The Golem

by Harry M. Collins , Trevor Pinch

• ISBN13: 9780521645508
• ISBN10: 0521645506
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1998-10-28
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

What is the golem? In Jewish mythology the Golem is an effigy or image brought to life. While not evil, it is a strong, clumsy and incomplete servant. Through a series of case studies, ranging from relativity and cold fusion to memory in worms and the sex lives of lizards, Harry Collins and Trevor Pinch debunk the traditional view that science is the straightforward result of competent theorization, observation and experimentation. Scientific certainty is the interpretation of ambiguous results. The very well received first edition generated much debate, reflected in a substantial new Afterword in this new edition, which seeks to place the book in what have become known as 'the science wars'.

Table of Contents

Preface to second edition	xiii	(2)
Preface to first Canto edition	xv	(2)
Preface and acknowledgements	xvii
Introduction: the golem	1	(4)
1 Edible knowledge: the chemical transfer of memory	5	(22)
2 Two experiments that `proved' the theory of relativity	27	(30)
3 The sun in a test tube: the story of cold fusion	57	(22)
4 The germs of dissent: Louis Pasteur and the origins of life	79	(12)
5 A new window on the universe: the non-detection of gravitational radiation	91	(18)
6 The sex life of the whiptail lizard	109	(12)
7 Set the controls for the heart of the sun: the strange story of the missing solar neutrinos	121	(18)
Conclusion: putting the golem to work	139	(12)
Afterword: Golem and the scientists	151	(30)
References and further reading	181	(4)
Index	185