Philosophy of the Earth Sciences

Over the last 20 years or so, much work on the philosophy of the geosciences has privileged epistemological questions about confirmation, explanation, and underdetermination. Taking a cue from nineteenth-century geologist Edward Hitchcock’s reflections on his own practice, this chapter argues that philosophers should broaden their understanding of geoscientific practice to include its esthetic as well as its epistemic dimensions. Recent work in environmental esthetics – particularly Arnold Berleant’s esthetics of engagement and Allen Carlson’s scientific cognitivism – can help elucidate the esthetic aspects of the earth sciences. This broadening of our understanding of the values embedded in scientific practice could also help reinvigorate the relationship between philosophy and history of the geosciences.