["Unintended consequences of scientific discoveries" or: "Heterogeny of purposes" as phenomena of the history of science].
Copyright policy )["Unintended consequences of scientific discoveries" or: "Heterogeny of purposes" as phenomena of the history of science].
This paper deals with an old observation in respect to man's action--the problem of unintended consequences of human action. It presents the scientific approaches to this phenomenon in the 18th century and focusses then on the problem of unintended consequences of scientific discoveries. Using the prominent examples of Copernicus and Darwin the author shows that the actual outcomes and final effects of scientific discoveries must not necessarily be the originally intended ones. On the contrary, especially those results of scientific discoveries which have affected the sphere of world view (Weltanschauung) like the research works of Copernicus and Darwin were originally meant to be only scientific studies. The final results in respect to the world view were on Copernicus' side not even realized and on Darwin's side neither intended nor welcomed. The conclusion of this analysis is that due to the fact that both scientists did not have the intention to change the world view they can only partly be regarded to be responsible for the fundamental changes they finally caused.
Europe, History, 17th Century, History, 16th Century, Research, Science, Humans, History, 19th Century, History, 18th Century, History, 15th Century
Europe, History, 17th Century, History, 16th Century, Research, Science, Humans, History, 19th Century, History, 18th Century, History, 15th Century
selected citations These citations are derived from selected sources.This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).0 popularity This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.Average influence This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).Average impulse This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.Average
Citations provided by BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!