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Thomas S. Kuhn

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The Structure of Scientific Revolutions 3rd Edition

by Thomas S. Kuhn (Author)

4.5 318 ratings

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"A landmark in intellectual history which has attracted attention far beyond its own immediate field. . . . It is written with a combination of depth and clarity that make it an almost unbroken series of aphorisms. . . . Kuhn does not permit truth to be a criterion of scientific theories, he would presumably not claim his own theory to be true. But if causing a revolution is the hallmark of a superior paradigm, [this book] has been a resounding success." —Nicholas Wade, Science

"Perhaps the best explanation of [the] process of discovery." —William Erwin Thompson, New York Times Book Review

"Occasionally there emerges a book which has an influence far beyond its originally intended audience. . . . Thomas Kuhn's The Structure of Scientific Revolutions . . . has clearly emerged as just such a work." —Ron Johnston, Times Higher Education Supplement

"Among the most influential academic books in this century." —Choice

One of "The Hundred Most Influential Books Since the Second World War," Times Literary Supplement

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

There's a "Frank & Ernest" comic strip showing a chick breaking out of its shell, looking around, and saying, "Oh, wow! Paradigm shift!" Blame the late Thomas Kuhn. Few indeed are the philosophers or historians influential enough to make it into the funny papers, but Kuhn is one.

The Structure of Scientific Revolutions is indeed a paradigmatic work in the history of science. Kuhn's use of terms such as "paradigm shift" and "normal science," his ideas of how scientists move from disdain through doubt to acceptance of a new theory, his stress on social and psychological factors in science--all have had profound effects on historians, scientists, philosophers, critics, writers, business gurus, and even the cartoonist in the street.

Some scientists (such as Steven Weinberg and Ernst Mayr) are profoundly irritated by Kuhn, especially by the doubts he casts--or the way his work has been used to cast doubt--on the idea of scientific progress. Yet it has been said that the acceptance of plate tectonics in the 1960s, for instance, was sped by geologists' reluctance to be on the downside of a paradigm shift. Even Weinberg has said that "Structure has had a wider influence than any other book on the history of science." As one of Kuhn's obituaries noted, "We all live in a post-Kuhnian age." --Mary Ellen Curtin

Review

Thomas Kuhn (1922-1996) argued that scientific advancement is not evolutionary, but rather is a "series of peaceful interludes punctuated by intellectually violent revolutions", and in those revolutions "one conceptual world view is replaced by another". The University of Chicago Press has released The Structure Of Scientific Revolutions to the benefit of all students of the history of science, philosophy, and the impact of science on society (and society on the development of science). If every there were a true classic on the history and development of science that is "must" reading for each new generation, it is Kuhn's benchmark work, The Structure Of Scientific Revolutions. -- Midwest Book Review

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of Chicago Press; 3rd edition (December 15, 1996)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 212 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0226458083
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0226458083
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 1.2 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #310,931 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #64 in Linear Algebra (Books)
- #1,074 in History & Philosophy of Science (Books)
- #1,925 in Science & Mathematics

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4.5 318 ratings

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Thomas S. Kuhn

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Thomas Kuhn (1922-1996)was professor emeritus of philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His many books include The Structure of Scientific Revolutions and Black-Body Theory and the Quantum Discontinuity, 1894-1912, both published by the University of Chicago Press.

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Customers find the book insightful and useful for understanding scientific theory. They describe it as a scholarly dissertation that provides good information and helps them view scientific progress in a new way. However, opinions differ on readability - some find it easy to understand and lucid, while others consider it a difficult or heavy read.

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38 customers mention "Insight"35 positive3 negative

Customers find the book insightful and useful. They say it provides a scholarly philosophical dissertation on scientific theory. The basic ideas are interesting and the book is a solid foundational read for epistemology. However, some readers find it difficult to get through but the basic idea is interesting.

"Easy to read, interesting ideas, got it to read for fun and ended up basing my philosophy dissertation on it because it is a very useful framework..." Read more

"...points; it forced me to work through the book and really think about what I was reading. If you're looking for fluff and pablum; look elsewhere...." Read more

"In this book, Thomas Kuhn manages to convey fundamental concepts that will take you a step closer to understanding what science really is...." Read more

"...me a more detailed understanding of his thesis and his examples were more easily understood...." Read more

7 customers mention "Use"7 positive0 negative

Customers find the book useful and important for their studies. They continue to use it for research and consider it a life-changing book for science.

"...Was very helpful for me." Read more

"...'s analysis of scientific revolutions is exceptionally insightful and useful...." Read more

"Needed for a course I was taking, served it purpose in that course; and continued to use for research. Overall pleased with product." Read more

"Came in handy!" Read more

28 customers mention "Readability"10 positive18 negative

Customers have different views on the book's readability. Some find it easy to understand, with lucid prose and interesting ideas. Others find it difficult to read, with an involved writing style that makes it challenging for casual scientists.

"...So I decided to take a look at it. The book is relatively small, which means you might think it's an easy and quick read. You'd be wrong...." Read more

"Easy to read, interesting ideas, got it to read for fun and ended up basing my philosophy dissertation on it because it is a very useful framework..." Read more

"...Kuhn's ideas are conceptually simple, his involved writing style makes this book a tough reading...." Read more

"...The dictionary was not helpful because of all of Kuhn's specialized terminology. I read it once a year for about five years...." Read more

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Christine A. Gravina
Very interesting book
Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2024
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Easy to read, interesting ideas, got it to read for fun and ended up basing my philosophy dissertation on it because it is a very useful framework through which to discuss ideas in pretty much any field.

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Keith Smith
THE best book on change managment...
Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2003
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I read this book completely by accident; I found Kuhn's name and this book as a reference while looking for something completely different. When I checked out the reference a little further, I discovered that this book is generally considered a classic (anything written a half a century ago that's still cited probably has -some- staying power). So I decided to take a look at it.
The book is relatively small, which means you might think it's an easy and quick read. You'd be wrong. Kuhn's book is dense with information and thoughtful presentation, which makes it challenging to sail through quickly. However, I felt that was also one of its strong points; it forced me to work through the book and really think about what I was reading. If you're looking for fluff and pablum; look elsewhere.
So, what's the book about? As has been stated elsewhere, Kuhn's premise is that scientific progress isn't what it's typically made out to be. Generally, such as in most of my high school presentations, science is portrayed as a steadily moving river; progressing inevitably from one port of discovery to the next. Kuhn's book set that perspective on it's ear, by stating that science progresses relatively seamlessly until it gets near the edges of understanding, where it then begins fragmenting into a variety of perspectives and viewpoints. Eventually, a fundmental [paradigm] shift occurs which completely changes the world-view of that science (and which often creates an academic war to go with it). Once the dust has settled, revisionist history takes over, and we romanticize the struggle that our understanding went through in that period of growth and change.
Kuhn presents all this in a logical fashion, strengthing his argument via both a well-thought-out approach and a variety of supporting anecdotes. In particular, he doesn't rely too heavily on the Copernican revolution, which seems to be the only argument that others can present on scientific revolution. That alone contributes perhaps most heavily to the value of the argument.
So what has this got to do with change management? I worked as a management consultant for a few years, all before I read this book. Upon reading it, I was hit with the most blinding flash of the obvious; a lot of what I saw empirically in the business world echoed the issues of scientific paradigm shift that Kuhn so eloquently presented in this text. If your work involves any change to an organization; you -have- to read this book. It communicates, better than any book I've read on the subject, what's happening and why in the midst of change. The title may say "Scientific Revolutions," but the applicability is across the board. Buy it and read it.

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AMFAW
Personal experiences
Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2006
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Thomas Kuhn's book has provided comfort for me personally. There is no need to go into the details of his arguments. For example, whether the old generation has to die before paradigm shift can take place is not the issue. The issue is whether scientists resist anything new that cannot be fitted into the existing paradigm. Whether it took ten years or a lifetime for people to accept the theory of the origin of ulcers is irrelevant. I am disagreeing with the review by Peter Hobson (Groton, CT USA), 12/25/2005]. What's important is the initial reaction of the community to new ideas. I have evidence to support the observations and analysis by T. Kuhn.
Revolutionary ideas and theories gain faster acceptance if the new paradigm can quickly lead to economical and social benefits. I believe this is why the story of ulcers so quickly received the recognition of Nobel Prize in Medicine. If the idea leads to more effective treatment, who could hold up its consequences? Even the opponent would embrace it immediately because he would not want to suffer from ulcers.
The problem is that sometime the benefit of making a paradigm shift is not immediately obvious. The defendant of the old paradigm simply resists changes because the habit to tirelessly improve the old paradigm is hard to change.
It is difficult for us to appreciate the point of view expressed in Kuhn's book unless we are familiar with the process of a scientific revolution. I can verify based on my experiences, i.e., on the reactions to our work that Kuhn is "right on the money". Let me quote three remarks by the members of the community, first on my published scientific article, second on a rejected manuscript, and the third on my declined proposal to the National Science Foundation:

"To say that the conclusions drawn by the submitted article are controversial is an understatement of Herculean proportion....While scientific advancement often requires the disproving of established thought, the authors of this work attempt to do so without sufficient proof. The material responses described in this article could be ascribed to other physical processes, including those that adhere to the traditional school of thought...The urgency to abandon conventional wisdom without sound basis is disturbing."
"The Comment by xxx (two of whom are xxx Medalists) makes a very strong case for dismissing the main results of xxx (the present reviewer). Unfortunately, the Reply makes ZERO valid counterpoints and consequently should not be published. If xxx (the present reviewer) want to admit their mistakes and explain how they fell into the trap of publishing erroneous results, this might be useful so that others do not make similar mistakes in the future."
"Overall, the PI needs to calm down considerably. In this proposal and his recent papers, the PI tries valiantly to sell his work as the single most important breakthrough in the history of science! In fact, both the proposed and recent work is reasonable, but the overselling done by the PI irritates people."

I hope that people like Mr. Peter Hobson would in the future interview some people involved in scientific revolutions before making comments that could be misleading.
It is very sad that the phenomena described by Thomas Kuhn are real. I have learned to be patient and more tolerant after reading the book.
I am also very intrigued by his definition of Science as well as his statements regarding textbooks that present science as absolute truth without offering any historical perspective and describing where it comes from and who is chiefly responsible for creating it. I hope to write about these issues at another time.

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Kwok Man Tse
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Reviewed in Canada on June 12, 2020
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Ramkumar Revanur
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Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 4, 2020
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Average paper quality. Great content.

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George Tait Edwards
A key book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 7, 2018
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An essential book - replaces missing-in-libray copy

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Reviewed in Canada on April 1, 2014
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A must read this book teaches the limits of science and allows us to discern all the information out there today

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Vicente Ferrer
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Reviewed in France on November 2, 2013
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A little bit damaged, but it is not a big problem (cover and stains). Arrives in time. Good price. a

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