The Science of Liberty: Democracy, Reason, and the Laws of Nature

by Timothy Ferris

Overview

A “thoughtful and thoroughly entertaining” look at the historical connections between science and liberal democracy, and the forces that threaten both (The Wall Street Journal).

In The Science of Liberty, award–winning author Timothy Ferris—called “the best popular science writer in the English language today” by the Christian Science Monitor and “the best science writer of his generation” by the Washington Post—makes a passionate case for science as the inspiration behind the rise of liberalism and democracy. Ferris argues that just as the scientific revolution rescued billions from poverty, fear, hunger, and disease, the Enlightenment values it inspired has swelled the number of those living in free and democratic societies from less than 1 percent of the world population four centuries ago to more than a third today. He also surveys the forces that have opposed science and liberalism—from communism and fascism to postmodernism and fundamentalism—in a sweeping, stunningly original intellectual history that transcends antiquated concepts of right and left.

“Important, timely, and splendidly written.” —The Washington Post

“Engaging . . . Ferris usefully reminds us that science was an integral part of the intellectual equipment of the great pioneers of political and individual liberty.” —The New York Times Book Review

“A passionately crafted and articulate exploration of the relationship between science and democracy . . . show[s] how science and democracy working in symbiosis can thrive and—the author suggests, using the antiexamples of Hitler’s Germany and Stalin’s Soviet Union—can just as easily die.” —Bookmarks 

“An important and extremely readable book . . . Ferris is one of America’s most skilled communicators about science . . . He shows himself a fascinating historian too.” —San Francisco Chronicle

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780061969522
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/19/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	388
Sales rank:	324,657
File size:	817 KB

About the Author

Timothy Ferris's works include Seeing in the Dark, The Mind's Sky (both New York Times best books of the year), and The Whole Shebang (listed by American Scientist as one of the one hundred most influential books of the twentieth century). A fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Ferris has taught in five disciplines at four universities. He is an emeritus professor at the University of California, Berkeley and a former editor of Rolling Stone. His articles and essays have appeared in The New Yorker, Time, Newsweek, Vanity Fair, National Geographic, Scientific American, The Nation, The New Republic, The New York Review of Books, The New York Times Book Review, and many other publications. A contributor to CNN and National Public Radio, Ferris has made three prime-time PBS television specials: The Creation of the Universe, Life Beyond Earth, and Seeing in the Dark. He lives in San Francisco.

Hometown:

San Francisco, California

Date of Birth:

August 29, 1944

Place of Birth:

Miami, Florida

Education:

B.S., Northwestern University, 1966

Website:

http://www.timothyferris.com

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Science & Liberty 1

Chapter 2 Science & Liberalism 16

Chapter 3 The Rise of Science 35

Chapter 4 The Science of Enlightenment 57

Chapter 5 American Independence 89

Chapter 6 The Terror 109

Chapter 7 Power 128

Chapter 8 Progress 149

Chapter 9 The Science of Wealth 168

Chapter 10 Totalitarian Antiscience 191

Chapter 11 Academic Antiscience 236

Chapter 12 One World 261

Acknowledgments 293

Notes 295

Index 355

What People are Saying About This

A.C. Grayling

“Lucid and captivating. . . . Deeply important. . . . Ferris’s clear and educative account makes for an enjoyable read.”

Editorial Reviews

An academic polymath known chiefly as the author of The Whole Shebang, about cosmology, and other uncommonly lucid books, [Ferris] is among the half-dozen foremost explicators of the physical sciences alive today. He is also a man for whom the English language is not a tool, but an instrument on which to perform with grace and precision. As a result, The Science of Liberty is a profound delight whether one puts it down convinced or not…Even when he is covering familiar ground, Ferris's perspective is a joy…
—The Washington Post

Curt Suplee

Prolific science writer Ferris (Seeing in the Dark: How Backyard Stargazers Are Probing Deep Space and Guarding Earth from Interplanetary Peril, 2002, etc.) explains how liberal democracy and a robust scientific environment walk hand in hand. If one thinks of democracy as an elected government that guarantees human rights and freedoms-in its most basic, unadorned form-and science as the social enterprise of research involving observation and experiment, then what follows is self-evident: Liberal democracy's anti-authoritarianism and freedom of speech, travel and association allows for all available intellectual sources to be tapped in the service of scientific skepticism and experimentation. Science flourishes in a flexible milieu, increasing knowledge, power and wealth, and thus demonstrating that liberal governance works, no matter how inelegantly. As Ferris writes, "this book favors the messy, selfish, and often foolish and greedy push-and-pull of democracies as they are-neither rational nor expert but experimental-as better tuned to the spirit of science than are enchantments with authoritarian expertise and top-down planning." The author thoroughly and eloquently establishes the link between science and liberty, starting with the Renaissance and running through today, providing overviews of turning points in the progress of democracy and science and vest-pocket profiles of important personalities like Bacon, Galileo, Descartes, Newton, Locke and Paine-not to forget the venalities of Hitler, Stalin and Mao. Questions that flow from the narrative-When does the state put a governor on free enterprise? How does the Tuskegee syphilis experiment apply? What is the role of science inimperialism and colonialism?-are handled with intelligence and sensitivity, taking a cue from the invariant ethics Ferris would like to see guide science, which include truth-telling and ethical, even humanistic practices. Ferris keenly demonstrates that the health and happiness of the planet is tied to a strong marriage of science and democracy.

Kirkus Reviews

Unfashionably optimistic. . . . Ferris provides irrefutable evidence that, despite the tragedies of war and terrorism, there has been astounding progress in both the living standards and the degree of personal freedom enjoyed by the majority of the human race.” — The Financial Times

“Lucid and captivating. . . . Deeply important. . . . Ferris’s clear and educative account makes for an enjoyable read.” — A. C. Grayling, The New Scientist

“Engaging. . . . Ambitious. . . . Ferris usefully reminds us that science was an integral part of the intellectual equipment of the great pioneers of political and individual liberty.” — The New York Times Book Review

“An important and extremely readable book. . . . Lively. . . . Clear and perceptive. . . . Ferris is one of America’s most skillful communicators about science. . . . He shows himself a fascinating historian too.” — The San Francisco Chronicle

“An important, timely, and splendidly written book. . . . Ferris is among the half-dozen foremost explicators of the physical sciences alive today. . . . The Science of Liberty is a profound delight.” — The Washington Post

From the Publisher

Engaging. . . . Ambitious. . . . Ferris usefully reminds us that science was an integral part of the intellectual equipment of the great pioneers of political and individual liberty.

The New York Times Book Review

Lucid and captivating. . . . Deeply important. . . . Ferris’s clear and educative account makes for an enjoyable read.

A. C. Grayling

An important and extremely readable book. . . . Lively. . . . Clear and perceptive. . . . Ferris is one of America’s most skillful communicators about science. . . . He shows himself a fascinating historian too.

The San Francisco Chronicle

An important, timely, and splendidly written book. . . . Ferris is among the half-dozen foremost explicators of the physical sciences alive today. . . . The Science of Liberty is a profound delight.

The Washington Post

Unfashionably optimistic. . . . Ferris provides irrefutable evidence that, despite the tragedies of war and terrorism, there has been astounding progress in both the living standards and the degree of personal freedom enjoyed by the majority of the human race.

The Financial Times

Listeners will likely be fascinated by Timothy Ferris's look at how science and liberty have worked together through history. His discussion is enhanced by Fred Stella's narration. Stella has the clear, straightforward voice of a radio announcer, and his apparent interest in topics such as the psychology of betting and the futures markets makes them mesmerizing for listeners as well. Ferris shows how past totalitarians—Nazis and Soviet Communists—warped science to their own ends. He goes on to criticize postwar trends on all parts of the spectrum: postmodernist criticism, the democratization of science, opposition to globalization, Islamist fundamentalism, among others. With regard to global warming, he raises questions but avoids specifics. He makes a strong case that scientific freedom benefits society. J.A.S. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine

APRIL 2011 - AudioFile