KUHN, Thomas S.

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The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. First edition, second printing, of this seminal analysis of intellectual development, emphasising that scientific research is defined - and constrained - by its contemporary intellectual frameworks. The Structure remains "one of the most cited academic books of all time" (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). Kuhn (1922-1996) was among the first writers to contend that scientific progress was not linear and mutually reinforcing, but rather, that it moved in discrete phases where the dominant paradigm was gradually pushed to breaking point by the discovery of too many anomalies. Kuhn's argument differentiated between phases of "normal science" and "experimental science". During the former, scientists operating within a shared intellectual framework, or paradigm, would come across anomalies, such as the discovery of X-rays in the late 19th century and nuclear fission in the early 20th century. Such anomalies forced an "experimental" phase into existence and led to a scientific revolution. Kuhn coined the term "paradigm shift" to describe this.

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