Science's First Mistake: Delusions in Pursuit of Theory
This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com.

The purpose of the book is to deconstruct the process of knowledge discovery and theory construction. Grounded in the tradition of second-order cybernetics, the concept of self-reference is used in the context of systems theory in order to examine the mode in which observation, paradox and delusion become 'structurally coupled' with cognition.

To put this simply, physical scientists take it as a given that all the universe is explainable once we've discovered the underlying rules. Whereas social scientists and philosophers are more sensitive to the issues around how the observer actually impacts that which is being observed.

The authors work in the fields of Information Studies, which is within the technical or physical realm, and Management Studies, which is about human behaviour. Their argument is that all scientists (physical and social) rely too much on the absolutism and certainty of the methods of traditional physical science and that we should acknowledge the limitations of how we know what we know. Rooted in information systems analysis this fresh and audacious examination of knowledge discovery and theory construction makes an important contribution to the understanding of how we employ scientific method.
1028107863
Science's First Mistake: Delusions in Pursuit of Theory
This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com.

The purpose of the book is to deconstruct the process of knowledge discovery and theory construction. Grounded in the tradition of second-order cybernetics, the concept of self-reference is used in the context of systems theory in order to examine the mode in which observation, paradox and delusion become 'structurally coupled' with cognition.

To put this simply, physical scientists take it as a given that all the universe is explainable once we've discovered the underlying rules. Whereas social scientists and philosophers are more sensitive to the issues around how the observer actually impacts that which is being observed.

The authors work in the fields of Information Studies, which is within the technical or physical realm, and Management Studies, which is about human behaviour. Their argument is that all scientists (physical and social) rely too much on the absolutism and certainty of the methods of traditional physical science and that we should acknowledge the limitations of how we know what we know. Rooted in information systems analysis this fresh and audacious examination of knowledge discovery and theory construction makes an important contribution to the understanding of how we employ scientific method.
26.99 In Stock
Science's First Mistake: Delusions in Pursuit of Theory

Science's First Mistake: Delusions in Pursuit of Theory

Science's First Mistake: Delusions in Pursuit of Theory

Science's First Mistake: Delusions in Pursuit of Theory

eBookepub (epub)

$26.99  $35.95 Save 25% Current price is $26.99, Original price is $35.95. You Save 25%.

Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
WANT A NOOK?  Explore Now

Related collections and offers

LEND ME® See Details

Overview

This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com.

The purpose of the book is to deconstruct the process of knowledge discovery and theory construction. Grounded in the tradition of second-order cybernetics, the concept of self-reference is used in the context of systems theory in order to examine the mode in which observation, paradox and delusion become 'structurally coupled' with cognition.

To put this simply, physical scientists take it as a given that all the universe is explainable once we've discovered the underlying rules. Whereas social scientists and philosophers are more sensitive to the issues around how the observer actually impacts that which is being observed.

The authors work in the fields of Information Studies, which is within the technical or physical realm, and Management Studies, which is about human behaviour. Their argument is that all scientists (physical and social) rely too much on the absolutism and certainty of the methods of traditional physical science and that we should acknowledge the limitations of how we know what we know. Rooted in information systems analysis this fresh and audacious examination of knowledge discovery and theory construction makes an important contribution to the understanding of how we employ scientific method.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781849660686
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date: 07/30/2010
Series: Criminal Practice Series
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 256
File size: 1 MB

About the Author

Ian Angell is Professor of Information Systems in the Department of Management at the London School of Economics, UK. His research interests include organizational and national IT policies, strategic information systems, computer security and systemic risk. He has written fourteen books, including The New Barbarian Manifesto (2000), and over a hundred research papers.

Dionysios Demetis is a Research Associate at London School of Economics and Political Science, UK. His research interests include Anti-Money-Laundering schemes and related technologies in the banking sector, Systems Theory, Computer Security and the global consequences of Information Systems.
Ian Angell is Professor of Information Systems in the Department of Management at the London School of Economics. His research interests include organizational and national IT policies, strategic information systems, computer security and systemic risk. He has written fourteen books, including The New Barbarian Manifesto (2000), and over a hundred research papers. Dionysios Demetis is a Research Associate at London School of Economics and Political Science. His research interests include anti-money-laundering schemes and related technologies in the banking sector, systems theory, computer security and the global consequences of information systems.
Dionysios S. Demetis is a Member of the Scientific Board of the Geolab Institute at the Ionian University, Greece.

Table of Contents

Theory and Paradox
Divination and Theory Construction
Delusion
Individual Allusions Contra Sensory Overload
Patterns of Categorical Delusions
Tidy Minds, Technology, and the Myth of Control
Making Sense of Systems
On the Premises of Observation
The Frame of Observation&the Functional Differentiation of Science
Higher Order Observations
Asymmetry and Self-Reference
The Principle of Collapsing Systems
The 'Reality' of the Real
Epilogue
From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews