The Relationship Between the New Theory and the Old Theory

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When we have a new theory, are we just throwing away everything of the past, or are we somehow building on it? The people who i think have done the most heroic job trying to resolve this are the structural realists. Even though our understanding of the universe may change, the mathematics still holds together. And that road gives us some pretty good confidence that, no, it's not perfect, the road continues,. and it may be uphill, but you're on this road.

In this interview, based on her landmark book, Why Trust Science?, historian of science Naomi Oreskes offers a bold and compelling defense of science, revealing why the social character of scientific knowledge is its greatest strength — and the greatest reason we can trust it. Drawing vital lessons from cases where scientists got it wrong, Oreskes shows how consensus is a crucial indicator of when a scientific matter has been settled, and when the knowledge produced is likely to be trustworthy.