Philosophy of Science A–Z Stathis Psillos S t
PHILOSOPHY A–Z SERIES a t
GENERAL EDITOR: OLIVER LEAMAN h i These thorough, authoritative yet concise alphabetical guides introduce the s central concepts of the various branches of philosophy.Written by established P s philosophers, they cover both traditional and contemporary terminology. i l l o
Features s Philosophy of Science A–Z • Dedicated coverage of particular topics within philosophy • Coverage of key terms and major figures • Cross-references to related terms. Stathis Psillos P
An alphabetically arranged guide to the philosophy of science. h i While philosophy of science has always been an integral part of philosophy, since l o
the beginning of the twentieth century it has developed its own structure and its s
fair share of technical vocabulary and problems. o p
Philosophy of Science A–Z gives concise, accurate and illuminating accounts of key h
positions, concepts, arguments and figures in the philosophy of science. It aids y understanding of current debates, explains their historical development and connects them with broader philosophical issues. It presupposes little prior o knowledge of philosophy of science and is equally useful to the beginner, the f more advanced student and the general reader. S c i
Stathis Psillos is Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy and e
History of Science at the University of Athens, Greece. His book Causation and n
Explanation (Acumen, 2002) has received the British Society for the Philosophy c of Science Presidents’ Award. He is also the author of Scientific Realism: How Science e
Tracks Truth (Routledge, 1999) and the editor (with Martin Curd) of the Routledge A
Companion to the Philosophy of Science (forthcoming). – Z
Cover design: River Design, Edinburgh E
Edinburgh University Press d i 22 George Square, Edinburgh EH8 9LF barcode n b u
www.eup.ed.ac.uk r g
ISBN 978 0 7486 2033 3 h P1: QXN EUBK028-Psillos.cls-Sabon March 1, 2007 15:21
PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE A–Z
i P1: QXN EUBK028-Psillos.cls-Sabon March 1, 2007 15:21
Volumes available in the Philosophy A–Z Series
Christian Philosophy A–Z, Daniel J. Hill and Randal D. Rauser Epistemology A–Z, Martijn Blaauw and Duncan Pritchard Ethics A–Z, Jonathan A. Jacobs Feminist Philosophy A–Z, Nancy McHugh Indian Philosophy A–Z, Christopher Bartley Jewish Philosophy A–Z, Aaron W. Hughes Philosophy of Language A–Z, Alessandra Tanesini Philosophy of Mind A–Z, Marina Rakova Philosophy of Religion A–Z, Patrick Quinn
Forthcoming volumes
Aesthetics A–Z, Fran Guter Chinese Philosophy A–Z,BoMou Islamic Philosophy A–Z, Peter Groff Political Philosophy A–Z, Jon Pike
ii P1: QXN EUBK028-Psillos.cls-Sabon March 1, 2007 15:21
Philosophy of Science A–Z
Stathis Psillos
Edinburgh University Press
iii P1: QXN EUBK028-Psillos.cls-Sabon March 1, 2007 15:21
To my students