Fact, Faith and Fiction in the Development of Science The Gifford Le

In this posthumous book, the late Professor R. Hooykaas (1906-1994) conveys a lifetime of historical thought about modes of scientific advance over the centuries. In what variety of ways has the human mind, with all its subjectivity and its capacity for s

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BOSTON STUDIES IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE

Editors ROBERT S. COHEN, Boston University JÜRGEN RENN, Max-Planck-Institutefor the History ofScience KOSTAS GAVROGLU, University ofAthens

Editorial Advisory Board THOMAS F. GUCK, Boston University ADOLF GRÜNBAUM, University of Pittsburgh SYLVAN S. SCHWEBER, Brandeis University JOHN J. STACHEL, Boston University MARX W. WARTOFSKY t (Editor 1960-1997)

VOLUME205

R. HOOYKAAS Emeritus Professor ofthe History of Science in Utrecht

FACT, F AITH AND FICTION IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF SCIENCE The Gifford Lectures Given in the University of St Andrews 1976

Springer-Science+Business Media, B.Y.

A C.I.P. Catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

Printed on acid-free paper

All Rights Reserved ISBN 978-90-481-5248-3 ISBN 978-94-015-9295-6 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-94-015-9295-6 © 1999 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

Originally published by Kluwer Academic Publishers in 1999. Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1999 No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the copyright owner.

Frontispiece: Preparation of Experiments, from: Thomas Norton, Ordinall ofAlkimy (British Library, Norton additional ms 10302, fo1.37v). By permission ofthe British Library.

T ABLE OF CONTENTS

Editors' Foreword ................................................................................................... ix Selected Bibliography ofR. Hooykaas ................................................................... xv AUTHOR'S PREFACE .................................................................................................. 1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................... 5 I.

ON NATURAL THEOLOGY ............................................................................... 17

11.

HARMONYINNATURE .................................................................................... 27

III. THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE ........................................................................... 79 IV.

THE UNDYING FIRE ........................................................................................ 99

V.

A TUNNEL THROUGH THE EARTH ................................................................. 117

VI.

'ANDTHESUNSTOODSTILL' ....................................................................... 147

VII. THINKING WITH THE HANDS ......................................................................... 183 VIII. PHYSICAL AND MATHEMATICAL THEORIES .................................................. 229 IX.

WORKS OF NATURE, WORKS OF ART ........................................................... 265

X.

CLEOPATRA'sNoSE .................................................................................... .319

XI.

THE 'THINKING REED' ................