Discovering Cell Mechanisms The Creation of Modern Cell Biology [Hardcover]

Bechtel emphasises how mechanisms were discovered by cell biologists and the instruments that made these inquiries possible.Between 1940 and 1970, pioneers in the new field of cell biology discovered the operative parts of cells and their contributions to cell life. William Bechtel emphasizes how mechanisms were discovered by cell biologists, focusing especially on the way in which new instrumentsNthe ultracentrifuge and the electron microscopeNmade these inquiries possible. He also describes how scientists organized new journals and professional societies to provide an institutional structure to the new enterprise.Between 1940 and 1970, pioneers in the new field of cell biology discovered the operative parts of cells and their contributions to cell life. William Bechtel emphasizes how mechanisms were discovered by cell biologists, focusing especially on the way in which new instrumentsNthe ultracentrifuge and the electron microscopeNmade these inquiries possible. He also describes how scientists organized new journals and professional societies to provide an institutional structure to the new enterprise.Between 1940 and 1970, pioneers in the new field of cell biology discovered the operative parts of cells and their contributions to cell life. Cell biology was a revolutionary science in its own right, but in this book, it also provides fuel for yet another revolution, one that focuses on the very conception of science itself. Laws have traditionally been regarded as the primary vehicle of explanation, but in the emerging philosophy of science it is mechanisms that do the explanatory work. William Bechtel emphasizes how mechanisms were discovered by cell biologists.Part I. Introduction: Cell Mechanisms and Cell Biology: 1. A different kind of science; 2. The organization of science into disciplines; 3. The new discipline of cell biology; Part II. Explaining Cellular Phenomena through Mechanisms: 4. Historical conceptions of mechanism; 5. Twentieth century conceptilÃa