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. |
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