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This book examines the philosophical foundations of the realist view of the progress of science as cumulative. It is a view that has recently been faced with a number of powerful attacks in which successive scientific theories are seen, not as extending their scope and honing their explanations, but as incommensurable. There is, it is held, in principle no way of establishing that they are about the same things. From the voluminous literature on the topic, Dr Smith has selected relevantly and incisively and his exposition of the contending arguments is vigourous and clear, without undue technicality. As an explication and defence of realism it will interest all those concerned with this basic question in the philosophy of science and the philosophy of language.

Pure sciences. Natural sciences (general) --- Philosophy of science --- Science --- Realism --- Reference (Philosophy) --- Hermeneutics --- Analysis (Philosophy) --- Sciences --- Réalisme --- Référence (Philosophie) --- Herméneutique --- Philosophie analytique --- Philosophy --- Philosophie --- -Natural science --- Science of science --- Referring, Theory of --- Theory of referring --- Empiricism --- Universals (Philosophy) --- Conceptualism --- Dualism --- Idealism --- Materialism --- Nominalism --- Positivism --- Rationalism --- Interpretation, Methodology of --- Criticism --- Analysis, Linguistic (Philosophy) --- Analysis, Logical --- Analysis, Philosophical --- Analytic philosophy --- Analytical philosophy --- Linguistic analysis (Philosophy) --- Logical analysis --- Philosophical analysis --- Philosophy, Analytical --- Language and languages --- Methodology --- Logical positivism --- Semantics (Philosophy) --- -Philosophy --- Réalisme --- Référence (Philosophie) --- Herméneutique --- Reference (philosophy) --- Normal science --- Arts and Humanities --- Realism. --- Hermeneutics. --- Philosophy.