Metaphor and Knowledge: The Challenges of Writing Science

METAPHOR AND KNOWLEDGE......Page 4
Contents......Page 6
Foreword......Page 8
Acknowledgments......Page 10
1. Introduction: The Problem with “Rules” and Why Words Will Not Sit Still......Page 12
HARMONICS: USING MUSIC THEORY TO EXPLAIN HOW METAPHOR WORKS IN SCIENCE......Page 18
STRUCTURE OF THE BOOK......Page 24
WHAT IS THE SANTA FE INSTITUTE?......Page 29
2. A Technical Writer at the Think Tank......Page 36
ESTABLISHING ETHOS WITH AN “INITIAL IMPRESSIONS” REPORT......Page 38
A TECHNICAL WRITER’S BALANCING ACT: CAPTURE THE EXCITEMENT OF RESEARCH, BUT AVOID HYPE......Page 42
WRITING FOR THE INSTITUTE’S BULLETIN: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN TECHNICAL WRITERS CANNOT FIND THEIR BEARINGS TOWARD AN AUDIENCE......Page 47
3. Metaphor: Constituting or Decorating Theory in Science......Page 54
RHETORIC AT THE SFI: A QUALIFIED ACCEPTANCE......Page 64
THE MEANING OF METAPHOR......Page 66
METAPHORS IN MOTION: HOW THEY WORK......Page 73
METAPHOR AND SCIENCE......Page 79
FEAR OF PERSUASION AND METAPHORIC HARMONICS......Page 83
RHETORICAL ALTERNATIVES TO METAPHOR IN SCIENCE......Page 87
4. Metaphors and Mathematics: A Shared Tradition of Constituting Knowledge in Science......Page 90
THE METAPHORS OF INFORMATION AS THE NEW MATERIALITY......Page 93
REPRESENTING REALITY......Page 96
PLATONIC ARGUMENTS FOR THE SUPREMACY OF MATHEMATICS......Page 100
METAPHOR FOR UNDERSTANDING A NON-ALGORITHMIC WORLD......Page 104
MAKING SLOPPY IDEAS RIGOROUS......Page 110
NO RATIONAL METHOD OF HAVING GOOD IDEAS......Page 118
SFI METAPHORS AS THEORY CONSTITUTIVE OR LITERARY? A TALE OF TWO TERMS......Page 122
METAPHOR HARMONICS: WHO INTENDS THE BEE TO BE YELLOW?......Page 131
METAPHOR HARMONICS: EMERGENCE, THE BRAIN, AND NEURAL NETWORKS......Page 144
EQUILIBRIUM AND THE PRISONER’S DILEMMA......Page 149
5. Science Writers Looking for Their Audience......Page 160
STYLE AND ELOQUENCE IN SFI WRITING......Page 163
A MATTER OF INVENTION: WRITING FOR SCIENTISTS AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC......Page 171
INCOMMENSURABILITY: TRYING TO CROSS DISCIPLINES......Page 183
6. “Complexity”: An Etymology Leading to a Discussion of Whether it is a Metaphor or Something Else......Page 190
THE WORD “COMPLEX” IN THE OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY......Page 192
“COMPLEXITY” ARRIVES IN SANTA FE......Page 202
THE NEW “COMPLEXITY” RETURNS TO OLD HAUNTS......Page 208
IS “COMPLEXITY” A METAPHOR?......Page 211
7. Managing Metaphor Harmonics and Other Challenges of Making Knowledge in Science......Page 218
SPEAK CAREFULLY AND CARRY A PARADIGM SHIFT......Page 220
Works Cited......Page 234
A......Page 246
C......Page 247
D......Page 248
G......Page 249
I......Page 250
L......Page 251
M......Page 252
P......Page 253
R......Page 254
S......Page 255
Z......Page 256