Members with This Book
Most Helpful Reviews
see all reviews
Liked It “An interesting review showing how liberal democracy and science go hand-in-hand. Ferris debunks attacks on science from both the left and the right and shows how science is unable to flourish in authoritarian or totalitarian societies.” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
see all reviews-
“Great book. Connects the advancement of science to the growth of demoncratic freedoms through history.”
D. Christopher Ohly wrote this review Saturday, February 9, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“The thesis is that without political and religious freedom science is crippled by the requirement to conform to a political theory or dogma. Ferris describes how Hitler drove away his best minds and funneled research into war material and failed at everything he touched. The Soviets bet the farm on Lysenko's genetic theories and millions starved. Mao Zedong achieved the same result with his Great Leap Forward dictum. This is good history, entertaining and filled with stuff you never knew before woven into a purposefull narrative.”
Ford K. Sayre wrote this review Monday, February 4, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“An interesting review showing how liberal democracy and science go hand-in-hand. Ferris debunks attacks on science from both the left and the right and shows how science is unable to flourish in authoritarian or totalitarian societies. ”
Jed P. Sonstroem wrote this review Sunday, April 22, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Ferris's thesis--that science and liberty depend on and feed off each other--seems obvious to me, but clearly not everyone even in liberal democracies believes that, as the section on academic antiscience argues most forcefully. Perhaps because of my agreement with the thesis, I found the digressions and anecdotes more interesting than the main argument.
Robby Barringer wrote this review Saturday, March 31, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
The political flavor of the book is generally libertarian/classical liberal, but Ferris is not an ideologue and has nice things to say about government-funded science programs, as long as government is not also directing the work towards a particular ideological end.”
“Remarkable elucidation on the link between scientific discovery and liberal democracies. ”
Joel G wrote this review Friday, September 23, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Author Timothy Ferris has been recognized as a skilled popularizer of science for decades (his credentials include writing award-winning books on science, producing PBS-programs, and serving as editor of Rolling Stone). In this 290-page book, Ferris argues that science (the practice of making systematic observations to explain phenomena) and liberty (the social and political theory focusing on both individual rights and human dignity) and mutually compatible, and even inseparable. Without science, liberty is unobserved in societies; and without liberty, science is unobserved in societies.”
Dr. Gary Ackerman wrote this review Tuesday, April 13, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Timothy Ferris offers a persuasive argument for the correlation between the rise of science and the establishment of democratic societies. Science, according to the author, is a process of asking questions and obtaining answers based only upon observation and research. Many times over the course of history the questions posed by science have yielded answers not to the liking of existing establishments. Science can flourish only in an environment where questions can be freely posed and the answers will not lead to persecution. The Science of Liberty contends that democracy is that environment. Ferris states that science, unfettered by totalitarian/authoritarian strictures, has contributed to rise of prosperous, developed countries. The book makes a lot of sense. It sounds a vigilant tone in defense of science and warns of the consequences if science is shunted aside in favor of doctrines and beliefs that have no evidential basis. I highly recommend this enlightening book. ”
Ronald J wrote this review Monday, September 6, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Displaying 1-9 of 9
