LEADER 03837nam 2200601 a 450 001 9910461276303321 005 20200520144314.0 010 $a1-280-59536-1 010 $a9786613625199 010 $a0-19-982808-3 035 $a(CKB)2670000000160600 035 $a(EBL)886533 035 $a(OCoLC)780445269 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000622980 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)12251275 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000622980 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10647935 035 $a(PQKB)10220123 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC886533 035 $a(Au-PeEL)EBL886533 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebr10540754 035 $a(CaONFJC)MIL362519 035 $a(EXLCZ)992670000000160600 100 $a20120127d2012 uy 0 101 0 $aeng 135 $aur|n|---||||| 181 $ctxt 182 $cc 183 $acr 200 10$aIgnorance$b[electronic resource] $ehow it drives science /$fStuart Firestein 210 $aOxford ;$aNew York $cOxford University Press$d2012 215 $a1 online resource (208 p.) 300 $aDescription based upon print version of record. 311 $a0-19-982807-5 320 $aIncludes bibliographical references and index. 327 $aMachine generated contents note: -- Chapter 1. A Short View of Ignorance -- Chapter 2. Finding Out -- Chapter 3. Limits, Uncertainty, Impossibility, and Other Minor Problems -- Chapter 4. Unpredicting -- Chapter 5. The Quality of Ignorance -- Chapter 6. Ignorance in Action: Case Histories -- Chapter 7. Ignorance beyond the Lab. 330 $a"Knowledge is a big subject, says Stuart Firestein, but ignorance is a bigger one. And it is ignorance--not knowledge--that is the true engine of science. Most of us have a false impression of science as a surefire, deliberate, step-by-step method for finding things out and getting things done. In fact, says Firestein, more often than not, science is like looking for a black cat in a dark room, and there may not be a cat in the room. The process is more hit-or-miss than you might imagine, with much stumbling and groping after phantoms. But it is exactly this "not knowing," this puzzling over thorny questions or inexplicable data, that gets researchers into the lab early and keeps them there late, the thing that propels them, the very driving force of science. Firestein shows how scientists use ignorance to program their work, to identify what should be done, what the next steps are, and where they should concentrate their energies. And he includes a catalog of how scientists use ignorance, consciously or unconsciously--a remarkable range of approaches that includes looking for connections to other research, revisiting apparently settled questions, using small questions to get at big ones, and tackling a problem simply out of curiosity. The book concludes with four case histories--in cognitive psychology, theoretical physics, astronomy, and neuroscience--that provide a feel for the nuts and bolts of ignorance, the day-to-day battle that goes on in scientific laboratories and in scientific minds with questions that range from the quotidian to the profound. Turning the conventional idea about science on its head, Ignorance opens a new window on the true nature of research. It is a must-read for anyone curious about science"--$cProvided by publisher. 606 $aScience$xPhilosophy 606 $aIgnorance (Theory of knowledge) 606 $aDiscoveries in science 608 $aElectronic books. 615 0$aScience$xPhilosophy. 615 0$aIgnorance (Theory of knowledge) 615 0$aDiscoveries in science. 676 $a501/.9 700 $aFirestein$b Stuart$0887911 801 0$bMiAaPQ 801 1$bMiAaPQ 801 2$bMiAaPQ 906 $aBOOK 912 $a9910461276303321 996 $aIgnorance$92026257 997 $aUNINA