Explanation and Understanding through Scientific Models

Publicata in parteneriat Academia Romana (filiala Iasi).

From Contents:
◊ Approaching the too many approaches on explanation
◊ Explanation and models - bringing the subjects together
◊ Placing scientific understanding in the new frame of inquiry
◊ Further means to implement the approach on explanatory models

The topic of scientific explanation was a central entry on the classical agenda of philosophy of science in the second part of the last century. The intense debate over more than four decades led to a sort of frustration and fatique and in consquence to a marginalization of the topic towards the turn of the century. This book argues for a reconsideration of the topic from the perspective of the new tendencies and developments in philosophy of science. One of the most promising recent orientation in the field is the one that concentrates on the important place models and the modeling processes have in the production and growth of scientific knowledge. The author argues for a relocation of the explanation topic under this modelistic perspective. The book justifies the necessity and the plausibility of such an approach by pointing to the drawbacks of the existing acccounts on explanation and the need to recuperate in an adequate way the processuality of the scientific knowledge as it unfolds in scientific practice. The new approch is meant to recuperate the dynamic and local aspects of explanation and integrate the explanatory activity into the larger process of scientific uniquiry. In the last part the author engages in a constructive search by suggesting a few elements that are indispensable for the implementation of the new perspective.

Tema explicatiei stiintifice a ocupat un loc central in agenda filosofiei stiintei in perioada clasica a disciplinei din a doua jumatate a secolului trecut. Dezbaterile intense in jurul temei au dus dupa mai mult de patru decenii la o oarecare frustare si in consecinta la o marginalizare a subiectului spre sfarsitul secolului. Cartea de fata pledeaza pentru o reconsiderare a tematicii luand din perspectiva noile tendinte aparute in cercetarile din filosofia stiintei.Unul dintre cele mai promitatoare orientari recente este cea care recupereaza locul si importanta modelelor si a proceselor de modelare pentru economia cunoasterii stiintifice. Autorul argumenteaza pentru o reasezare a tematicii explicatiei in aceast nou cadru modelist. Demersul cartii cauta pe de o parte sa justifice necesitatea si plauzibilitatea noii abordarii prin identificarea limitelor abordarilor deja existente si nevoia de a recupera in mod adecvat procesualitatea cunoasterii stiintifice asa cum apare in practica stiintifica reala. Pe de alta parte, autorul angajeaza un demers constructiv prin care sugereza si articuleaza cateva elemente indispensablie implementarii noii perpective ce recupereazaa aspectele dinamice si locale ale explicatiei si urmaresc sa o integreze in procesul mai larg al investigatiei stiintifice.