Pierre duhem 18611916 was a french physicist and historian and philosopher of science. A physical theory reputed to be satisfactory by the sectarians of one metaphysical school will be. An essay on the idea of physical theory from plato to galileo. Duhems point goes further than merely claiming that theories are complex, however. Marie gueguen and stathis psillos antiscepticism and epistemic humility in pierre duhems philosophy of science.
According to duhem, the study of the history of science makes any such claim. Pierre duhem physical theory and experiment the physicist who carries out an experiment, or gives a report of one, implicitly recognizes the accu racy of a whole group of theories. Every experiment involves assumptions about the way in which the measuring instruments. Firstly, the fact that we always test our theory in light of other theories made duhem notice that the phenomena we are going to observe and the way we interpret them is always driven by theory. Pierre duhem physical theory and experiment l the experimental testing of a theory does not have the same logical simplicity in physics as in physiology the sole purpose of physical theory is to provide a representation and classification of experimental laws. Duliem historical and personal circumstances hlocked the career. His work encompasses thermodynamics, physical chemistry, hydrodynamics, elasticity. Pierre duhems concept of good sense milena ivanova 4 there are two important arguments that arise from the holistic thesis pointed by duhem. Pierre duhem, physical theory and experiment, from the aim and structure of physical theory. New perspectives on pierre duhems the aim and structure of physical theory.
Duhem was that rare, not to say unique, scientist whose contributions to the philosophy of science, the historiography of science, and science itself in thermodynamics, hydrodynamics, elasticity, and. Instead, deriving predictions from the hypothesis typically requires background assumptions that several other hypotheses are correct. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. The sole purpose of physical theory is to provide a representation and classification of experimental laws. He argued against explanatory theories and in favor of theories that. To save the phenomena, an essay on the idea of physical theory from plato to galileo. Physical theory and experiment the sole purpose of. Pierre duhem, french physicist, mathematician, and philosopher of science who emphasized a history of modern science based on evolutionary metaphysical concepts. The aim and structure of physical theory pierre maurice. Therefore the contradictions of a theory by experiment can be re.
Pierre maurice marie duhem was a french theoretical physicist who worked on. Instrumentalism is the view that scientific theories are useful tools for predicting phenomena instead of true or approximately true descriptions. Cabrespine, france, 14 september 1916 physics, rational mechanics, physical chemistry, history of science, philosophy of science. Duhems aim and structure of physical theory kynosarges. The aim and structure of physical theory princeton science library 9932nd edition. Duhem was also a historian of science, noted for his work on the european middle ages which is regarded as having created the field of the history of medieval science. This book will be of interest to scholars in history and philosophy of science, especially those interested in the development of physical chemistry and the work of pierre duhem.
The aim and structure of physical theory by pierre duhem. Selections from pierre duhem, the aim and structure of physical theory princeton science library edition, 1991, pp. The basic problem is that individual theoretical claims are unable to be confirmed or falsified on their own, in isolation from surrounding hypotheses. Pierre duhem 18611916, another important early positivist, studied physics at the ecole normale in paris, where he received a doctorate in physics, and was a professor of physics at the university of bordeaux for most of his career. Dossier pierre duhem antiscepticism and epistemic humility in. Duhems views on the nature of physical theories were similar to theirs and to henri. The physicist, in attempting to rectify a lame theory, resembles the physician and not the watchmaker. This book represents his most mature thought on a wide range of topics.
One must take into account duhems distinction between the aim of individual theories and the tendency of physical theories. Pierre duhem french physicist and philosopher britannica. Images of science, historical continuity, and the first crisis in physics duhem used historical arguments to draw philosophical conclusions about the aim and structure of physical theory. Holism and realism 25 a wellknown holist about scientific theory, duhem claimed that no particular scientific hypothesis can be tested by an experiment, since experiments test only whole bodies of theory, or sets of hypotheses, at a time. Quotes authors p pierre duhem if the aim of physical theories. Pierre duhem, the history and philosophy of physics, and the teaching of physics pierre duhem, the history and philosophy of physics, and the teaching of physics crowe, m. Pierre duhem was one of the great figures in french science, a devoted teacher, and a distinguished scholar of the history and philosophy of science. Pierre duhems good sense as a guide to theory choice. The quineduhem thesis is a form of the thesis of the underdetermination of theory by empirical evidence. Request pdf on mar 1, 2011, anastasios brenner and others published new perspectives on pierre duhems the aim and structure of physical theory find, read and cite all the research you need. Pierre maurice marie duhem, translated by philip p.
The duhemquine problem is named after pierre duhem 18611916 and willard van orman quine 19082000. In his work on the object and the structure of the physical theory, duhem maintains that it is not possible to put a hypothesis of physics to the test in isolation. Philosophy and history in the work of a believing physicist. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the death of pierre duhem, one of frances greatest intellects. Duhems main reason for advocating good sense is the complexity of theory choice in experimental science duhem, 1991b, pp. Instrumentalism is a pragmatic philosophy of john dewey that thought is an instrument for solving practical problems, and that truth is not fixed but changes as problems change. The central point of duhems holism is that theory choice is underdetermined by empirical evidence. The aim and structure of physical theory pierre duhem. Ernst mach and pierre duhem on physical theory book ii page 2 duhem on physical theory and metaphysics. Dossier pierre duhem antiscepticism and epistemic humility in pierre duhems philosophy of science. Duhems 1908 essay questions the relation between physical theory an.
If the aim of physical theories is to explain experimental laws, theoretical physics is not an autonomous science. Pierre duhem 18611916 was a french physicist and historian and. However, in 1906 pierre duhem argued that the falsification of a theory is necessarily ambiguous and therefore that there are no crucial experiments. Now that we have minutely analyzed the characteristics of a physical experiment and of a physical law, we can establish the prin. The duhemquine thesis argues that no scientific hypothesis is by itself capable of making predictions. Explicitly rejecting the idea that science is a set of models that. We will then turn to pierre duhems observation that there are no crucial experiments in physics. He maintained that the role of theory in science is to systematize relationships rather than to interpret new phenomena.
Commentary on the principles of thermodynamics by pierre duhem. The french term objet designates here that toward which the theory tends. Pierre duhem was born in paris on 10 june 1861, and died at his country home of cabrespine aude on 14 september. At the heart of the underdetermination of scientific theory by evidence is the simple idea that the evidence available to us at a given time may be insufficient to determine what beliefs we should hold in response to it. Most famous for his denial of the possibility of a crucial experiment which could unambiguously decide between contending scientific theories, duhem has often been interpreted as a mere instrumentalist or conventionalist, denying the meaningfulness of a reality. Can theories be refuted essays on the duhemquine thesis. An experiment in physics is the precise observation of phenomena accompanied by. He is best known for his work on chemical thermodynamics, for his philosophical writings on the indeterminacy of experimental criteria, and for his historical research into the science of the european middle ages. It is less concrete in its connotations than the term but. Pdf new perspectives on pierre duhems the aim and structure of. Images of science, historical continuity, and the first. The other papers, forming a threepart series, pursue this project of putting the foundations of thermodynamics on a clearer and more secure basis. As a physicist, he championed energetics, holding generalized thermodynamics as foundational for physical theory, that is, thinking that all of chemistry and physics, including mechanics, electricity, and magnetism, should be derivable from thermodynamic first principles. An experiment in physics can never condemn an isolated hypothesis but only a whole theoretical group the physicist who carries out an experiment, or gives a report of one, implicitly recognizes the.
1498 344 531 437 1299 571 897 1148 1056 1294 490 1188 156 1065 30 640 127 777 969 156 792 831 202 50 1249 1327 204 853 530 841 1438 1409 19 1010 397 981 39 983 1115 398 542 1088 932