At The Fringes Of Science (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Where does science end and fruitcakery begin? How can you tell the difference between the cutting edge, the speculative, and the wacky? Physicist Michael Friedlander looks all around the fringes of science and gives a helpful guide to drawing the lines. He is particularly good at showing science as a communal endeavor, with the strengths and weaknesses that implies, and he gives a more truthful account than is usual of how scientific journals and conferences actually work. Friedlander frankly admits that scientists have sometimes manufactured their own social problems, usually through arrogance. He is a "modified realist"; he provides checklists so you can tell the difference between a Galileo and a Velikovsky, but he also shows how scientists like Alfred Wegner (who thought up continental drift) can be essentially correct and yet not be believed. He even reveals one of the open secrets of science: that a theory can be incorrect or widely doubted, like the idea of a "fifth force" in physics, and still be a fruitful source of new research. --Mary Ellen Curtin

Product Description

Scientific discoveries are constantly in the news. But sometimes it turns out that what was trumpeted as scientific truth is later discredited. What is a nonscientist to believe? Here physicist Michael Friedlander offers a careful look at the shadowlands of science, examining the hard cases and explaining how a person may differentiate science from pseudo-science.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Westview Press (July 30, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813390605
• ISBN-13: 978-0813390604
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,567,228 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The review praises the book, June 16, 1999

By A Customer

This book was extremely well written. I was captivated by the way that the author exposed some important issues that are occuring.