The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
theguardian.com
The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
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Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#2The only lasting source of enlightenment seems to come from science, and “The philosophy of science is as useful to scientists as ornithology is to birds.” -Feynman
Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#3The only lasting source of enlightenment seems to come from science, and “The philosophy of science is as useful to scientists as ornithology is to birds.” -Feynman
I would be very interested to know how much Feynman actually knew about the philosophy of science. My guess would be not very much at all.
Feynman, like some other famous scientists, gave in to the temptation of pontificating on subjects he knew very little about. Philosophy in general was something he seemed to have contempt for, without knowing much about it. I'd take his pronouncements on it with a huge grain of salt.
Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#4This article has little to do with the clickbait title of philosophy being over. It's mostly just a review of a book of revisionist history of Enlightenment-era Western philosophy.
Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#5The only lasting source of enlightenment seems to come from science, and “The philosophy of science is as useful to scientists as ornithology is to birds.” -Feynman
I would be very interested to know how much Feynman actually knew about the philosophy of science. My guess would be not very much at all. Feynman, like some other famous scientists, gave in to the temptation of pontificating on subjects he knew very little about. Philosophy in general was something he seemed to have contempt for, without knowing much about it. I'd take his pronouncements on it with a huge grain of s…
...Based on your assumption that he was ignorant of the subject, which you assume without any particular reason? That's somewhat ironic.
Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#6The only lasting source of enlightenment seems to come from science, and “The philosophy of science is as useful to scientists as ornithology is to birds.” -Feynman
I would be very interested to know how much Feynman actually knew about the philosophy of science. My guess would be not very much at all. Feynman, like some other famous scientists, gave in to the temptation of pontificating on subjects he knew very little about. Philosophy in general was something he seemed to have contempt for, without knowing much about it. I'd take his pronouncements on it with a huge grain of s…
Feynman did have a body of work to lean on that implies he understood science very deeply, which leads me to wonder what secrets the "philosophy of science" could possibly hold that he didn't understand.
Edit: verb tenses that wishfully put forth we still had Feynman.
Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#7Earlier quoted context omitted.
I would be very interested to know how much Feynman actually knew about the philosophy of science. My guess would be not very much at all. Feynman, like some other famous scientists, gave in to the temptation of pontificating on subjects he knew very little about. Philosophy in general was something he seemed to have contempt for, without knowing much about it. I'd take his pronouncements on it with a huge grain of s…
Feynman did have a body of work to lean on that implies he understood science very deeply, which leads me to wonder what secrets the "philosophy of science" could possibly hold that he didn't understand. Edit: verb tenses that wishfully put forth we still had Feynman.
If you are sincerely interested in the answer to that question, I urge you to take a philosophy of science class.
Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#8The only lasting source of enlightenment seems to come from science, and “The philosophy of science is as useful to scientists as ornithology is to birds.” -Feynman
It would be difficult to argue that science is the only lasting source of enlightenment. Science certainly helped to disentangle us from religious dogma and to provide a new, rational foundation for interpreting the world. It has led to an unprecedented advancement of technology and a deeper understanding of the universe. But in what way does science in the 21st century continue to advance and preserve human enlightenment? It isn't difficult to acknowledge the opposite effect -- that science has led to a certain disenchantment with the world and our place in it. It would also be difficult to argue that the philosophy of science is useless. Philosophy is more important to science than ever as it struggles to meaningfully interpret its data, especially in quantum mechanics and neurology. I know it upsets scientists to think about receiving help from a philosopher. That's why instead scientists are just becoming professional philosophers themselves!
Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#9The only lasting source of enlightenment seems to come from science, and “The philosophy of science is as useful to scientists as ornithology is to birds.” -Feynman
It would be difficult to argue that science is the only lasting source of enlightenment. Science certainly helped to disentangle us from religious dogma and to provide a new, rational foundation for interpreting the world. It has led to an unprecedented advancement of technology and a deeper understanding of the universe. But in what way does science in the 21st century continue to advance and preserve human enlighte…
Being disenchanted with reality and turning to fantasy is a normal human response, but it's far from enlightened.
Re: The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb review
#10"where Socrates postulates an ideal world of which our own reality is but a shadow" I think he means Plato.