Contributors in philosophy, philosophy of science, and history of science assess the merits of the thesis of the incommensurability of scientific theories, one of the most controversial theses to emerge in the philosophy of science during the last 50 years. They address various problems raised by the problem of incommensurability, such as the meaning of change, reference of theoretical terms, scientific realism and anti-realism, rationality of theory choice, and cognitive aspects of conceptual change. They also explore the implications of incommensurability for cultural difference. Hoyningen-Huene is affiliated with the University of Hannover, Germany. Sankey is affiliated with the University of Melbourne, Australia. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)"Incommensurability and Related Matters" draws togethersome of the most distinguished contributors to the critical literatureon the problem of the incommensurability of scientific theories. Itaddresses all the various problems raised by the problem ofincommensurability, such as meaning change, reference of theoreticalterms, scientific realism and anti-realism, rationality of theorychoice, cognitive aspects of conceptual change, as well as exploringthe broader implications of incommensurability for culturaldifference. While it offers new work, and new directions ofdiscussion, on the topic of incommensurability, the book alsorecapitulates the history of the discussion of the topic that hastaken place within the literature on incommensurability.
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