Whewell’s Tidal Researches: Scientific Practise and Philosophical Methodology

Ducheyne, Steffen (2009) Whewell’s Tidal Researches: Scientific Practise and Philosophical Methodology.

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Abstract

Primarily between 1833 and 1840, Whewell attempted to accomplish what natural philosophers and scientists since at least Galileo had failed to do: to provide a systematic and broad-ranged study of the tides and to attempt to establish a general scientific theory of tidal phenomena. In the essay at hand, I document the close interaction between Whewell’s philosophy of science (especially his methodological views) and his scientific practice as a tidologist. I claim that the intertwinement between Whewell’s methodology and his tidology is more fundamental than has hitherto been documented.

Keywords:William Whewell, tidology, history of HPS, scientific methodology, Whewell Papers.
Subjects:General Issues: Confirmation/Induction
General Issues: History of Philosophy of Science
General Issues: Philosophers of Science
General Issues: History of Science Case Studies
ID Code:4847
Deposited By:Ducheyne, Steffen
Deposited On:25 August 2009
Additional Information:This preprint contains the final version of a paper forthcoming in Studies in History and Philosophy of Science, Part A.