Home
Order Page
Essays 
Video
Blogs & Links
About Us
TBD

What would be a history of science?   
    It is easy to make a list of scientists and weave them into a kind of story, although the tendency of biographers to make errors of science is problem. But a history of science and not just scientists, would weave the biographies into a specific kind of narrative, based on the idea that science progresses, if fitfully, by absorbing new dimensions of truth, brought into view by individuals, not by flopping from one idea to another.
    Such a history would show how a field develops from idea to idea, each new step correcting some things, supplementing others, but always necessarily incorporating the factual observations of the preceding generation, and showing why previously accepted principles looked right but included an error. 
    The fashion of saying that truth changes from generation to generation is specifically anti-cultural and it is present even in the natural sciences.  

How would such a narrative look?
    In [some ancient time] a scientist [name] discovered or just thought out [something], which was of crucial importance [briefly explained], and for a number of years, people either worked out the implications or argued with him. However, his ideas [were incomplete or had an error built in], perhaps for philosophical reasons [such as...] or perhaps because of bad or misunderstood observations by [himself or other people], and so, after a while, the field got stuck.
    Then [at a specific date] along came [someone] who saw what was needed to get going again. His insight caused a great stir, and there might have been opposition of various kinds [such as]; in fact, his thoughts may have been buried for [decades or hundreds of years], but in due time, truth prevailed and things went forward.
    But of course this was still not the whole story, and in fact, science got stuck again, needing a better understanding of [something] to go forward. 
    Then [at a specific date] along came [someone] who saw what was needed to get going again. ... etc.

Who can write it?
    Such a history of science could only be written by someone who knew both science and history; furthermore, he would have to understand some philosophical issues, and he would have to be free of political pressures to make the narrative look a certain way or to leave out certain people, or to exaggerate the importance of others. Each biography would be included simply on the basis of how that person developed, or hindered the development of, the field.


Reflections on History of Science
1000 Yrs of Catholic Scientists
1000 Years of Catholic Scientists
As a counter to the impression that the Church is opposed to science or scientific progress, Jane Meyerhofer has composed a list of over 200 Catholic scientists of the last 1000 years, beginning with Pope Sylvester, at the turn of the first millennium.

Copernicus, Galileo and the Catholic Sponsorship of Science
Here is the story of Galileo, to counter the impression of an anti-scientific church or an anti-church scientist. On the most famous and explosive -- and the most exploited -- case of the uneasy encounter between science and theology, Mary Daly and Jane Meyerhofer offer a comprehensive view of these two men whose work stands at the entrance into modern cosmology.  

Letter to the Grand Duchess
Galileo's own account of the appropriate relationship between science and theology has been called by Pope John Paul II a perfect model for hermeneutics. Originally a separate publication, it is now an appendix to the Copernicus/Galileo text. And Galileo is humorous to read. Don't miss this classic.

Click Copernicus & Galileo link above for more.


Cover 1000 Years
1000 Yrs shop cart
Pgs 136 $20
History Links
Cover Copernicus & Galileo
Copernicus & Galileo
85 Pgs $18
History Page

Hedge School
Hedge School
       The history of Science is rarely told; instead, a string of biographies is offered, with a bias against the Catholic Church, and, probably a lot of irrelevant environmentalism and global warming. 
        The problem of bias about the Catholic Church has been addressed, at least initially, by the two volumes here. 
        The second problem is more complex and philosophically (as well as scientifically) demanding. Pierre Duhem's history of physics in the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913 does it.

Anchor  #1  Anchor  #2  Anchor  #3
Unity of Truth - Galileo Story
View shopping cart