Scientometric definition of science: In what respect is the humanities more scientific than mathematical and social sciences?

“What is science” is not only intellectually interesting but also politically crucial in the proper allocation of budget. As science does not define itself and only philosophy defines everything including science, this paper first sketches the philosophical view of science. Then, hypotheses are pres...

Ausführliche Beschreibung

Gespeichert in:
Bibliographische Detailangaben
Veröffentlicht in:Scientometrics 2008-07, Vol.76 (1), p.23-42
1. Verfasser: Eto, Hajime
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
Schlagworte:
Online-Zugang:Volltext
Tags: Tag hinzufügen
Keine Tags, Fügen Sie den ersten Tag hinzu!
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:“What is science” is not only intellectually interesting but also politically crucial in the proper allocation of budget. As science does not define itself and only philosophy defines everything including science, this paper first sketches the philosophical view of science. Then, hypotheses are presented as to what definition is actually given for science by scientific circles themselves. The hypotheses are tested in a scientometric way by observing the trend in the magazine Science . Unexpected results are obtained. The actual trend in Science does not reflect what has long been considered about science. Specifically, chemistry is at the top in the number of papers, far above physics. More papers are in historical sciences (part of the humanities) than in mathematics, computer science and social science. It is discussed in what respect chemistry is the most scientific, and the humanities is more scientific than the abovementioned three scientific fields. It is interpreted that, out of the two aspects in Galilei’s view of science ( metodo compositivo and metodo risolutivo. ), the latter (empirical solution of problems by using technical instruments) dominates the former (systematic theory using mathematics) in Science .
ISSN:0138-9130
1588-2861
DOI:10.1007/s11192-007-1883-9