The Return to Cosmology: Postmodern Science and the Theology of Nature

This book explores the debate about cosmology from 1945 to 1982, reflecting the influence of Stephen Toulmin's study with Ludwig Wittgenstein. It discusses the skepticism of scientific concepts in nonscientific contexts and the possibility of working outward from the natural sciences into a larger cosmological realm. Toulmin argues that the classic Newtonian distinction between the observer and the observed was inimical to religious cosmology and any attempt to understand humanity and nature as parts of a single cosmos.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 290 pages
Publication date: 29 April 2022
Publisher: University of California Press

Thirty years ago, the distinction between different intellectual disciplines was a widely accepted axiom of intellectual practice. However, by the mid-1970s, even within the natural sciences, a shift towards more interdisciplinary concerns had begun to emerge. This shift made it possible to reevaluate the cosmological significance of the scientific world picture and to consider the possibility of religious cosmology and unscientific approaches.

This book, the result of a combined professional and personal quest, traces the evolution of cosmology, the theory of the universe, from 1945 to 1982. The open essay, Scientific Mythology, reflects the influence of Stephen Toulmin's postwar study with Ludwig Wittgenstein, which expresses skepticism towards the naive extrapolation of scientific concepts into nonscientific contexts. Over time, this skepticism gradually gives way to qualified optimism that there may be a genuine chance of expanding beyond the natural sciences towards a broader cosmological realm.

In a series of essays, the book explores the cosmological speculations of individual scientists, such as Arthur Koestler, Jacques Monod, Carl Sagan, and others. These essays provide insights into the diverse perspectives and ideas within the field of cosmology.

In the programmatic concluding essays, Toulmin argues that the traditional Newtonian distinction between the observer and the observed was not only detrimental to religious cosmology but also to any attempt to understand humanity and nature as part of a single cosmos. However, in the twentieth century, a significant shift occurred, known as the "death of the spectator." This shift compelled postmodern scientists, particularly in the fields of quantum physics and the rec.

Weight: 318g
Dimension: 203 x 127 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520306820