From one version to the other. Intra-theoretical change

Anouk Barberousse (1)

1 IHPST - Institut d'Histoire et de Philosophie des Sciences et des Techniques

Describing scientific change involves displaying scientific theories and their content. This is done by way of (rational) reconstructions, which usually neglect the variety of versions in which a scientific theory may appear. Although they possess a unity allowing them to bear the same name for decades, or even centuries, theories are diachronic, evolving entities. How should their evolution, i.e., into-theoretical change, be described? I claim that this description is best done in terms of a series of conceptual undertakings on the part of scientists aiming at examining the meaning of theoretical principles and concepts and broadening their domain. I present the implications of this hypothesis, which follows Robert Brandom's views on the philosophy of language, as well as the conception of scientific change in general associated with it.

Mots clés: versions of a theory; variational principles; classical mechanics; origin of scientific change

Domaines: Histoire, Philosophie et Sociologie des sciences

Anouk Barberousse. From one version to the other. Intra-theoretical change. Soler, Léna. Rethinking the Comparative Evaluation of Scientific Theories. Stabilities, Ruptures, Incommensurabilities, Springer, pp.87-101, 2008, Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Science ; 255, 978-1-4020-6274-2. ⟨10.1007/978-1-4020-6279-7_6⟩. ⟨halshs-00790905⟩