Monday, August 15, 2011

The formation of the scientific mind

Browsing through the family library and looking for a book to take with me on vacation, I stumbled upon a book by Gaston Bachelard on the formation of the scientific mind. Here is the exciting first paragraph.

"One who studies the psychological conditions of scientific progress quickly becomes convinced that the problem of scientific knowledge must be posed in terms of obstacles, by which I mean neither external obstacles such as the complexity of phenomena, nor the weakness of the senses and of the human mind; it is in the intimate act of acquiring knowledge that, by some sort of functional necessity, appear troubles and slowdowns. There, we will show some causes of stagnation and even regression. There, we will distinguish some causes of inertia that we will call epistemological obstacles. The knowledge of reality is a light that must always project shadows somewhere. It is never immediate and full. The revelations about reality are always recurrent. Reality is never "what one might believe" but it is always what one should have thought. Empirical thought is clear a posteriori, once the machinery of reasoning has been tuned. It is by going over a past of errors that we can find truth, in a genuine act of intellectual repentance. In fact we acquire knowledge against a prior knowledge, by destructing poorly built knowledge, by moving on beyond what, in our own intellect, is an obstacle to intellectualisation."

11 comments:

  1. At Scientific Minds we believe that teaching students to investigate the world in a structured, scientific way produces critical thinkers.

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  2. Training of the scientific mind is a work in which Gaston Bachelard first to prepare the information theory and its evolution, which became the key to his thought as a whole - the concept of epistemological obstacle.

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  3. I'm not yet very far into it and it's my first read of Gaston Bachelard, so I'm sure you're right, but I can't comment on that yet. However. What's that "Idol lash" link?? Your comment inficates an interest in epistemology, but your name links to a website selling long eyelashes. What's with that??

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    1. Hi am looking for the english versiĆ³n of the book online because i am abroad and dont have time to buy and let it be delivered. Can you help? Tnx! Katherinevalkeniers@hotmail.com

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  4. I am agree with your opinion....

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  5. Nice post you have here. I will bookmarkt it and link it to my site if you leave my comment too.

    Thanks.

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  6. we can find truth, in a genuine act of intellectual repentance.

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  7. Reality is never "what one might believe" but it is always what one should have thought. Empirical thought is clear a posteriori, once the machinery of reasoning has been tuned.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Your comment inficates an interest in epistemology, but your name links to a website selling long eyelashes. What's with that??

    ReplyDelete
  9. fact we acquire knowledge against a prior knowledge, by destructing poorly built knowledge, by moving on beyond what, in our own intellect, is an obstacle to intellectualisation.

    ReplyDelete
  10. In fact we acquire knowledge against a prior knowledge, by destructing poorly built knowledge, by moving on beyond what, in our own intellect, is an obstacle to intellectualisation.

    ReplyDelete

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