Nonclassical science: formation, principles, characteristics

The emergence of science in our modern view is a relatively new process that requires constant study. In the Middle Ages such a concept did not exist, since social conditions did not contribute to the development of science. The desire to give all existing objects and phenomena a rational explanation arose in the 16th-17th centuries, when the ways of cognizing the world were divided into philosophy and science. And this was only the beginning - with the passage of time and the change in the perception of people, the classical was partially replaced by non-classical science, and then postnonclassical emerged.

These teachings partially changed the concepts of classical science and limited the scope of its action. With the advent of non-classical science, many significant discoveries took place in the world, and new experimental data were introduced. The study of the nature of phenomena has moved to a new level.

Definition of nonclassical science

The nonclassical stage of the development of science came in the late XIX - mid XX century. It became a logical continuation of the classical current, which during this period underwent a crisis of rational thinking. It was the third scientific revolution, striking with its global character. Non-classical science proposed to understand objects not as something stable, but to let them through a kind of cut from different theories, ways of perception and research principles.

There was an idea that crossed out the entire process of natural science: to perceive the nature of the object and phenomena not as something self-evident, as it was before. Scientists proposed to consider them abstractly and accept the truth of explanations differing from each other, because in each of them there can be a grain of objective knowledge. Now the subject of science was studied not in its unchanged form, but in specific conditions of existence. Studies of one subject occurred in different ways, and therefore the final results could differ.

Principles of non-classical science

The principles of non-classical science were adopted, which consisted of the following:

1. The failure to accept the excessive objectivity of classical science, which offered to perceive an object as something unchangeable, not dependent on the means of its cognition.
2. Understanding the relationship between the properties of the object of research and the peculiarity of the actions carried out by the subject.
3. The perception of these links as the basis for determining the objectivity of describing the properties of the object and the world as a whole.
4. Adoption in the research set of principles of relativity, discreteness, quantization, complementarity and probability.

Studies as a whole have moved to a new polyfactorial concept: the refusal to isolate the subject of research in order to "purify the experiment" in favor of a comprehensive examination under dynamic conditions.

Features of the introduction of science

The formation of non-classical science completely changed the natural order of perception of the real world:

• In most doctrines, including natural science, non-classical science philosophy began to play an important role.
• The study of the nature of the subject is given more time, the researcher applies different methods and traces the interaction of the object in different conditions. The object and subject of the study became more interconnected.
• The interconnection and unity of the nature of all things has become stronger.
• A certain pattern has been formed, based on the causality of phenomena, and not only on the mechanical perception of the world.
• Dissonance is perceived as the main characteristic of objects in nature (for example, disagreements between the quantum and wave structures of simple particles).
• A special role is assigned to the relation of static studies to dynamic ones.
• The metaphysical way of thinking was replaced by a dialectical way, more universal.

After the introduction of the notion of non-classical science in the world , a lot of significant discoveries occurred, dating back to the late 19th - early 20th centuries. They did not fit into the established positions of classical science, therefore they completely changed the perception of the world of people. We will get acquainted with the basic theories of this time further.

Darwin's Theory of Evolution

One of the results of the adoption of non-classical science was the large work of Charles Darwin, materials and research for which he collected from 1809 to 1882. Now practically all theoretical biology is based on this doctrine. He systematized his observations and found that the main factors in the evolutionary process are heredity and natural selection. Darwin determined that the change in the characteristics of a species in the evolution process depends on certain and uncertain factors. Certain are formed under the influence of the environment, that is, with the same effect of natural conditions on most individuals, their features change (thickness of skin or wool cover, pigmentation, and others). These factors are adaptive and not transmitted to the next generation.

Undefined changes also occur under the influence of environmental factors, but occur accidentally with some individuals. Most often, they are inherited. If the change was useful for the species, it is fixed in the process of natural selection and transmitted to the next generations. Charles Darwin showed that evolution must be studied using a variety of principles and ideas, carrying out a variety of research and observations by nature. His discovery dealt a substantial blow to one-sided religious ideas about the universe of that time.

The theory of relativity of Einstein

In the next significant discovery, the methodology of non-classical science played a major role. We are talking about the work of Albert Einstein, who in 1905 published a theory about the relativity of bodies. Its essence was reduced to the study of the motion of bodies moving relative to each other at a constant speed. He explained that in this case it is wrong to perceive an individual body as a frame of reference - it is necessary to consider objects relative to each other and take into account the speed and trajectory of both objects.

In the theory of Einstein there are 2 basic principles:

1. The principle of relativity. It says: in all conventional frames of reference, moving relative to each other with the same speed and constant direction, the same rules will apply.
2. The principle of the speed of light. On it, the light speed is the highest, it is the same for all objects and phenomena and does not depend on the speed of their movement. The speed of light remains unchanged.

Fame for Albert Einstein brought a passion for experimental sciences and non-acceptance of theoretical knowledge. He made an invaluable contribution to the development of non-classical science.

Heisenberg's uncertainty principle

In 1926 Heisenberg developed his own quantum theory, changing the attitude of the macrocosm to the familiar material world. The general meaning of his work was that characteristics that the human eye can not visually observe (for example, the motion and trajectory of atomic particles) should not enter mathematical calculations. First of all, because the electron moves both as a particle and as a wave. At the molecular level, with any interaction between the object and the subject, changes occur in the motion of atomic particles that can not be traced.

The scientist undertook to transfer the classical point of view on the motion of particles to the system of physical calculi. He believed that in calculations only quantities directly related to the stationary state of the object, transitions between states and visible radiations should be used. Taking as a basis the principle of correspondence, he compiled a matrix table of numbers, where each value was assigned its own number. Each element in the table has a stationary or non-stationary state (in the transition from one state to another). Calculations, if necessary, should be made based on the number of the element and its state. Non-classical science and its features greatly simplified the system of calculations, which Heisenberg confirmed.

The big bang hypothesis

The question of how the Universe appeared, what was before its emergence and what will happen after, has always excited and worries not only scientists but also ordinary people. The nonclassical stage of the development of science opened one of the versions of the origin of civilization. This is the famous theory of the Big Bang. Of course, this is one of the hypotheses of the origin of the world, but most scientists are convinced of its existence as the only true version of the appearance of life.

The essence of the hypothesis is as follows: the entire universe and all its contents arose simultaneously as a result of the explosion about 13 billion years ago. Up to this time, nothing existed - only an abstract compact ball of matter, which has infinite temperature and density. At some point, this ball began to expand rapidly, there was a gap, and that Universe appeared that we know and are actively studying. This hypothesis also describes possible causes of the expansion of the universe and explains in detail all the phases that followed the Great Explosion: the initial expansion, cooling, the appearance of clouds of ancient elements, which initiated the formation of stars and galaxies. All the matter existing in the real world was created thanks to a giant explosion.

Rene Thom's Theory of Disasters

In 1960, the French mathematician René Tom expressed his theory of catastrophes. The scientist began to translate into mathematical language phenomena in which a continuous impact on matter or an object creates an abrupt result. His theory makes it possible to understand the origin of changes and sharp jumps in systems, despite its mathematical nature.

The meaning of the theory is as follows: any system has its own stable state of rest, in which it occupies a stable position or a certain range of them. When a stable system is exposed from outside, its original forces will be directed at preventing this impact. Then she will try to restore her original position. If the pressure on the system was so strong that it can not return to a stable state, a catastrophic change will take place. As a result, the system will adopt a new stable state, different from the original one.

Thus, practice has proved that there are not only non-classical technical sciences, but also mathematical ones. They help in the knowledge of the world not less than other teachings.

Post-nonclassical science

The emergence of post-non-classical science was due to a great leap in the development of means of obtaining knowledge and their subsequent processing and storage. This happened in the 70s of the XX century, when the first computers appeared, and all the accumulated knowledge needed to be translated into electronic form. Active development of integrated and interdisciplinary research programs began, science gradually merged with industry.

This period in science has indicated that it is impossible to ignore the role of man in the subject or phenomenon under investigation. The main stage in the advancement of science was the understanding of the world as an integral system. There was an orientation on the person not only in the choice of research methods, but also in general social and philosophical perception. In post-non-classical studies, complex systems that are able to develop independently, and natural complexes headed by man, became objects.

The basis was accepted understanding of integrity, where the whole universe, the biosphere, man and society as a whole are a single system. The person is inside this whole unit. He is investigating its part. In such conditions, natural and social sciences have become much closer, their principles are grasped by humanitarian ones. Nonclassical and post-non-classical science made a breakthrough in the principles of cognition of the world in general and society in particular, made a real revolution in the minds of people and methods of research.

Modern science

At the end of the 20th century, a new breakthrough in development and the development of modern non-classical science began. Artificial neural connections are being developed, which have become the basis for the formation of new smart computers. Machines could now solve simple problems and develop independently, moving to the solution of more complex tasks. The human factor is also included in the systematization of databases, which helps to determine the effectiveness and identify the existence of expert systems.

Nonclassical and post-non-classical science in the modern generalized form have the following characteristics:

1. Active dissemination of ideas about community and integrity, the possibility of independent development of the object and phenomenon of any nature. The concept of the world is being strengthened as an entire developing system, which at the same time has a propensity for instability and chaos.
2. The idea that part changes within the system are interrelated and conditioned by each other is reinforced and widely disseminated. Summarizing all the processes existing in the world, this idea initiated understanding and research of global evolution.
3. The application in all sciences of the concept of time, the appeal of the researcher to the history of the phenomenon. Dissemination of the theory of development.
4. Changes in the choice of the nature of research, the perception of an integrated approach to learning as the most faithful.
5. The fusion of the objective world and the world of man, the elimination of the distinction between the object and the subject. The person is inside the system under investigation, not outside.
6. The realization that the result of any method that non-classical science operates on will be limited and incomplete if only one approach is used in the study.
7. The spread of philosophy as a science in all doctrines. Understanding that philosophy - the unity of the theoretical and practical principles of the universe and without its comprehension is impossible perception of modern natural science.
8. Introduction of mathematical calculations in scientific theories, their strengthening and growth of abstract perception. Increasing the importance of computational mathematics, since most of the results of the study are required to be stated in numerical form. A large number of abstract theories led to the fact that science has become a kind of modern kind of activity.

In modern studies, the characteristics of non-classical science indicate the gradual weakening of rigid frames that limit the previously informative nature of scientific discussions. Preference in reasoning is given to the non-rational approach and the connection of logical thinking in the conduct of experiments. At the same time, rational reasoning remains as important as it is, but is perceived in an abstract way and is subject to repeated discussion and rethinking.