Place of Science in a World of Values and Facts (Innovations in Science Education and Technology, 10)

This volume is unique and comprehensive in its description of science and the scientist, the role of science in our lives, and the nature of the most important achievements in science. It is the only book of its kind to thoroughly deconstruct so many aspects of scientific culture and its interaction with the larger society in which it is embedded. Written by a working scientist, the volume bridges the gap between the scientific and the nonscientific communities by relating broad social and philosophical issues to science, and by connecting science and its methods to modern human society. Us And The Cosmos -- A Few Thoughts On Human History -- The Micro (multi) Cultures Of The World -- The Timeless -- Modern People And The State Of Their Societies -- Change And The Rate Of Change That Changed The World -- A Violent World Without Peace -- Man's Natural Environment -- Earth's Resources -- The Power Of The Greek Myth -- The Way Science Works And Evolves -- The Science Of Greek Antiquity -- From Greek Astronomy To The Classical Physics Of The Macrocosmos -- The Scientific And The Industrial Revolutions -- The Foundations Of Modern Science -- A New Frame -- The Modern Era -- The Changing Character Of Science -- The Invaluable Value Of Science's Hereditary Past -- Science: The Penetrator Of The Physical Universe -- The Minuscule And The Gigantic Microscopes Of Modern Science -- The Dimensions Of Modern Science's Diversity -- The Richness Of Nature: Light -- The Laws Of Nature -- Fundamental Generalizations And Questions -- Distinct Characteristics And Principles Of Science -- Distinct Characteristics Of Science -- General Principles Of Science -- The Scientific Method -- The Scientist And The Science Worker -- The Scientist -- The Science Worker -- Their New Environs And Changing Functions -- From Basic Research To Application (science And Technology) -- Scientific Research And Technology -- The Technological Value Of Basic Research -- A Final Thought -- The Cultural And Educational Value Of Science -- The Cultural Value Of Science -- The Educational Value Of Science -- The University -- Where Science Meets Religion. Loucas G. Christophorou. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. This is an engrossing book. It is also an unusual book: it is written by a scientist who is quite willing to talk about the softer side of life, about things such as love and respect and responsibility, and to try and position them in the context of his science. He is also willing to talk about religion, the manner in which it relates to science and science to it, and to attempt reconciliation of both. He sets himself a tough task, to tread the narrow path between the maudlin and the severely sober. In this, he is eminently successful. He is successful not because he aims at any grand synthesis, but because he has chosen the more modest path of simply laying out the cards on the table. This work is also unusual for another reason. The majority of books that attempt to explain science to a lay public, that try to describe its workings, its raison d'être, its hidden contents, its societal impact, its implications for our future, etc. , are written by theorists. This is hardly surprising. The theoretician, after all, is expected to think deeply, to be the great unifier, to be concernedwith meaning. Very few books about science are written by scientists, ones who spend their time in a working experimental laboratory. This is such a book. And because it is, it is also a very different book. Annotation This volume is unique and comprehensive in its description ofscience and the scientist, the role of science in our lives, and thenature of the most important achievements in science. It is the onlybook of its kind to thoroughly deconstruct so many aspects ofscientific culture and its interaction with the larger society inwhich it is embedded. Written by a working scientist, the volumebridges the gap between the scientific and the nonscientificcommunities by relating broad social and philosophical issues toscience, and by connecting science and its methods to modern humansociety