Christian Humanism and Modern Humanism
Christian Humanism is defined by Webster's Third New International Dictionary as "a
philosophy advocating the self- fulfillment of man within the framework of Christian principles."
This more humanoriented faith is largely a product of the Renaissance and is a part of what made
up Renaissance humanism.
Modern Humanism, also called Naturalistic Humanism, Scien- tific Humanism, Ethical
Humanism and Democratic Humanism is defined by one of its leading proponents, Corliss
Lamont, as "a naturalistic philosophy that rejects all supernaturalism and relies primarily upon
reason and science, democracy and human compassion." Modern Humanism has a dual origin,
both secular and religious, and these constitute its sub-categories. Foremost advocate is Galileo.
Empiricism- the doctrine that knowledge is derived from experience
quackery: medical practice and advice based on observation and experience in ignorance of
scientific findings In philosophy, "empiricism" is a theory of knowledge that asserts that
knowledge arises from sense experience. Empiricism is one of several competing views about
how we know "things", part of the branch of philosophy called epistemology, or "the Theory of
Knowledge
Rationalism- a theory that holds that reason alone, unaided by experience, can arrive at basic
truth regarding the world. Associated with rationalism is the doctrine of innate ideas and the
method of logically deducing truths about the world from "self-evident" premises the doctrine
that knowledge about reality can be obtained by reason alone without recourse to experience.
Power of reason •Emphasizes the importance of priori reasoning as the appropriate method in
advancing knowledge •Theory-then-research strategy • Develop a systematic explanation
(theory) of a given phenomenon then subject this to experiment
Positivism- sometimes associated with empiricism, positivism maintains that metaphysical
questions are unanswerable and that the only knowledge is scientific knowledge
Utilitarianism- is a moral philosophy, generally operating on the principle that the utility
(happiness or satisfaction) of different people can not only be measured but also meaningfully
summed over people and that utility comparisons between people are meaningful.
To achieve the goal utilitarian British philosopher Jeremy Bentham described as "the greatest
good for the greatest number."
Idealism- any of a group of philosophical doctrines that share the monistic view that material
objects and the external world do not exist in reality independently of the human mind but are
variously creations of the mind or constructs of ideas
Pragmatism- the doctrine that the content of a concept consists only in its practical applicability.
The doctrine that truth consists not in correspondence with the facts but in successful coherence
with experience  action or policy dictated by consideration of the immediate practical
consequences rather than by theory or dogma  A practical, matter-of-fact way of approaching or
assessing situations or of solving problems.
Evolutionism- is a world-view, which seeks to explain every aspect of this world in which we
live. It encompasses a wide variety of topics, from astronomy to chemistry to biology. At its
core, it teaches that there were different stages in the evolution of our universe:
Existentialism- is a philosophy concerned with finding self and the meaning of life through free
will, choice, and personal responsibility. The belief is that people are searching to find out who
and what they are throughout life as they make choices based on their experiences, beliefs, and
outlook. And personal choices become unique without the necessity of an objective form of
truth. An existentialist believes that a person should be forced to choose and be responsible
without the help of laws, ethnic rules, or traditions.
Psychoanalysis- the method of psychological therapy originated by Sigmund Freud in which
free association, dream interpretation, and analysis of resistance and transference are used to
explore repressed or unconscious impulses, anxieties, and internal conflicts, in order to free
psychic energy for mature

The theory of personality developed by Freud that focuses on repression and unconscious forces
and includes the concepts of infantile sexuality, resistance, transference, and division of the
psyche into the id, ego, and superego.

Neorealism or structural realism- is a theory of international relations, outlined by Kenneth

Waltz in his 1979 book Theory of International Politics. Waltz argues in favor of a systemic
approach: the international structure acts as a constraint on state behavior, so that only states
whose outcomes fall within an expected range survive. This system is similar to a
microeconomic model in which firms set prices and quantity based on the market.

Phenomenology- a philosophy or method of inquiry based on the premise that reality consists of
objects and events as they are perceived or understood in human consciousness and not of
anything independent of human consciousness. Phenomenology is the study of structures of
consciousness as experienced from the first-person point of view. An experience is directed
toward an object by virtue of its content or meaning (which represents the object) together with
appropriate enabling conditions.

Why science needs philosophy?

According to Mantovani (2016), said that knowledge of the historic and philosophical
background gives that kind of independence from prejudices of his generation from which most
scientists are suffering. This independence created by philosophical insights is – in his opinion –
the mark of distinction between a mere artisan or specialist and a real seeker after truth.
Despite the tight historical links between science and philosophy, present-day scientists often
perceive philosophy as completely different from, and even antagonistic to science. On the
contrary, philosophy can have an important and productive impact on science.

Function
• Aim of Science.
The institutionalized aim of basic research.
• Discovery.
Development of new theories.
• Criticism.
Criteria for evaluating theories.
• Explanation.
Scientific explanation - the final result
Influence of Philosophy
Scientists who have engaged in philosophy of science:

•Marx’s theory of history

•Freud’s psychoanalysis
•Einstein’s theory of relativity
•Sir Isaac Newton‘s gravitational force
•Aristotle
•Galileo’s telescope
•Copernican revolution
•Spencer: Coined “Survival of the Fittest”
•Darwin‘s evolution theory

Famous Scientists/Philosophers of Science

Aristotle – (384 – 392 BC) – He was one of the founders of history and philosophy of science.
He wrote extensively about the topics we now called as physics, astronomy, psychology,
biology, and chemistry, as well as logic, mathematics, and epistemology.

Francis Bacon – (1561 – 1626) – He promoted a scientific method in which scientists gather
way facts from observations and experiments, and then make inductive inferences about patterns
in nature.

Rene Descartes - (1596 – 1650) – He was a mathematicians, scientist, and philosopher who
promoted a scientific method that emphasized deduction from first principles. These ideas as
well as his mathematics influenced Newton and other figures of the Scientific Revolution
conjectured by theories such as atoms and molecules.

Piere Duhem (1861 – 1916) – A physicist and philosopher who defended an extreme form of
empiricism. He argued that we cannot draw conclusions about the existence of unobservable
entities conjectured by our theories such as atoms and molecules.

Carl Hempel (1905 – 1997) – He developed influencial theories of scientific explanation and
theory confirmation. He argued that a phenomenon is “explained” when we can see that it is the
logical consequence of a law of nature. He championed a hypothetico-deductive account of
confirmation, similar to the way we characterize a scientific argument.

Karl Popper (1924 – 1994) – He argued that falsifiability is both the hallmark of scientific
theories and the proper methodology for scientists to employ. He believed that theories with a
skeptical eye, seeking every opportunity to try to falsify them.

Thomas Kuhn (1922 – 1996) – He was a historian and philosopher who argued that the picture
of science developed by logical empiricists such as Popper didn’t resemble the history of
science. Kuhn famously distinguished between a particular framework or paradigm, and
revolutionary science, when the paradigm gets overturned.

Paul Feyerabend (1924 – 1994) – A rebel within the philosophy of science. He argued that
there is no scientific method or in his words “anything goes”. Without regard to rational
guidelines, scientists do whatever they need to in order to come up with new ideas and persuade
others to accept them.
Evelyn Fox Keller (1936) – A physicist, historian, and one of the pioneers of feminist
philosophy of science, exemplified in her study of Barbara McClinfock and the history of
genetics in the 20th century.

Elliot Sober – He is known for his work on parsimony and the conceptual foundations of
evolutionary biology. He is also an important contributor to the biological theory of group
selection.

Nancy Cartwright (1994) – A philosopher of physics known for her claim that the law of
physics – “lie”, that the laws of physics only apply in highly idealized circumstances. She also
worked on causation, interpretation of probability and quantum mechanics, and the metaphysical
foundations of modern science.

References:

1. History, Philosophy and Science Teaching: A Bibliography

By: MR Matthews, 2009

2. History and Philosophy of Science: A Concise Introduction

By: Socratics and PHilJobs, 2013

3. Finding the History and Philosophy of Science

By: SpingerLink, 2015

4. Introducing History and Philosophy of Science

By: Kuhn, R., 2019

5. Websites/non-printed references