Abstract:
Scientific progress is often understood in terms of increasing recognition of the truth. I argue that teleological conceptions of approaching "the truth about nature" are inadequate, and that scientific progress should be understood in terms of problem-solving. Pragmatic progress consists in resolving the problems that arise and in overcoming limitations. The account I favor builds on the ideas about truth advanced by Peirce and James, and it recognizes scientific inquiry as inevitably pervaded by a wide range of value judgments.
