The Invention Of Science: Does Reading Cognitive Bias Research Distort The Mind?

Does Reading Cognitive Bias Research Distort The Mind? by Sam McNerney

Over break I read The Invention of Science: A New History of the Scientific Revolution by the British historian David Wootton. Wootton writes that modern science was invented between 1572 (when the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe saw a nova) and 1704 (when Isaac Newtorn published Opticks). A big part of the revolution was technological. The telescope, barometer, and printing press allowed people to study the world with more precision and share their findings with scholarly communities, such as The Royal Society. But, more importantly, the scientific revolution involved a new set of conceptual tools.

Take the concept of discovery, for instance. Until around the 16^th century, most...