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The theoretical level of scientific knowledge includes. Empirical and theoretical levels of scientific knowledge

In knowledge, two levels are distinguished: empirical and theoretical.

Empirical (from gretriria - experience) level of knowledge - this is knowledge obtained directly from experience with some rational processing of the properties and relations of the object is known. It is always the basis, the basis for the theoretical level of knowledge.

Theoretical level is knowledge gained through abstract thinking

A person begins the process of cognition of an object from its external description, fixes its individual properties, sides. Then it goes deep into the content of the object, reveals the laws to which it is subject, proceeds to an explanation of the properties of the object, combines knowledge about the individual aspects of the subject into a single, integral system, and the resulting deep versatile specific knowledge about the subject is a theory that has a certain internal logical structure.

It is necessary to distinguish the concepts of "sensual" and "rational" from the concepts of "empirical" and "theoretical". scientific knowledge"empirical" and "theoretical" lie within the sphere of less than scientific knowledge.

Empirical knowledge is formed in the process of interaction with the object of study, when we directly influence it, interact with it, process the results and draw a conclusion. But getting separate. The EMF of empirical facts and laws does not yet allow us to build a system of laws. In order to know the essence, it is necessary to go to the theoretical level of scientific knowledge.

Empirical and theoretical levels of knowledge are always inextricably linked and mutually condition each other. Thus, empirical research, revealing new facts, new observational and experimental data, stimulates the development of the theoretical level, poses new problems and tasks for it. In turn, theoretical research, considering and concretizing the theoretical content of science, opens up new perspectives. IVI explanations and predictions of facts and thereby orients and directs empirical knowledge. Empirical knowledge is mediated by theoretical knowledge - theoretical knowledge indicates exactly which phenomena and events should be the object of om empirical research and under what conditions the experiment should be carried out. At the theoretical level, the boundaries are also identified and indicated, in which the results at the empirical level are true, in which empirical knowledge can be used in practice. This is precisely the heuristic function of the theoretical level of scientific knowledge.

The boundary between the empirical and theoretical levels is very arbitrary, their independence relative to each other is relative. The empirical passes into the theoretical, and what was once theoretical, at another, higher stage of development, becomes empirically accessible. In any sphere of scientific knowledge, at all levels, there is a dialectical unity of the theoretical and empirical. The leading role in this unity of dependence on the subject, conditions, and already existing, obtained scientific results belongs either to the empirical or to the theoretical. The basis of the unity of the empirical and theoretical levels of scientific knowledge is the unity of scientific theory and research practice.

50 Basic methods of scientific knowledge

Each level of scientific knowledge uses its own methods. So, at the empirical level, such basic methods as observation, experiment, description, measurement, modeling are used. At the theoretical level - analysis, synthesis, abstraction, generalization, induction, deduction, idealization, historical and logical methods, etc.

Observation is a systematic and purposeful perception of objects and phenomena, their properties and relationships in natural conditions or in experimental conditions with the aim of understanding the object under study.

The main monitoring functions are:

Fixation and registration of facts;

Preliminary classification of facts already recorded on the basis of certain principles formulated on the basis of existing theories;

Comparison of recorded facts

With the complication of scientific knowledge, the goal, plan, theoretical guidelines, and comprehension of the results are gaining more and more weight. As a result, the role of theoretical thinking in the observation

Especially difficult is observation in the social sciences, where its results largely depend on the worldview and methodological attitudes of the observer, his attitude to the object

The method of observation is a limited method, since it can only fix certain properties and connections of an object, but it is impossible to reveal their essence, nature, development trends. Comprehensive with the observation of the object is the basis for the experiment.

An experiment is a study of any phenomena by actively influencing them by creating new conditions that correspond to the goals of the study, or by changing the course of the process in a certain direction.

Unlike simple observation, which does not involve an active impact on an object, an experiment is an active intervention of a researcher into natural phenomena, into the course of those being studied. An experiment is a type of practice in which practical action is organically combined with the theoretical work of thought.

The significance of the experiment lies not only in the fact that with its help science explains the phenomena of the material world, but also in the fact that science, relying on experiment, directly masters one or another dos of the studied phenomena. Therefore, the experiment serves as one of the main means of communication between science and production. After all, it makes it possible to verify the correctness of scientific conclusions and discoveries, new laws and data. The experiment serves as a means of research and invention of new devices, machines, materials and processes in industrial production, a necessary stage in the practical testing of new scientific and technical discoveries.

The experiment is widely used not only in the natural sciences, but also in social practice, where it plays an important role in the knowledge and management of social processes.

The experiment has its specific features compared to other methods:

The experiment allows you to explore objects in the so-called pure form;

The experiment allows you to explore the properties of objects in extreme conditions, which contributes to a deeper penetration into their essence;

An important advantage of the experiment is its repeatability, due to which this method acquires special significance and value in scientific knowledge.

A description is an indication of the features of an object or phenomenon, both essential and non-essential. Description, as a rule, is applied to single, individual objects for a more complete acquaintance with them. His method is to give the most complete information about the object.

Measurement is a specific system for fixing and recording the quantitative characteristics of an object under study using various measuring instruments and apparatus. Measurement is used to determine the ratio of one quantitative characteristic of an object to another, homogeneous with it, taken as a unit of measurement. The main functions of the measurement method are, firstly, fixing the quantitative characteristics of the object, and secondly, the classification and comparison of measurement results.

Modeling is the study of an object (original) by creating and studying its copy (model), which, by its properties to a certain extent, reproduces the properties of the object under study.

Modeling is used when the direct study of objects for some reason is impossible, difficult or impractical. There are two main types of modeling: physical and mathematical. At the present stage of development of scientific knowledge, a particularly large role is given to computer modeling. A computer that operates special program, is able to simulate the most real processes: fluctuations in market prices, orbits of spaceships, demographic processes, other quantitative parameters of the development of nature, society, and an individual person.

Methods of the theoretical level of knowledge

Analysis is the division of an object into its components (sides, features, properties, relationships) with the aim of their comprehensive study.

Synthesis is the union of previously identified parts (sides, features, properties, relationships) of an object into a single whole.

Analysis and synthesis are dialectically contradictory and interdependent methods of cognition. Cognition of an object in its concrete integrity presupposes a preliminary division of it into components and consideration of each of them. This is the task of the analysis. It makes it possible to single out the essential, that which forms the basis of the connection of all aspects of the object under study is, dialectical analysis is a means of penetrating into the essence of things. But playing an important role in cognition, analysis does not provide knowledge of the concrete, knowledge of the object as a unity of the manifold, the unity of various definitions. This task is performed by synthesis. Consequently, analysis and synthesis are organically interacting with emopoyazani and mutually condition each other at each stage of the process of theoretical knowledge and knowledge.

Abstraction is a method of abstracting from some of the properties and relations of an object and, at the same time, focusing on those that are the immediate subject. scientific research. Abstraction with contributes to the penetration of knowledge into the essence of phenomena, the movement of knowledge from the phenomenon to the essence. It is clear that abstraction dismembers, coarsens, schematizes an integral mobile reality. However, this is precisely what makes it possible to more deeply study the individual aspects of the subject "in its pure form" and, therefore, to penetrate into their essence of their essence.

Generalization is a method of scientific knowledge that captures the general features and properties of a certain group of objects, makes the transition from the singular to the special and general, from the less general to the more cryptic.

In the process of cognition, it is often necessary, relying on existing knowledge, to draw conclusions that are new knowledge about the unknown. This is done using methods such as induction and deduction.

Induction is such a method of scientific knowledge, when, on the basis of knowledge about the individual, a conclusion is made about the general. This is a method of reasoning by which the validity of the put forward assumption or hypothesis is established. In real cognition, induction always acts in unity with deduction, is organically connected with it.

Deduction is a method of cognition when, on the basis of general principle in a logical way, from certain propositions as true, new true knowledge about the individual is necessarily derived. With the help of this method, the individual is known on the basis of knowledge of general laws.

Idealization is a method of logical modeling through which idealized objects are created. Idealization is aimed at the processes of conceivable construction of possible objects. The results of idealization are not arbitrary. In the limiting case, they correspond to individual real properties of objects or allow their interpretation based on the data of the empirical level of scientific knowledge. Idealization is associated with a "thought experiment", as a result of which, from a hypothetical minimum of some signs of the behavior of objects, the laws of their functioning are discovered or generalized. The boundaries of the effectiveness of idealization are determined by practice.

Historical and logical methods are organically combined. The historical method involves consideration of the objective process of the development of the object, its real history with all its twists and turns. This is a certain way in reproducing in thinking the historical process in its chronological sequence and concreteness.

The logical method is the way in which thinking reproduces the real historical process in its theoretical form, in a system of concepts.

task historical research is the disclosure of specific conditions for the development of certain phenomena. The task of logical research is to reveal the role that individual elements of the system play in the development of the whole.

In knowledge, two levels are distinguished: empirical and theoretical.

Empirical (from Gr. Emreiria - experience) level of knowledge - this is knowledge obtained directly from experience with some rational processing of the properties and relations of the object is known. It is always the basis, the basis for the theoretical level of knowledge.

Theoretical level is knowledge gained through abstract thinking.

A person begins the process of cognition of an object from its external description, fixes its individual properties, sides. Then he goes deep into the content of the object, reveals the laws to which he is subject, proceeds to explain the properties of the object, combines knowledge about the individual aspects of the subject into a single, integral system, and the deep versatile concrete knowledge obtained at the same time about the subject is a theory that has a certain internal logical structure.

It is necessary to distinguish the concept of "sensual" and "rational" from the concepts of "empirical" and "theoretical". "Sensual" and "rational" characterize the dialectics of the process of reflection in general, while "empirical" and "theoretical" belong to the sphere of scientific knowledge only.

Empirical knowledge is formed in the process of interaction with the object of study, when we directly influence it, interact with it, process the results and draw a conclusion. But obtaining individual empirical facts and laws does not yet allow one to construct a system of laws. In order to know the essence, it is necessary to go to the theoretical level of scientific knowledge.

Empirical and theoretical levels of knowledge are always inextricably linked and mutually condition each other. Thus, empirical research, revealing new facts, new observational and experimental data, stimulates the development of the theoretical level, poses new problems and tasks for it. In turn, theoretical research, considering and concretizing the theoretical content of science, opens up new perspectives for explaining and predicting facts, and thereby orients and directs empirical knowledge. Empirical knowledge is mediated by theoretical knowledge - theoretical knowledge indicates exactly which phenomena and events should be the object of empirical research and under what conditions the experiment should be carried out. Theoretically, it also turns out and indicates the limits in which the results at the empirical level are true, in which empirical knowledge can be used in practice. This is precisely the heuristic function of the theoretical level of scientific knowledge.

The boundary between the empirical and theoretical levels is rather arbitrary, their independence relative to each other is relative. The empirical passes into the theoretical, and what was once theoretical, at another, higher stage of development, becomes empirically accessible. In any sphere of scientific knowledge, at all levels, there is a dialectical unity of the theoretical and empirical. The leading role in this unity of dependence on the subject, conditions and already existing, obtained scientific results belongs either to the empirical or to the theoretical. The basis of the unity of the empirical and theoretical levels of scientific knowledge is the unity of scientific theory and research practice.

Basic methods of scientific knowledge

Each level of scientific knowledge uses its own methods. So, at the empirical level, such basic methods as observation, experiment, description, measurement, modeling are used. Theoretically - analysis, synthesis, abstraction, generalization, induction, deduction, idealization, historical and logical methods, and the like.

Observation is a systematic and purposeful perception of objects and phenomena, their properties and relationships in natural conditions or under experimental conditions with the aim of knowing the object under study.

The main monitoring functions are as follows:

Fixation and registration of facts;

Preliminary classification of facts already recorded on the basis of certain principles formulated on the basis of existing theories;

Comparison of recorded facts.

Especially difficult is observation in the social sciences, where its results largely depend on the worldview and methodological attitudes of the observer, his attitude to the object.

The method of observation is limited by the method, since with its help it is only possible to fix certain properties and connections of an object, but it is impossible to reveal their essence, nature, development trends. Comprehensive observation of the object is the basis for the experiment.

Unlike simple observation, which does not involve an active impact on the object, an experiment is an active intervention of the researcher into natural phenomena, in the course of the processes that are being studied. An experiment is a kind of practice in which practical action is organically combined with the theoretical work of thought.

The significance of the experiment lies not only in the fact that with its help science explains the phenomena of the material world, but also in the fact that science, relying on experience, directly masters one or another of the studied phenomena. Therefore, the experiment serves as one of the main means of communication between science and production. After all, it allows you to verify the correctness of scientific conclusions and discoveries, new patterns. The experiment serves as a means of research and invention of new devices, machines, materials and processes in industrial production, a necessary stage in the practical testing of new scientific and technical discoveries.

The experiment is widely used not only in the natural sciences, but also in social practice, where it plays an important role in the knowledge and management of social processes.

The experiment has its own specific features compared to other methods:

The experiment makes it possible to study objects in the so-called pure form;

The experiment allows you to explore the properties of objects in extreme conditions, which contributes to a deeper penetration into their essence;

An important advantage of the experiment is its repeatability, due to which this method acquires special significance and value in scientific knowledge.

A description is an indication of the features of an object or phenomenon, both essential and non-essential. Description, as a rule, is applied to single, individual objects for a more complete acquaintance with them. Its purpose is to give the most complete information about the object.

Measurement is a specific system for fixing and recording the quantitative characteristics of the object under study using various measuring instruments and apparatus. With the help of measurement, the ratio of one quantitative characteristic of an object to another, homogeneous with it, taken as a unit of measurement, is determined. The main functions of the measurement method are, firstly, fixing the quantitative characteristics of the object; secondly, classification and comparison of measurement results.

Modeling is the study of an object (original) by creating and studying its copy (model), which, by its properties to a certain extent, reproduces the properties of the object under study.

Modeling is used when the direct study of objects for some reason is impossible, difficult or impractical. There are two main types of modeling: physical and mathematical. At the present stage of development of scientific knowledge, a particularly large role is given to computer modeling. A computer that operates according to a special program is able to simulate the most real processes: market price fluctuations, spacecraft orbits, demographic processes, and other quantitative parameters of the development of nature, society, and an individual.

Methods of the theoretical level of knowledge.

Analysis is the division of an object into its constituent parts (sides, features, properties, relationships) with the aim of their comprehensive study.

Synthesis is the union of previously identified parts (sides, features, properties, relationships) of an object into a single whole.

Analysis and synthesis are dialectically contradictory and interdependent methods of cognition. Cognition of an object in its concrete integrity presupposes a preliminary division of it into components and consideration of each of them. This task is performed by analysis. It makes it possible to single out the essential, that which forms the basis of the connection of all aspects of the object under study. That is, dialectical analysis is a means of penetrating the essence of things. But, while playing an important role in cognition, analysis does not provide knowledge of the concrete, knowledge of the object as a unity of the manifold, the unity of various definitions. This task is performed by synthesis. So, analysis and synthesis are organically interconnected and mutually condition each other at each stage of the process of theoretical knowledge.

Abstraction is a method of abstracting from certain properties and relations of an object and at the same time focusing on those that are the direct subject of scientific research. Abstracting contributes to the penetration of knowledge into the essence of phenomena, the movement of knowledge from the phenomenon to the essence. It is clear that abstraction dismembers, coarsens, schematizes an integral mobile reality. However, this is precisely what allows a deeper study of individual aspects of the subject "in its purest form." And that means getting into their essence.

Generalization is a method of scientific knowledge that captures the general features and properties of a certain group of objects, makes the transition from the individual to the special and the general, from the less general to the more general.

Deduction is a method of cognition, when, on the basis of a general principle, a new true knowledge about a separate one is necessarily derived from some provisions as true ones. With the help of this method, the individual is known on the basis of knowledge of general patterns.

Historical and logical methods are organically linked. The historical method involves consideration of the objective process of the development of the object, its real history with all its twists and turns. This is a certain way of reproducing in thinking the historical process in its chronological sequence and concreteness.

The logical method is a method by which mentally reproduces the real historical process in its theoretical form, in a system of concepts.

The task of historical research is to reveal the specific conditions for the development of certain phenomena. The task of logical research is to reveal the role that individual elements of the system play in the development of the whole.

28. Empirical and theoretical level of scientific knowledge. Their main forms and methods

Scientific knowledge has two levels: empirical and theoretical.

- it is direct sensory exploration real and experiential objects.

At the empirical level, the following research processes:

1. Formation of the empirical base of the study:

Accumulation of information about the studied objects and phenomena;

Determining the scope of scientific facts as part of the accumulated information;

Introduction of physical quantities, their measurement and systematization of scientific facts in the form of tables, diagrams, graphs, etc.;

2. Classification and theoretical generalization information about the received scientific facts:

Introduction of concepts and designations;

Identification of patterns in the connections and relationships of objects of knowledge;

Identification of common features in objects of knowledge and their reduction into general classes according to these features;

Primary formulation of initial theoretical positions.

Thus, empirical level scientific knowledge contains two components:

1. Sensory experience.

2. Primary theoretical understanding sensory experience.

The basis of the content of empirical scientific knowledge received in sensory experience, are scientific facts. If any fact, as such, is a reliable, single, independent event or phenomenon, then scientific fact- it is a fact, firmly established, reliably confirmed and correctly described by the methods accepted in science.

Revealed and fixed by the methods accepted in science, a scientific fact has a coercive power for the system of scientific knowledge, that is, it subordinates the logic of the reliability of the study.

Thus, at the empirical level of scientific knowledge, an empirical research base is formed, whose reliability is formed by the coercive force of scientific facts.

Empirical level scientific knowledge uses the following methods:

1. observation. Scientific observation is a system of measures for the sensory collection of information about the properties of the studied object of knowledge. The main methodological condition for correct scientific observation is the independence of the results of observation from the conditions and process of observation. The fulfillment of this condition ensures both the objectivity of observation and the implementation of its main function - the collection of empirical data in their natural, natural state.

Observations according to the method of conducting are divided into:

- immediate(information is obtained directly by the senses);

- indirect(human senses are replaced by technical means).

2. Measurement. Scientific observation is always accompanied by measurement. Measurement is a comparison of any physical quantity of the object of knowledge with the reference unit of this quantity. Measurement is a sign of scientific activity, since any research becomes scientific only when measurements are made in it.

Depending on the nature of the behavior of certain properties of an object in time, measurements are divided into:

- static, in which time-constant quantities are determined ( external dimensions bodies, weight, hardness, constant pressure, specific heat capacity, density, etc.);

- dynamic, in which time-varying quantities are found (oscillation amplitudes, pressure drops, temperature changes, changes in quantity, saturation, speed, growth rates, etc.).

According to the method of obtaining the measurement results, they are divided into:

- straight(direct measurement of a quantity with a measuring device);

- indirect(by mathematical calculation of a quantity from its known ratios with any quantity obtained by direct measurements).

The purpose of measurement is to express the properties of an object in quantitative characteristics, translate them into a language form and make the basis of a mathematical, graphical or logical description.

3. Description. The measurement results are used for the scientific description of the object of knowledge. A scientific description is a reliable and accurate picture of the object of knowledge, displayed by means of a natural or artificial language.

The purpose of the description is to translate sensory information into a form convenient for rational processing: into concepts, into signs, into diagrams, into drawings, into graphs, into numbers, etc.

4. Experiment. An experiment is a research impact on an object of knowledge to identify new parameters of its known properties or to identify its new, previously unknown properties. An experiment differs from an observation in that the experimenter, unlike the observer, intervenes in the natural state of the object of cognition, actively influences both himself and the processes in which this object participates.

According to the nature of the goals set, the experiments are divided into:

- research, which are aimed at discovering new, unknown properties in an object;

- verification, which serve to test or confirm certain theoretical constructions.

According to the methods of conducting and tasks for obtaining the result, the experiments are divided into:

- quality, which are of an exploratory nature, set the task of revealing the very presence or absence of certain theoretically assumed phenomena, and are not aimed at obtaining quantitative data;

- quantitative, which are aimed at obtaining accurate quantitative data about the object of knowledge or about the processes in which it participates.

After the completion of empirical knowledge, the theoretical level of scientific knowledge begins.

THEORETICAL LEVEL OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE is the processing of empirical data by thinking with the help of the abstract work of thought.

Thus, the theoretical level of scientific knowledge is characterized by the predominance of the rational moment - concepts, inferences, ideas, theories, laws, categories, principles, premises, conclusions, conclusions, etc.

The predominance of the rational moment in theoretical knowledge is achieved by abstracting- distraction of consciousness from sensually perceived concrete objects and transition to abstract representations.

Abstract representations are subdivided into:

1. Identification abstractions- grouping a set of objects of knowledge into certain types, genera, classes, orders, etc., according to the principle of identity of any of the most essential features (minerals, mammals, composites, chordates, oxides, protein, explosives, liquids, amorphous, subatomic, etc.).

Identification abstractions make it possible to discover the most general and essential forms of interactions and connections between objects of knowledge, and then move from them to particular manifestations, modifications and options, revealing the fullness of the processes occurring between objects of the material world.

Distracting from the non-essential properties of objects, the abstraction of identification allows us to translate specific empirical data into an idealized and simplified system of abstract objects for the purposes of cognition, capable of participating in complex operations of thinking.

2. Isolating abstractions. Unlike abstractions of identification, these abstractions separate into separate groups not objects of knowledge, but their general properties or features (hardness, electrical conductivity, solubility, impact strength, melting point, boiling point, freezing point, hygroscopicity, etc.).

Isolating abstractions also make it possible to idealize empirical experience for the purpose of cognition and express it in terms capable of participating in complex operations of thinking.

Thus, the transition to abstractions allows theoretical knowledge to provide thinking with a generalized abstract material for obtaining scientific knowledge about the whole variety of real processes and objects of the material world, which could not be done, limited only to empirical knowledge, without abstraction from each of these innumerable objects or processes. .

As a result of abstraction, the following METHODS OF THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE:

1. Idealization. Idealization is mental creation of objects and phenomena that are not feasible in reality to simplify the process of research and construction of scientific theories.

For example: the concepts of a point or a material point, which are used to designate objects that do not have dimensions; the introduction of various conventional concepts, such as: ideally flat surface, ideal gas, absolutely black body, absolutely rigid body, absolute density, inertial frame of reference, etc., to illustrate scientific ideas; orbit of an electron in an atom, pure formula chemical without impurities and other concepts that are impossible in reality, created to explain or formulate scientific theories.

Idealizations are appropriate:

When it is necessary to simplify the object or phenomenon under study in order to build a theory;

When it is necessary to exclude from consideration those properties and connections of the object that do not affect the essence of the planned research results;

When the real complexity of the object of study exceeds the existing scientific possibilities of its analysis;

When the real complexity of the objects of study makes it impossible or makes it difficult to describe them scientifically;

Thus, in theoretical knowledge, a real phenomenon or object of reality is always replaced by its simplified model.

That is, the idealization method in scientific knowledge is inextricably linked with the modeling method.

2. Modeling. Theoretical modeling is replacement of a real object by its analogue performed by means of language or mentally.

The main condition for modeling is that the created model of the object of knowledge due to high degree its correspondence to reality, allowed:

Conduct research of the object that is not feasible in real conditions;

Conduct research on objects that are in principle inaccessible in real experience;

Conduct research on an object that is directly inaccessible at the moment;

Reduce the cost of research, reduce its time, simplify its technology, etc.;

Optimize the process of building a real object by running the process of building a prototype model.

Thus, theoretical modeling performs two functions in theoretical knowledge: it investigates the object being modeled and develops a program of action for its material embodiment (construction).

3. thought experiment. The thought experiment is mental holding over the object of cognition unrealizable in reality research procedures.

It is used as a theoretical testing ground for planned real research activities, or for the study of phenomena or situations in which a real experiment is generally impossible (for example, quantum physics, the theory of relativity, social, military or economic models of development, etc.).

4. Formalization. Formalization is logical organization of content scientific knowledge means artificial language special symbols (signs, formulas).

Formalization allows:

Bring the theoretical content of the study to the level of general scientific symbols (signs, formulas);

Transfer the theoretical reasoning of the study to the plane of operating with symbols (signs, formulas);

Create a generalized sign-symbolic model of the logical structure of the phenomena and processes under study;

To carry out a formal study of the object of knowledge, that is, to carry out research by operating with signs (formulas) without directly referring to the object of knowledge.

5. Analysis and synthesis. Analysis is a mental decomposition of the whole into its constituent parts, pursuing the following goals:

Study of the structure of the object of knowledge;

The division of a complex whole into simple parts;

Separation of the essential from the non-essential in the composition of the whole;

Classification of objects, processes or phenomena;

Highlighting the stages of a process, etc.

The main purpose of analysis is the study of parts as elements of the whole.

The parts, known and comprehended in a new way, are formed into a whole with the help of synthesis - a method of reasoning that constructs new knowledge about the whole from the union of its parts.

Thus, analysis and synthesis are inseparably linked mental operations as part of the process of cognition.

6. Induction and deduction.

Induction is a process of cognition in which knowledge of individual facts in the aggregate leads to knowledge of the general.

Deduction is a process of cognition in which each subsequent statement logically follows from the previous one.

The above methods of scientific knowledge allow us to reveal the deepest and most significant connections, patterns and characteristics of objects of knowledge, on the basis of which there are FORMS OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE - ways of cumulative presentation of research results.

The main forms of scientific knowledge are:

1. Problem - a theoretical or practical scientific question that needs to be addressed. A correctly formulated problem partially contains a solution, since it is formulated on the basis of the actual possibility of its solution.

2. A hypothesis is a proposed way of possibly solving a problem. A hypothesis can act not only in the form of assumptions of a scientific nature, but also in the form of a detailed concept or theory.

3. Theory is an integral system of concepts that describes and explains any area of reality.

Scientific theory is the highest form of scientific knowledge, passing in its formation the stage of posing a problem and putting forward a hypothesis, which is refuted or confirmed by the use of methods of scientific knowledge.

Basic terms

ABSTRAGING- distraction of consciousness from sensually perceived concrete objects and the transition to abstract ideas.

ANALYSIS (general concept) - mental decomposition of the whole into its component parts.

HYPOTHESIS- the proposed way of a possible solution to a scientific problem.

DEDUCTION- the process of cognition, in which each subsequent statement logically follows from the previous one.

SIGN- a symbol that serves to record quantities, concepts, relationships, etc. of reality.

IDEALIZATION- mental creation of objects and phenomena that are impossible in reality to simplify the process of their study and the construction of scientific theories.

MEASUREMENT- comparison of any physical quantity of the object of knowledge with the reference unit of this quantity.

INDUCTION- the process of cognition, in which knowledge of individual facts in the aggregate leads to knowledge of the general.

THOUGHT EXPERIMENT- mental carrying out on the object of cognition of research procedures that are not feasible in reality.

OBSERVATION- a system of measures for the sensory collection of information about the properties of the object or phenomenon under study.

SCIENTIFIC DESCRIPTION- a reliable and accurate picture of the object of knowledge, displayed by means of a natural or artificial language.

SCIENTIFIC FACT- a fact firmly established, reliably confirmed and correctly described in the ways accepted in science.

PARAMETER- a value that characterizes any property of an object.

PROBLEM- a theoretical or practical scientific issue that needs to be addressed.

PROPERTY- an external manifestation of one or another quality of an object, distinguishing it from other objects, or, conversely, related to them.

SYMBOL- the same as the sign.

SYNTHESIS(process of thinking) - a method of reasoning that constructs new knowledge about the whole from the combination of its parts.

THEORETICAL LEVEL OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE- processing of empirical data by thinking with the help of abstract work of thought.

THEORETICAL SIMULATION- replacement of a real object with its analogue, made by means of the language or mentally.

THEORY- an integral system of concepts that describes and explains any area of reality.

FACT- reliable, single, independent event or phenomenon.

FORM OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE- a way of cumulative presentation of the results of scientific research.

FORMALIZATION- logical organization of scientific knowledge by means of an artificial language or special symbols (signs, formulas).

EXPERIMENT- research impact on the object of knowledge to study previously known or to identify new, previously unknown properties.

EMPIRICAL LEVEL OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE- direct sensory study of objects that really exist and are accessible to experience.

EMPIRY- the area of human relations with reality, determined by sensory experience.

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Chapter II. Forms of the development of scientific knowledge The formation and development of a theory is the most complex and lengthy dialectical process, which has its own content and its own specific forms. The content of this process is the transition from ignorance to knowledge, from incomplete and inaccurate

The theoretical level of scientific knowledge is characterized by the predominance of the rational moment - concepts, theories, laws and other forms of thinking. Thinking is an active process of generalized and indirect reflection of reality carried out in the course of practice. Human thinking is carried out in the closest connection with speech, and its results are fixed in the language as a certain sign system.

Theoretical knowledge reflects phenomena and processes from the point of view of their universal internal connections and regularities comprehended with the help of rational data processing of empirical knowledge. This processing is carried out with the help of inference, laws, categories, principles, etc.

The theory is built in such a way that it describes not the surrounding reality, but idealized objects. Idealization is the main logical operation of theoretical thinking. Its purpose and result is the creation, construction of a special type of objects - idealized objects, work with which is an essential characteristic of theoretical knowledge.

A characteristic feature of theoretical knowledge is the study of the very process of knowledge, its forms, techniques, methods, conceptual apparatus, etc. On the basis of a theoretical explanation and known laws, a prediction, a prediction of the future is carried out.

Methods of theoretical knowledge.

1. Formalization - displaying meaningful knowledge in a sign-symbolic form. When formalizing, reasoning about objects is transferred to the plane of operating with signs (formulas), which is associated with the construction of artificial languages (the language of mathematics, logic, chemistry, etc.).

It is the use of special symbols that makes it possible to eliminate the ambiguity of words in ordinary, natural language. In formalized reasoning, each symbol is strictly unambiguous.

Formalization clarifies the content by revealing its form and can be carried out with varying degrees of completeness. The ever deeper formalization of the content of knowledge never reaches absolute completeness, because the development (change) of the subject of knowledge and knowledge about it never stops.

2. Axiomatic Method - a method of constructing a scientific theory, in which it is based on some initial provisions - axioms (postulates), from which all other statements of this theory are derived from them in a purely logical way, through proof. To derive theorems from axioms (and in general some formulas from others), special rules of inference are formulated. Therefore, the proof in the axiomatic method is a certain sequence of formulas, each of which is either an axiom or is obtained from the previous formulas according to some rule of inference.

The axiomatic method is only one of the methods for constructing already obtained scientific knowledge. The famous French physicist Louis de Broglie drew attention to the fact that "the axiomatic method may be a good method of classification or teaching, but it is not a method of discovery."

3. Hypothetical-deductive method - a method of scientific knowledge, the essence of which is to create a system of deductively interconnected hypotheses, from which statements about empirical facts are ultimately derived. The conclusion obtained on the basis of this method will inevitably have a probabilistic character.

The general structure of the hypothetical-deductive method:

a) familiarization with factual material that requires a theoretical explanation and an attempt to do so with the help of already existing theories and laws. If not, then:

b) putting forward guesses (hypotheses, assumptions) about the causes and patterns of these phenomena using a variety of logical techniques;

c) an assessment of the solidity and seriousness of the assumptions and the selection of the most probable from the set of them;

d) derivation of consequences from the hypothesis;

e) experimental verification of the consequences derived from the hypothesis.

The hypothetical-deductive method is not so much a method of discovery as a way of constructing and substantiating scientific knowledge, since it shows exactly how a new hypothesis can be arrived at.

4. Climbing from the abstract to the concrete - a method of theoretical research and presentation, consisting in the movement of scientific thought from the original abstraction through successive stages of deepening and expanding knowledge to the result - a holistic reproduction in the theory of the subject under study. As its prerequisite, this method includes the ascent from the sensory-concrete to the abstract, to the separation in thinking of individual aspects of the subject and their "fixing" in the corresponding abstract definitions. The movement of cognition from the sensory-concrete to the abstract is precisely the movement from the individual to the general; such logical methods as analysis and induction prevail here.

General logical methods and techniques of research.

1. Analysis - real or mental division of an object into its constituent parts and synthesis - their combination into a single organic whole, and not into a mechanical unit.

2. abstraction - the process of mental abstraction from a number of properties and relations of the phenomenon under study with the simultaneous selection of properties of interest to the researcher.

3. Generalization - the process of establishing the general properties and characteristics of an object, closely related to abstraction.

4. Idealization - a mental procedure associated with the formation of abstract (idealized) objects that are fundamentally unrealizable in reality.

An idealized object ultimately acts as a reflection of real objects and processes.

5. Induction - the movement of thought from the individual to the general and deduction - the ascent of the process of cognition from the general to the individual. Inductive generalizations are usually regarded as empirical truths and are probabilistic in nature.

A characteristic feature of deduction is that it always leads from true premises to a true, reliable conclusion.

6. Analogy - establishing similarities in some aspects, properties and relationships between non-identical objects. Based on the identified similarities, an appropriate conclusion is drawn. Analogy provides not reliable, but probable knowledge.

7. Modeling - a method of studying certain objects by reproducing their characteristics on another object - a model that is an analogue of one or another fragment of reality - the original model. Between the model and the object of interest to the researcher, there must be a known similarity (similarity) - in physical characteristics, structure, functions, etc.

According to the nature of the models, material (objective) and ideal modeling are distinguished. Material models are natural objects that obey the natural laws of physics, mechanics, etc. in their functioning

In ideal (sign) modeling, models appear in the form of graphs, drawings, formulas, systems of equations, natural and artificial (symbols) language sentences, etc. At present, mathematical (computer) modeling has become widespread.

8. Systems approach - a set of general scientific methodological principles, which are based on the consideration of objects as systems.

The specificity of the system approach is determined by the fact that it focuses the study on revealing the integrity of the developing object and the mechanisms that ensure it, on identifying the diverse types of connections of a complex object and bringing them into a single theoretical picture.

9. Structural-functional The (structural) method is built on the basis of identifying their structure in integral systems - a set of stable relationships and relationships between its elements and their roles (functions) relative to each other.

The structure is understood as something invariant (unchanging) under certain transformations, and the function as the "appointment" of each of the elements of the given system.

10. Probabilistic-statistical methods are based on taking into account the action of many random factors that are characterized by a stable frequency. This makes it possible to reveal the necessity (law), which "breaks through" through the combined action of a multitude of accidents.

Probability is a quantitative measure (degree) of the possibility of the occurrence of a certain phenomenon, event under certain conditions. The range of probability is from zero (impossibility) to one (reality).

In statistical laws, predictions are not reliable, but only probabilistic in nature, which is due to the action of many random factors, through the complex interweaving of which necessity is expressed.

1.2 Methods of theoretical research

Idealization. Idealization is the process of creating mental objects that do not exist in reality, by means of a mental abstraction from some properties of real objects and relations between them, or by endowing objects and situations with those properties that they do not possess in order to deeper and more accurate knowledge of reality. Objects of this kind serve as the most important means of knowing real objects and the relationships between them. They're called idealized objects. These include such objects as, for example, a material point, an ideal gas, an absolutely black body, objects of geometry, etc.

Idealization is sometimes confused with abstraction, but this is wrong, because although idealization essentially relies on the process of abstraction, it is not reduced to it. In logic, abstract objects, unlike concrete ones, include only such objects that do not interact in space and time. Ideal objects cannot be considered as really existing, they are quasi-objects. Any scientific theory studies either a certain fragment of reality, a certain subject area, or a certain side, one of the aspects of real things and processes. At the same time, the theory is forced to digress from those aspects of the subjects it studies that do not interest it. In addition, the theory is often forced to abstract from certain differences in the subjects it studies in certain respects. This process of mental abstraction from certain aspects, properties of the objects being studied, from certain relations between them is called abstraction.

Abstraction. The creation of an idealized object necessarily includes abstraction - a distraction from a number of aspects and properties of the specific objects being studied. But if we confine ourselves to this, then we will not get any integral object, but simply destroy the real object or situation. After abstracting, we still need to highlight the properties of interest to us, strengthen or weaken them, combine and present them as properties of some independent object that exists, functions and develops according to its own laws. All this, of course, is a much more difficult and creative task than simple abstraction. Idealization and abstraction are ways of forming a theoretical object. It can be any real object that is conceived in non-existent, ideal conditions. Thus, for example, the concepts of "inertia", "material point", "absolutely black body", "ideal gas" arise.

Formalization(from lat. forma view, image). Formalization refers to the display of objects of a certain subject area using the symbols of a certain language. During formalization, the objects under study, their properties and relations are put in correspondence with some stable, well-observable and identifiable material constructions, which make it possible to identify and fix the essential aspects of objects. Formalization clarifies the content by revealing its form and can be carried out with varying degrees of completeness. The expression of thinking in natural language can be considered the first step of formalization. Its further deepening is achieved by the introduction of various kinds of special signs into ordinary language and the creation of partially artificial and artificial languages. Logical formalization is aimed at identifying and fixing logical form conclusions and evidence. A complete formalization of a theory takes place when one completely abstracts from the meaningful meaning of its original concepts and provisions and enumerates all the rules of logical inference used in the proofs. Such formalization includes three points: 1) the designation of all original, undefined terms; 2) enumeration of formulas (axioms) accepted without proof; 3) introduction of rules for transforming these formulas to obtain new formulas (theorems) from them. A prime example formalizations are widely used in science mathematical descriptions of various objects, phenomena based on the relevant theories. Despite the widespread use of formalization in science, there are limits to formalization. In 1930, Kurt Gödel formulated a theorem called the incompleteness theorem: it is impossible to create such a formal system of logically valid formal proof rules that would be sufficient to prove all true theorems of elementary arithmetic.

Models and Simulation in scientific research . A model is such a material or mentally represented object that, in the process of studying, replaces the original object, retaining some of its typical features that are important for this study. The model allows you to learn how to control an object by testing various options control on the model of this object. Experiment for this purpose with a real object in best case it can be inconvenient, and often simply harmful or even impossible due to a number of reasons (long duration of the experiment in time, risk of bringing the object into an undesirable and irreversible state, etc.). The process of building a model is called modeling. So, modeling is the process of studying the structure and properties of the original with the help of a model.

Distinguish between material and ideal modeling. Material modeling, in turn, is divided into physical and analog modeling. It is customary to call physical modeling, in which a real object is opposed to its enlarged or reduced copy, which allows research (as a rule, in laboratory conditions) with the help of the subsequent transfer of the properties of the studied processes and phenomena from model to object based on the theory of similarity. Examples: planetarium in astronomy, models of buildings in architecture, models of aircraft in aircraft construction, environmental modeling - modeling of processes in the biosphere, etc. Analog or mathematical modeling is based on the analogy of processes and phenomena that have a different physical nature, but are described formally in the same way (by the same mathematical equations). The symbolic language of mathematics makes it possible to express the properties, sides, relations of objects and phenomena of the most diverse nature. Relationships between various quantities that describe the functioning of such an object can be represented by the corresponding equations and their systems.

Induction(from Latin induction - guidance, motivation), there is a conclusion that leads to obtaining general conclusion based on private premises, this is the movement of thinking from the particular to the general. The most important, and sometimes the only method of scientific knowledge for a long time considered inductive method. According to the inductivist methodology, dating back to F. Bacon, scientific knowledge begins with observation and statement of facts. After the facts are established, we proceed to generalize them and build a theory. The theory is seen as a generalization of facts and therefore is considered reliable. However, even D. Hume noted that a general statement cannot be deduced from the facts, and therefore any inductive generalization is unreliable. This is how the problem of justifying inductive inference arose: what allows us to move from facts to general statements? D. Mil made a great contribution to the development and justification of the inductive method.

Awareness of the unsolvability of the problem of justifying induction and the interpretation of inductive inference as claiming the reliability of its conclusions led Popper to reject the inductive method of cognition in general. Popper spent a lot of effort trying to show that the procedure described by the inductive method is not used and cannot be used in science. The fallacy of inductivism, according to Popper, lies mainly in the fact that inductivism tries to substantiate theories through observation and experiment. But, as postpositivism has shown, there is no direct path from experience to theory, such a justification is impossible. Theories are always just unsubstantiated risky assumptions. Facts and observations are used in science not for substantiation, not as a basis for induction, but only for testing and refuting theories - as a basis for falsification. It takes off the old philosophical problem justification for induction. Facts and observations give rise to a hypothesis, which is not at all their generalization. Then, with the help of facts, they try to falsify the hypothesis. The falsifying conclusion is deductive. Induction is not used in this case, therefore, there is no need to worry about its justification.

According to K. Popper, not the inductive method, but the trial and error method is the main one in science. The cognizing subject confronts the world not as tabula rasa, on which nature draws its portrait, a person always relies on certain theoretical principles in the cognition of reality. The process of cognition does not begin with observations, but with the advancement of conjectures, assumptions that explain the world. We correlate our guesses with the results of observations and discard them after falsification, replacing them with new guesses. Trial and error is what makes up the method of science. For knowledge of the world, Popper argues, there is no more rational procedure than the method of trial and error - assumptions and refutations: the bold advancement of a theory; attempts the best way to show the fallacy of these theories and their temporary acceptance if criticism fails.

Deduction(from lat. deduction - derivation) is the receipt of private conclusions based on the knowledge of some general provisions, this is the movement of thought from the general to the particular. Hypothetical-deductive method. It is based on the derivation (deduction) of conclusions from hypotheses and other premises, the truth value of which is unknown. In scientific knowledge, the hypothetical-deductive method became widespread and developed in the 17th-18th centuries, when significant progress was made in the study of the mechanical motion of terrestrial and celestial bodies. The first attempts to apply the hypothetical-deductive method were made in mechanics, in particular, in the studies of Galileo. The theory of mechanics set forth in Newton's "Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy" is a hypothetical-deductive system, the premises of which are the basic laws of motion. The success of the hypothetical-deductive method in the field of mechanics and the influence of Newton's ideas led to the widespread use of this method in the field of exact natural science.

2.2. Forms of theoretical knowledge. Problem. Hypothesis. Law. Theory.

The main form of organization of knowledge at the theoretical level is theory. Preliminarily, the following definition of theory can be given: theory is knowledge about the subject area, which covers the subject in general and in particular and is a system of ideas, concepts, definitions, hypotheses, laws, axioms, theorems, etc., connected in a strictly logical way. What is the structure of the theory, how it is formed - the main problem of the methodology of science.

Problem. Cognition does not begin with observations and facts, it begins with problems, with the tension between knowledge and ignorance, notes L.A. Mikeshin. A problem is a question to which the theory as a whole is the answer. As K. Popper emphasizes, science does not begin with observations, but with problems, and its development proceeds from one problem to another - deeper ones. A scientific problem is expressed in the presence of a contradictory situation. Even Plato noticed that the question is more difficult than the answer. The decisive influence on the formulation of the problem and the method of solving has the nature of the thinking of the era, the level of knowledge about those objects that the problem concerns. historical development play an important role." scientific problems should be distinguished from non-scientific (pseudo-problems), an example of which is the problem of a perpetual motion machine. A. Einstein noted the importance of the problem statement procedure in scientific research: “Problem formulation is often more essential than its solution, which can only be a matter of mathematical or experimental art. Asking new questions, developing new possibilities, looking at old problems from a new angle requires creative imagination and reflect real success in science. In order to solve the problems of science, hypotheses are put forward.

Hypothesis. A hypothesis is an assumption about the properties, causes, structure, relationships of the objects under study. The main feature of a hypothesis lies in its conjectural nature: we do not know whether it will turn out to be true or false. In the process of subsequent verification, the hypothesis may be confirmed and acquire the status of true knowledge, but it is possible that the verification will convince us of the falsity of our assumption and we will have to abandon it. A scientific hypothesis usually differs from a simple assumption in a certain degree of validity. The set of requirements for a scientific hypothesis can be summarized as follows: 1. The hypothesis must explain the known facts; 2. The hypothesis must not have contradictions that are prohibited by formal logic. But contradictions, which are a reflection of objective opposites, are quite admissible; 3. The hypothesis must be simple ("Occam's razor"); 4. A scientific hypothesis must be capable of being verified; 5. The hypothesis must be heuristic (“crazy enough” N. Bohr).

From a logical point of view, a hypothetico-deductive system is a hierarchy of hypotheses, the degree of abstractness and generality of which increases with distance from the empirical basis. At the top are the hypotheses that have the most general character and therefore have the greatest logical force. From them, as from premises, hypotheses of a lower level are deduced. At the lowest level of the system are hypotheses that can be compared with empirical data. In modern science, many theories are built in the form of a hypothetical-deductive system. There is another variety of hypotheses that attracts much attention of philosophers and scientists. These are the so-called ad hoc hypotheses(For this case). Hypotheses of this type are distinguished by the fact that their explanatory power is limited to only a small circle of known facts. They don't say anything about new, yet unknown facts and phenomena.

A good hypothesis should not only provide an explanation for the known data, but also direct research towards the search for and discovery of new phenomena, new facts. Hypotheses ad hoc only explain, but do not predict anything new. Therefore, scientists try not to use such hypotheses, although it is often quite difficult to decide whether we are dealing with a fruitful, heuristically strong hypothesis or a hypothesis ad hoc. The hypothetical nature of scientific knowledge was emphasized by K. Popper, W. Quine and others. K Popper characterizes scientific knowledge as hypothetical, he introduces the term probabilism(from lat. probable - probable), noting that scientific thinking is characterized by a probabilistic style. C. Pierce introduced the term “fallibilism” to characterize scientific knowledge (from lat. fallibilis- fallible, fallible), arguing that at any given moment in time our knowledge of reality is partial and conjectural, this knowledge is not absolute, but is a point on a continuum of uncertainty and uncertainty.

Laws are the most important component of the system of theoretical knowledge. A peculiar cell of the organization of theoretical knowledge at each of its sublevels is, notes V.S. Stepin, two-layer construction - a theoretical model and a theoretical law formulated in relation to it.

Law. The concept of "law" is one of the main ones in the system of the scientific worldview and reflects the genesis of science in the context of culture. The belief in the existence of fundamental laws of nature was based on the belief in divine laws, so characteristic of the Judeo-Christian tradition: "God governs all things through the ruthless law of fate, which he established and to which he himself obeys." A. Whitehead, setting the task of understanding how the idea of the law of science arose, showed that belief in the possibility of scientific laws was a derivative of medieval theology. In the system of the world, designated as the Universe, and understood as a hierarchized integrity, the existent is characterized through the principle of universalism. In the context of Stoicism, abstract principles of law were established that embodied the tradition of imperial law and were then translated from Roman law into a scientific worldview. Law (from the Greek "nomos" - law, order) opposes fusis, as the human opposes the natural. The natural order, as the Greeks believed, is primordial, it is the Cosmos. Among the Latins, the concept of "law" originally arose to designate and regulate social relations. Whitehead draws attention to the decisive role of the cultural-historical context, which was the environment in which the fundamental ideas of the future scientific worldview were born. “The Middle Ages formed one long training session for the Western European intellect, accustoming it to order ... The habit of a certain exact thinking was instilled in the European mind as a result of the dominance of scholastic logic and scholastic theology.” The previously formed idea of fate, demonstrating the ruthless course of things, turned out to be useful not only for illustrating human life, but also influenced the emerging scientific thinking. As Whitehead remarked, “the laws of physics are the dictates of fate.”

The idea of law is the key to understanding the world and we find confirmation of this in the statements of prominent figures medieval culture, for example, F. Aquinas, who argued that there is an eternal law, namely the mind that exists inside the consciousness of God and controls the entire Universe, and thinkers of the New Age. In particular, R. Descartes wrote about the laws that God put into nature. I. Newton considered it his goal to collect evidence for the existence of laws prescribed by God to nature.

If we compare this style of Western thinking with the thinking tradition of other civilizations, we will see that their cultural identity sets different standards of explanation. For example, in Chinese, as Needham noted, there is no word corresponding to the Western “law of nature.” The closest word is "Lee", which Needham translates as the principle of organization. But in Western culture, the core of which is science, the idea of law corresponded to the main goal setting of the scientific worldview to an objective explanation of reality through the comprehension of the natural laws of nature.

Describing the dynamics of science in Western culture, today it is customary to distinguish three main types of scientific rationality: classical, non-classical and post-non-classical paradigms of scientific rationality (V.S. Stepin). The question posed at the beginning involves an analysis of the transformation of the concept of "law" in these paradigms, as well as in different standards of scientificity, since today the physical model of scientificity is no longer the only one. The experience of biology in the study of evolution, in the search for the laws of evolution, is more significant and therefore relevant for modern physics, which is penetrated by the “arrow of time” (I. Prigogine). Traditions humanities are also important in terms of analyzing the question: is a certain law of evolution possible?

Another context in which to analyze the transformation of the concept of “law” in scientific cognition is indicated when we identify various cognitive practices or epistemological schemes that represent models of scientific cognition. For example, in constructivist models of cognition, whether it be radical constructivism or social constructivism, does the concept of the "law" of science retain its meaning? It is no coincidence that the trend of relativization and subjectification of scientific knowledge, noted in the modern philosophy of science, leads to the need to discuss the problem of the relationship between law and interpretation.

Today, the concept of law is given four main meanings. Firstly, law as a necessary connection between events, as "calm in the phenomenon." Here the law is identified with objective laws that exist independently of our knowledge of them (objective laws). Secondly, law as a statement claiming to represent internal state objects included in the theories(laws of science). Third, laws are understood as axioms and theorems of theories, the subject of which are objects, the meaning of which is given by these theories(logical and mathematical theories). Fourth, law as regulations developed by the community, which must be carried out by the subjects of morality and law (moral laws, criminal laws, state laws).

In terms of the problems of philosophical epistemology, the question of the relationship between objective laws and the laws of science is important. The very posing of such a question implies worldview position about the existence of objective laws. D. Hume, I. Kant, E. Mach doubted this. Hume's skepticism is connected with the denial of Hume's law of causality, which states that it is impossible to extrapolate past experience to the future with certainty. The fact that an event occurred n times does not allow us to say that this event will occur n + 1 times. “Any degree of repetition of our perceptions cannot serve as a basis for us to conclude that some objects that we do not perceive are more repeatable.” Supporters of the objective existence of regularities accept Hume's point of view, understanding the laws of science as hypotheses. So, A. Poincare argued that the laws of science as best expression inner harmony of the world there are basic principles, prescriptions that reflect the relationship between things. “However, are these prescriptions arbitrary? No, otherwise they would be fruitless. Experience presents us with free choice, but at the same time it guides us.

According to I. Kant, laws are not extracted by reason from nature, but are prescribed to it. Based on this point of view, the laws of science can be understood as a cognitive order that is instilled in our minds in the course of adaptive evolution. This position is close to the evolutionary epistemology of K. Popper. E. Mach believed that laws are subjective and are generated by our psychological need not to get lost among natural phenomena. In modern cognitive science, laws are allowed to be compared with subjective habits, which in turn are explained as a consequence of objective evolution.

So, in epistemology, the concept of the law of science reflects the acceptance of objectively existing interactions in nature. The laws of science are conceptual reconstructions of regularities associated with the adoption of a certain conceptual apparatus and various abstractions. The laws of science are formulated using the artificial languages of their discipline. Allocate "statistical", based on probabilistic hypotheses, and "dynamic" laws, expressed in the form of universal conditions. The study of the laws of reality finds expression in the creation of theories that reflect the subject area. Law is the key element of theory.

Theory. Theory in Greek means "contemplation" of what really is. Scientific knowledge of the era of Antiquity was theoretical, but the meaning of this term was completely different, the theories of the ancient Greeks are speculative and, in principle, are not focused on experiment. In the classical science of modern times, theory begins to be understood as a conceptual symbolic system built on the basis of experience. In the structure of theoretical knowledge, fundamental theories and particular ones are distinguished.

According to V.S. Stepin, in the structure of the theory, as its basis, there is a fundamental theoretical scheme associated with the corresponding mathematical formalism. If empirical objects can be compared with real objects, then theoretical objects are idealizations, they are called constructs, they are logical reconstructions of reality. “At the basis of an established theory, one can always find a mutually consistent network of abstract objects that determines the specifics of this theory. This network of objects is called the fundamental theoretical scheme.

Corresponding to the two distinguished sublevels of theoretical knowledge, one can speak of theoretical schemes as part of fundamental theory and as part of private theories. At the basis of the developed theory, one can single out a fundamental theoretical scheme, which is built from a small set of basic abstract objects that are constructively independent of each other, and in relation to which fundamental theoretical laws are formulated. The structure of the theory was considered by analogy with the structure of a formalized mathematical theory and was depicted as a hierarchical system of propositions, where from the basic statements of the upper tiers the propositions of the lower tiers are strictly logically derived up to the propositions that are directly comparable with experimental facts. The hierarchy of interconnected abstract objects corresponds to the hierarchical structure of statements. The connections of these objects form theoretical schemes of various levels. And then the deployment of the theory appears not only as an operation with statements, but also as thought experiments with abstract objects of theoretical schemes.

Theoretical schemes play an important role in the development of a theory. The conclusion from the fundamental equations of the theory of their consequences (particular theoretical laws) is carried out not only through formal mathematical and logical operations on statements, but also through meaningful techniques - thought experiments with abstract objects of theoretical schemes that allow reducing the fundamental theoretical scheme to private ones. Their elements of theoretical schemes are abstract objects (theoretical constructs) that are in strictly defined connections and relationships with each other. Theoretical laws are directly formulated in relation to the abstract objects of the theoretical model. They can be applied to describe real situations of experience only if the model is justified as an expression of the essential connections of reality that appear in such situations.

Theoretical knowledge is created to explain and predict the phenomena and processes of objective and subjective reality. Depending on the level of penetration into the essence of the object under study, scientific theories are divided into descriptive-phenomenological (empirical) and deductive (mathematized, axiomatic).

So, theory is an abstract-generalized, constructively built, integral and logically unfolding conceptual model of the object of study, which is a logically abbreviated knowledge that has explanatory and heuristic abilities.

On the whole, the empirical and theoretical levels of scientific research considered above represent conditional stages of a holistic scientific process. The edifice of science thus characterized rests on a foundation, designated as the foundations of science.

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