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The Methodology of Scientific Research Programmes Philosophical Papers Volume I The methodology of scientific research programmes Philosophical Papers Volume i IMRE LAKATOS EDITED BY JOHN WORRALL AND GREGORY CURRIE CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. UB der LMU München, on 13 Apr 2020 at 02:49:26, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511621123 cambridge university press Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo, Delhi, Dubai, Tokyo, Mexico City Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 8RU, UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521280310 © Imre Lakatos Memorial Appeal fund and the Estate of Imre Lakatos 1978 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 1978 First paperback edition 1980 Reprinted 1984, 1986, 1989, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1999 A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library isbn 978-0-521-21644-9 Hardback isbn 978-0-521-28031-0 Paperback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Information regarding prices, travel timetables, and other factual information given in this work is correct at the time of first printing but Cambridge University Press does not guarantee the accuracy of such information thereafter. Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. UB der LMU München, on 13 Apr 2020 at 02:49:26, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511621123 Contents Editors' introduction v Introduction: Science and pseudoscience , 1 Falsification and the methodology of scientific research programmes 8 1 Science: reason or religion? 8 2 Fallibilism versus falsificationism )o a Dogmatic (or naturalistic) falsificationism. The empirical basis ,2 b Methodological falsificationism. The 'empirical basis' 20 c Sophisticated versus naive methodological falsificationism. Progressive and degenerating problemshifts ,, 3 A methodology of scientific research programmes 4, a Negative heuristic: the 'hard core' of the programme -g b Positive heuristic: the construction of the 'protective belt' and the relative autonomy of theoretical science .~ c Two illustrations: Prout and Bohr r 2 1 Prout: a research programme progressing in an ocean of anomalies ,- 2 Bohr: a research programme progressing on inconsistent foundations „ d A new look at crucial experiments: the end of instant rationality gg 1 The Michelson-Morley experiment _„ 1 The Lummer-Pringsheim experiments -q 3 Beta-decay versus conservation laws g, 4 Conclusion. The requirement of continuous growth gg 4 The Popperian versus the Kuhnian research programme ^ Appendix: Popper, falsificationism and the 'Duhem-Qu'ne thesis' „„ 2 History of science and its rational reconstructions ,O2 Introduction Io2 1 Rival methodologies of science; rational reconstructions as guides to history Io3 a Inductivism loo b Conventionalism IQC. c Methodological falsificationism Iog d Methodology of scientific research programmes , I0 e Internal and external history , rg 2 Critical comparison of methodologies: history as a test of its rational reconstructions , 2 ^ a Falsificationism as a meta-criterion: history 'falsifies' falsificationism (and any other methodology) 12, Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. UB der LMU München, on 13 Apr 2020 at 02:49:25, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511621123 CONTENTS b The methodology of historiographical research programmes. History - to varying degrees -corroborates its rational reconstructions 131 c Against aprioristic and anti-theoretical approaches to methodology 136 d Conclusion 138 3 Popper on demarcation and induction 139 Introduction 139 1 Popper on demarcation 140 a Popper's game of science 140 b How can one criticize the rules of the scientific game? 144 c A quasi-Polanyiite 'falsification' of Popper's demarcation criterion 146 d An amended demarcation criterion 148 e An amended meta-criterion 151 2 Negative and positive solutions to the problem of induction: scepticism and fallibilism 154 a The game of science and the search for truth 154 b A plea to Popper for a whiff of 'inductivism' 159 4 (with Elie Zahar) Why did Copernicus's research programme supersede Ptolemy's? 168 Introduction 168 1 Empiricist accounts of the'Copernican Revolution' 169 2 Simplicism 173 3 Polyanyiite and Feyerabendian accounts of the Copernican revolution 176 4 The Copernican revolution in the light of the methodology of scientific research programmes 178 5 The Copernican revolution in the light of Zahar's new version of the methodology of scientific research programmes 184 6 A postscript on history of science and its rational reconstructions 189 5 Newton's effect on scientific standards 193 1 The justificationist high road to psychologism and mysticism 193 o Justificationism and its two poles: dogmatism and scepticism 193 b Psychologistic justificationism 195 c Justificationist fallibilism 198 2 Newtonian methodology versus Newtonian method 201 a Newton's problem: the clash between standards and acheivements 201 b Newtonians against metaphysical criticism 202 c Newton's idea of experimental proof and its credo quid absurdum 208 d Newtonians and factual criticism 214 e Newton's double legacy 220 References 223 Lakatos bibliography 237 Indexes 240 IV Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. UB der LMU München, on 13 Apr 2020 at 02:49:25, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511621123 Editors' introduction When Imrc Lakatos died in 1974, many friends and colleagues expressed the hope that his unpublished papers would be made available. Some were also interested in seeing his contributions to journals and conference proceedings collected together in a book. At the request of the managing committee of the Imre Lakatos Appeal Fund we have prepared two volumes of selected papers which we hope will meet these demands. None of the papers published here for the first time was regarded by Lakatos as entirely satisfactory. Some are early drafts, while others seem not to have been intended for publication. We have pursued a fairly liberal policy, including papers which, at least in their present form, Lakatos would not have allowed to go to print. As for previ- ously published papers, we have included them all except for the two papers, 'The Role of Crucial Experiments in Science' and 'Criticism and the Methodology of Scientific Research Programmes', which would have introduced undue repetition, and except for Proofs and Refutations, which recently appeared in book form. Volume 1 is a collection of Lakatos's best known articles developing the methodology of scientific research programmes, together with a hitherto unpublished essay on the effect of Newton's scientific achievement, and a new 'Postscript' to the already published paper on the Copernican Revolution. Although Lakatos perhaps came to be better known for his work in the philosophy of the physical sciences, he regarded himself as primarily a philosopher of mathematics. Volume 2 contains papers on the philosophy of mathematics, as well as some critical essays on contemporary philosophers, and some short polemical pieces reflect- ing his concern with political and educational matters, which, among other things, give an impression of his forceful personality. Information about the history of the material published here is included as introductory footnotes to each paper. These and other editorial footnotes are indicated by asterisks. (We have tried to minimise these editorial footnotes particularly in the case of previ- ously published papers.) Offprints of some of the published papers found in Lakatos's library contained handwritten corrections and we have incorporated Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. UB der LMU München, on 13 Apr 2020 at 02:49:25, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511621123.001 EDITORS INTRODUCTION these wherever possible. In preparing the previously unpublished papers for the press, we have taken the liberty of introducing some presentational alterations where the original text was incomplete, or seemed likely to be misleading, or where minor alterations seemed to produce major increases in readability. We felt justified in making these changes because Lakatos always took great care over the presen- tation of any of his material which was to be published and, prior to publication, he always had such material widely circulated among colleagues and friends for criticism and suggested improvements. These newly published papers would undoubtedly have undergone this treatment and the resulting changes have been much more far reaching than those we have dared to introduce. Wherever the device of enclosing our alterations within square brackets worked easily and
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