MARC details
| 000 -LEADER |
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05708cam a2200481 a 4500 |
| 001 - CONTROL NUMBER |
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ocm34245278 |
| 003 - CONTROL NUMBER IDENTIFIER |
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OCoLC |
| 005 - DATE AND TIME OF LATEST TRANSACTION |
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20251028093232.0 |
| 008 - FIXED-LENGTH DATA ELEMENTS--GENERAL INFORMATION |
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| fixed length control field |
960205s1996 nyua b 001 0 eng |
| 010 ## - LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CONTROL NUMBER |
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| LC control number |
96003910 |
| 035 ## - SYSTEM CONTROL NUMBER |
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| System control number |
(Sirsi) i9780801432408 |
| 040 ## - CATALOGING SOURCE |
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| Original cataloging agency |
DLC |
| Language of cataloging |
eng |
| Transcribing agency |
DLC |
| Modifying agency |
UKM |
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NLGGC |
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BTCTA |
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YDXCP |
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BAKER |
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OCLCG |
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UBC |
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P4I |
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HEBIS |
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BDX |
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VF$ |
| 015 ## - NATIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY NUMBER |
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| National bibliography number |
GB96-77032 |
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35831436 |
| 020 ## - INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BOOK NUMBER |
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| International Standard Book Number |
0801432405 (alk. paper) |
| 020 ## - INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BOOK NUMBER |
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| International Standard Book Number |
9780801432408 (alk. paper) |
| 035 ## - SYSTEM CONTROL NUMBER |
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| System control number |
(OCoLC)34245278 |
| Canceled/invalid control number |
(OCoLC)35831436 |
| 050 00 - LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CALL NUMBER |
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| Classification number |
Q 175 |
| Item number |
.M415 1996 |
| 049 ## - LOCAL HOLDINGS (OCLC) |
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| Holding library |
VF$A |
| 100 1# - MAIN ENTRY--PERSONAL NAME |
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| Personal name |
McAllister, James W. |
| Fuller form of name |
(James William), |
| Dates associated with a name |
1962- |
| 245 10 - TITLE STATEMENT |
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| Title |
Beauty & revolution in science / |
| Statement of responsibility, etc. |
James W. McAllister. |
| 246 30 - VARYING FORM OF TITLE |
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| Title proper/short title |
Beauty and revolution in science. |
| 260 ## - PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION, ETC. |
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| Place of publication, distribution, etc. |
Ithaca : |
| Name of publisher, distributor, etc. |
Cornell University Press, |
| Date of publication, distribution, etc. |
1996. |
| 300 ## - PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION |
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| Extent |
xi, 231 p. : |
| Other physical details |
ill. ; |
| Dimensions |
24 cm. |
| 504 ## - BIBLIOGRAPHY, ETC. NOTE |
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| Bibliography, etc. note |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| 520 ## - SUMMARY, ETC. |
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| Summary, etc. |
How reasonable and rational can science be when its practitioners speak of "revolutions" in their thinking and extol certain theories for their "beauty"? James W. McAllister addresses this question with the first systematic study of the aesthetic evaluations that scientists pass on their theories. P. A. M. Dirac explained why he embraced relativity by saying, "It is the essential beauty of the theory which I feel is the real reason for believing in it." Dirac's claim seems to belie rationalist accounts of science. Using this and a wealth of other historical examples, McAllister explains how scientists' aesthetic preferences are influenced by the empirical track record of theories, describes the origin and development of aesthetic styles of theorizing, and reconsiders whether simplicity is an empirical or an aesthetic virtue of theories. McAllister then advances an innovative model of scientific revolutions, in opposition to that of Thomas S. Kuhn. Three detailed studies demonstrate the interconnection of empirical performance, beauty, and revolution. One examines the impact of new construction materials on the history of architecture. Another reexamines the transition from the Ptolemaic system to Kepler's theory in planetary astronomy, and the third documents the rise of relativity and quantum theory in the twentieth century. |
| 505 0# - FORMATTED CONTENTS NOTE |
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| Formatted contents note |
The Rationalist Image of Science -- A Rationalist Model of Theory Evaluation -- Aesthetic Factors in Discovery and Justification -- The Boundaries of Scientific Behavior -- A Precursor:Hutcheson's Account of Beauty in Science -- The Distinction between Theories and Their Representations -- The Disregard of Abstract Entities by the Actor-Network Theory -- Perceiving the Properties of Abstract Entities -- Aesthetic Values, Properties, and Evaluations -- Aesthetic Criteria and Canons -- Identifying Which Properties of Theories Are Aesthetic -- Classes of Aesthetic Properties -- Form of Symmetry -- Invocation of a Model -- Visualization and Abstractness -- Metaphysical Allegiance -- Beauty in the Biological and Social Sciences -- The Theory of Aesthetic Disinterestedness -- The Accord of Aesthetic and Empirical Judgments -- Reductionism about Aesthetic and Empirical Judgments |
| 505 0# - FORMATTED CONTENTS NOTE |
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| Formatted contents note |
Precepts and Their Warrants -- The Warrant of Empirical Criteria -- The Aesthetic Induction -- The Conservatism of Aesthetic Canons -- Fashions and Styles in Science -- An Example of Scientific Style:Mechanicism -- Beauty as an Attribute of Truth -- Aesthetic Judgment and the Recognition of Truth and Falsity -- Einstein's Account of Theory Assessment -- The Properties of Theories and the Properties of Phenomena -- The Possible Success of the Aesthetic Induction -- The Empirical Corroboration of Metaphysical World Views -- The Controversy about Scientists' Simplicity Judgments -- Simplicity and the Unification of Phenomena -- Degrees and Forms of Simplicity -- Quantitative Definitions of Simplicity in Theory Choice -- Simplicity, Beauty, and Truth -- The Occurrence of Scientific Revolutions -- The Abandonment of Aesthetic Commitments |
| 505 0# - FORMATTED CONTENTS NOTE |
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| Formatted contents note |
Continuity and Rupture in Revolutions -- Understanding Past Science -- Factors Inducing and Inhibiting Revolutions -- The Analogy with Moral and Political Revolutions -- Aesthetic Judgments and Utilitarian Performance -- The Response of Architectural Design to Iron and Steel -- The Use of Reinforced Concrete in Architecture -- Materials and Forms in Industrial Design -- The Induction to Styles -- Testing the Model against History -- Did Copernicus's Theory Constitute and Empirical Advance? -- Copernicus's Return to Aristotelian Principles -- The Aesthetic Preference for Copernicus's Theory -- Kuhn's Account of the Acceptance of Copernicanism -- The Iconoclasm of Kepler's Ellipses -- Two Flaws in Classical Physics -- Aesthetic Factors in the Appeal of Relativity Theory -- Quantum Theory and the Loss of Visualization -- The Renunciation of Determinism -- Review of Results |
| 505 0# - FORMATTED CONTENTS NOTE |
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| Formatted contents note |
A Rational Warrant for Aesthetic Commitments -- The Rationality of Revolutions -- A Natural Inductive Disposition |
| 650 #0 - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM |
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| Topical term or geographic name entry element |
Science |
| General subdivision |
Philosophy. |
| 650 #0 - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM |
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| Topical term or geographic name entry element |
Science |
| General subdivision |
Mathematical models. |
| 650 #0 - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM |
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| Topical term or geographic name entry element |
Aesthetics. |
| 650 #0 - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM |
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| Topical term or geographic name entry element |
Rationalism. |
| 653 0# - INDEX TERM--UNCONTROLLED |
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| Uncontrolled term |
Science |
| -- |
Philosophy |
| 776 08 - ADDITIONAL PHYSICAL FORM ENTRY |
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| Relationship information |
Online version: |
| Main entry heading |
McAllister, James W. (James William), 1962- |
| Title |
Beauty & revolution in science. |
| Place, publisher, and date of publication |
Ithaca : Cornell University Press, 1996 |
| Record control number |
(OCoLC)604102604 |
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Baker and Taylor |
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96003910 |
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Baker & Taylor |
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active |
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