Towards an Initial Understanding of Science Russell McNeil, PhD Malaspina Great Books Lecture Series Malaspina Great Books 2006

Science as Fact Gathering Science as Falsification (how science advances) Science as Social Process Science as Myth Science as accurate Map of Reality Doce Me Bonitatem et Disciplinam et Scientiam Science is that branch of philosophy restricted to the application of guided human reason [models] to quantifiable [facts] and verifiable [falsifiable] measurables [sense data]. It is nothing more. It is nothing less. As a branch of philosophy science seeks to inform the whole. And it does.

The Planets

Mary Fairfax Somerville ( )

Uranus – the 7 th Planet Discovered by Alexis Bouvard March Motions precisely calculated and tabulated by Bouvard in 1821 Mary Somerville’s comments (1842): “The motions of Uranus, however, are already defective, probably because the discovery of that planet in 1781 is too recent to admit of much precision in the determination of its motions, or that possibly it may be subject to disturbances from some unseen planet revolving about the sun beyond the present boundaries of our system. If, after a lapse of years, the tables formed from a combination of numerous observations should be still inadequate to represent the motions of Uranus,the discrepancies may reveal the existence, nay, even the mass and orbit, of a body placed for ever beyond the sphere of vision ”

Neptune – the 8 th Planet 1846 John Adams reads Somerville’s comments and calculates orbit and communicated his results to the Astronomer Royal and the director of the Cambridge Observatory. Adams’ suggestion was treated with deference. Cambridge astronomer James Challis records but does not re-check Neptune observation on August Urbain Jean Leverrier independently calculates orbit and Leverrier had sends his calculations to J. G. Galle of the Berlin Observatory who discovered the new planet on September 23 and hence were credited with the discovery. The position of the planet Neptune was within 2.5 degrees of the location predicted by the theory of celestial mechanics.

Pluto – The 9 th Planet 1847 Somerville: “The prediction may now be transferred from Uranus to Neptune, whose perturbations may reveal the existence of a planet still further removed, which may for ever remain beyond the reach of telescopic vision-yet its mass, the form and position of its orbit, and all the circumstances of its motion may become known, and the limits of the solar system may still be extended hundreds of millions of miles.” 1882 Somerville (in her 89 th year): I was conscious that I had made no discovery myself, that I had no originality. I have perseverance and intelligence but no genius, that spark from heaven is not granted to the sex, we are of the earth, earthy, whether higher powers may be allotted to us in another state of existence God knows, original genius in science at least is hopeless in this – Discovery of Pluto