An expanded edition of the classic philosophical work that enquires into the nature and justification of scientific knowledge.

The publication of Personal Knowledge in 1958 shook the science world, as Michael Polanyi took aim at the long-standing ideals of rigid empiricism and rule-bound logic. Today, Personal Knowledge remains one of the most significant philosophy of science books of the twentieth century, bringing the crucial concepts of "tacit knowledge" and "personal knowledge" to the forefront of inquiry.

In this remarkable treatise, Polanyi attests that our personal experiences and ways of sharing knowledge have a profound effect on scientific discovery. He argues against the idea of the wholly dispassionate researcher, pointing out that even in the strictest of sciences, knowing is still an art, and that personal commitment and passion are logically necessary parts of research. In our technological age where fact is split from value and science from humanity, Polanyi's work continues to advocate for the innate curiosity and scientific leaps of faith that drive our most dazzling ingenuity.

For this expanded edition, Polyani scholar Mary Jo Nye set the philosopher-scientist's work into contemporary context, offering fresh insights and providing a helpful guide to critical terms in the work. Used in fields as diverse as religious studies, chemistry, economics, and anthropology, Polanyi's view of knowledge creation is just as relevant to intellectual endeavors today as when it first made waves more than fifty years ago.

Praise for Personal Knowledge

"Polanyi's monumental work... takes the shape of an orderly rejection of the false ideal of wholly explicit and wholly impersonal, so-called objective knowledge. The human mind, for him, is not an impersonal machine engaged in the manufacture of truth. In fact, Personal Knowledge represents a compelling critique of the positivist claim for total objectivity in scientific knowledge... Polanyi, the scientist-philosopher, calls forth an enormous array of examples to show that the scientist himself is engaged in acts of personal acceptance and judgment in the very doing of science." -- Philosophy Today

"Rich in insights, groundbreaking in its interpretations, Personal Knowledge deserves to be better known." -- Science and Education

• We started tracking this book on May 28, 2015.
• This book was $19.69 when we started tracking it.
• The price of this book has changed 104 times in the past 3,511 days.
• The current price of this book is $15.65 last checked 5 hours ago.
• This lowest price this book has been offered at in the past year is $1.99.
• The lowest price to date was $1.99 last reached on January 4, 2025.
• This book has been $1.99 2 times since we started tracking it.
• The highest price to date was $27.55 last reached on June 1, 2023.
• This book has been $27.55 2 times since we started tracking it.

• Politics & Social SciencesPhilosophyEpistemology
• Politics & Social SciencesPhilosophyMetaphysics
• Politics & Social Sciences

• Text-to-Speech: Disabled
• Lending: Disabled
• File Size: 1,602 KB