Thomas Kuhn ( Ohio) PhD in physics but never worked as physicist. Best known for theory of PARADIGMS Paradigms -thought patterns or conceptual frameworks in any science

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS METAPHYSICS  (WORLD VIEW/COSMOLOGY)  METHOD THEORY  METHOD HYPOTHESIS  METHOD The paradigm "sits above" one's metaphysics, etc., determining what your metaphysics will be. In turn, one's metaphysics or one's theory of method might determine which method one uses or which theory one uses. In turn, one's theories might determine which hypotheses are viable, and the method you used before might determine which methods are proper now.

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE BUT there is much fluidity--  A paradigm can be all encompassing —a metaphysics or a cosmology  But a paradigm DOES NOT have to be an all encompassing metaphysics or cosmology  A paradigm could be just a broad or narrower theory  A paradigm will influence method but when a paradigm shifts, method might remain the same, if pre-shift & post-shift entail same method

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE “ Paradigms gain their status because they are : more successful than their competitors in solving a few problems that the group of practitioners has come to recognize as acute"

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE INCOMMENSURABILITY : not possible to understand one paradigm through the conceptual framework and terminology of another rival paradigm. In other words, 2 scientists working from 2 competing paradigms cannot understand each other!

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE NORMAL SCIENCE is:  “Research firmly based upon one or more past scientific achievements  that some particular scientific community acknowledges for a time as supplying the foundation for its further practice “  “achievement(s)” are the PARADIGM

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE  Popper, Duhem, & Feigl all look at science as a path to discovery  Kuhn stresses dis-covery--taking the covers off a paradigm  paradigm unwrapped = (Normal Science)

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE COMMUNITIES OF SCIENTISTS (are where scientific paradigms come from)  Students study paradigms to become members of a particular scientific community  Students are taught & mentored by researchers who use the paradigms’ models & methods—paradigm becomes foundation.  So there's a circle here

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE By focusing attention on a small range of relatively esoteric problems, the paradigm forces scientists to investigate some part of nature in a detail and depth that would otherwise be unimaginable" (24). Normal science is busy work, and it is that detailed busy work that makes science successful

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE NORMAL SCIENCE's “busy work” of PUZZLE-SOLVING –rules apply  creating methods of inquiry.  formulating questions.  selecting ways to examine questions.  defining areas of relevance.  honing definitions.

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE MAIN PROBLEMS (as the work of NORMAL SCIENCE  Determine significant facts.  fact-gathering (experiments & observations described in journals)  increase accuracy & scope of facts relevant to paradigm.  Correlate facts w/ theory.  focus on facts relevant to predictions arising from paradigm’s theories  A paradigm sets the problems to be solved (27).  Articulate theory-- should produce new info & more precise paradigm.  resolve residual ambiguities,  permit solution of problems theory brings to light odetermination of universal constants. odevelopment of quantitative laws. oclarification by reformulation

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE WHAT NORMAL SCIENCE DOES NOT DO  no effort to invent new theory (and no tolerance for those who try).  no effort to look for new sorts of phenomena.  no effort to discover anomalies.  when anomalies pop up, they are usually discarded or ignored.  anomalies usually not even noticed (tunnel vision/one track mind).

Kuhn NORMAL SCIENCE PROBLEM W/ KUHN’S INFLUENCE ON SCIENTIFIC METHOD – PGS—incommensurability doesn’t seem to describe real scientific practice—paradigms overlap Kuhn’s own creation of a paradigm — now it’s okay to do the kind of busy work that more & more looks like bad science