-
Thomas Kuhn (1922- 1996)
Thomas Kuhn was an American historian and scientist. One of his most influential ideas is in his book The Structure of Scientific Revolutions published in 1962. In the book, Kuhn introduces the concept of the "paradigm shift", this is the idea that science is constantly changing based on the current social norms that can influence science. The idea of the paradigm shift helps define scientific research within particular periods.
https://shorturl.at/cb4hy -
David Bloor (1942 - Present)
David Bloor created the Strong Programme. This was the idea that scientific knowledge should be studied in the same way as all other knowledge. This means without privileging it as more rational or objective. This was seen as a good template of how scientific research should be done.
https://www.andrew.cmu.edu/course/76-101AA/readings/Bloor.htm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C10Q0mEbhUI -
Ian Hacking (1936 - 2023)
Ian Hacking made a substantial contribution to the understanding of the philosophy of science. In his book "The Emergence of Probability" (1975) he traces the historical development of probability theory. This lead to a more vast understanding of probability.
https://holbergprize.org/en/holberg-prize/about-ian-hacking#:~:text=He%20has%20made%20important%20contributions,history%20of%20psychology%20and%20psychiatry. -
Nancy Cartwright (1944 - Present)
Nancy Cartwright was an American philosopher of science and made a great impact with her book "How the Laws of Physics Lie" in 1983. In this book, she challenged the view that scientific laws are universal. She argued that the laws of physics only work in specific contexts. This way of thinking helps scientists realize that the laws of physics do not always provide a true description of reality.
Carl Hoefer (2008)
https://personal.lse.ac.uk/robert49/teaching/ph201/Week09_Hoefer.pdf