This book is a trenchant analysis of the profound changes that are taking place in the whole scientific enterprise throughout the world. The author does not assume the reader has any technical knowledge of the natural sciences, their history, or politics, and addresses his book to everybody who is concerned about the future of science and its place in society.

'Science, Technology, and Society' - STS - has become a major educational theme. There are many courses in schools, universities and other institutions, dealing with all sorts of topics such as the history of science, energy policy, industrial innovation, technology assessment, Third World development, scientific method, and so on. But what is this subject really about? Why should it be taught? Who should study it? What should they learn? How should the subject be approached? Who should teach it? These questions are being asked by both teachers and students in many fields of science,...

Why believe in the findings of science? John Ziman argues that scientific knowledge is not uniformly reliable, but rather like a map representing a country we cannot visit. He shows how science has many elements, including alongside its experiments and formulae the language and logic, patterns and preconceptions, facts and fantasies used to illustrate and express its findings. These elements are variously combined by scientists in their explanations of the material world as it lies outside our everyday experience. John Ziman's book offers at once a valuably clear account and a radically...

In this book, originally published in 1987, John Ziman seeks the answers to crucial questions facing scientists who need to change the direction of their careers. A research scientist takes years to acquire specialized knowledge and skills. A whole career may then be spent as an expert in a very narrow field. But new discoveries and new social demands bring rapid change to science and technology. Is it really so difficult for scientists to move into new fields of research mid-career? How are their attitudes to change affected by their education, their research experience, their conditions of...

Philosophical puzzles, political problems, ethical enigmas - science has them all. Do some theories stink? Is research a gentlemanly art or a tough professional game? What happens to scientists who go gaga? Can scientific knowledge be treated as a commercial commodity? How can research be made relevant to national development? Is war good for physics? What should scientists do about Soviet dissidents? How does information become knowledge? Why bother about examinations? These and many other topics on the human side of science are discussed in this wide-ranging book, originally published in...

Professor Ziman paints a broad picture of science, and of its relations to the world in general.