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Birth-
Bastiaan Cornelis Van Fraassen was born in the German-occupied Netherlands on 5 April 1941. -
"The Scientific Image"
His most influential work, "The Scientific Image," published in 1980, challenges the realist interpretation of scientific theories. Van Fraassen argues that science aims not at finding true theories but at developing empirically adequate ones, specifically those that correctly describe observable phenomena. Van Fraassen, Bas C. The Scientific Image. Oxford University Press, 1980. -
Entry 1: The Scientific Image
In "The Scientific Image," van Fraassen introduces the concept of constructive empiricism. He suggests that the goal of science is not to discover true theories but to construct models that are empirically adequate. This approach focuses on the observable aspects of scientific theories and de-emphasizes the need to assert the truth of unobservable entities. Van Fraassen, Bas C. The Scientific Image. Oxford University Press, 1980. -
"Laws and Symmetry"
"Laws and Symmetry's three primary objectives are: First, to show the failure of current philosophical accounts of laws of nature. Second, to refute arguments for the reality of laws of nature. Third, to contribute to an epistemology and a philosophy of science antithetical to such metaphysical notions." Van Fraassen, Bas C. Laws and Symmetry. Clarendon Press, 1989. -
Entry 2: Scientific realism vs anti-realism
Van Fraassen's stance on scientific realism vs. anti-realism re-invigorates the debate within the philosophy of science. He asserts that acceptance of a scientific theory does not require belief in its literal truth but rather in its empirical adequacy. This perspective shifts the focus from metaphysical commitments to practical utility in scientific practice. Van Fraassen, Bas C. Laws and Symmetry. Clarendon Press, 1989. -
"The Empirical Stance"
Van Fraassen focuses on the philosophical problems of scientific and conceptual revolutions. He dismisses the unrelated schisms between religious and secular ways of seeing or conceiving of ourselves. He explores what it is to be or not be secular and points the way toward a new relationship between secularism and science within philosophy. Van Fraassen, Bas C. The Empirical Stance. Yale University Press, 2002. -
Entry 3: Observable phenomena
His emphasis on observability challenges the traditional realist view that science aims to describe both observable and unobservable aspects of the world. Van Fraassen suggests that a theory is empirically adequate if all observable phenomena conform to the theory, regardless of whether unobservable entities suggested by the theory actually exist. Van Fraassen, Bas C. The Empirical Stance. Yale University Press, 2002. -
"Scientific Representation: Paradoxes of Perspective"
"It is argued that indexicality enters irreducibly into the conditions of use and application of measurement, models, and theories. The book concludes with an analysis of the complex relationship between appearance and reality in the scientific world-picture, arguing against the completeness criterion that demands a derivation of the appearances from the theoretically postulated reality." Van Fraassen, Bas C. Scientific Representation: Paradoxes of Perspective. Oxford University Press, 2008. -
Entry 4: Contemporary Debate
Van Fraassen's constructive empiricism influences contemporary debates on scientific realism, theory acceptance, and the role of observation in science. His work has prompted philosophers to reconsider the aims and methods of scientific inquiry. This allowed a more nuanced understanding of scientific practice and its epistemological foundations. Van Fraassen, Bas C. Scientific Representation: Paradoxes of Perspective. Oxford University Press, 2008. -
Closer To Truth - YouTube Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cao76dS9hA Bas van Fraassen - Epistemology: How Do We Know What We Know?