Unifying Scientific Theories

Download or read book Unifying Scientific Theories written by Margaret Morrison and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2000-01-28 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is about the methods used for unifying different scientific theories under one all-embracing theory. The process has characterized much of the history of science and is prominent in contemporary physics; the search for a "theory of everything" involves the same attempt at unification. Margaret Morrison argues that, contrary to popular philosophical views, unification and explanation often have little to do with each other. The mechanisms that facilitate unification are not those that enable us to explain how or why phenomena behave as they do. The book emphasizes the importance of mathematical structures in unification, and claims that despite this common feature theory unification is a multi-faceted process for which no general account can be offered.