Kuhn Vs Popper

In 1965 Thomas Kuhn and Karl Popper met at the University of London to stage what became the most momentous philosphical debate of the century. At stake was the soul of science itself. Popper pinned the future of science on scientists having the freedom to test their theories to the point of being false. But this required an 'open society' that tolerate error, even in the established authorities. Kuhn, in contrast, reflected heads-down Cold War mentality that scientists should not question authority in their own fields or society at large - unless absolutely necessary. Those rare occasions count as proper 'scientific revolutions'. Kuhn painted as the young radical against Popper as the conservative, won the battle. His Structure of Scientific Revolutions sold a million copies. Steve Fuller argues forcefully, however, that these caricatures of Kuhn and Popper's positions are fundamentally flawed - and that the wrong man won. The first popular account of this landmark confrontation, Kuhn vs Popper retells the story of the clash, the background behind it, and its legacy to our understanding of science.