ABSTRACT

This chapter argues that the problem of understanding past scientific research practice – that is, the particular way in which scientists processed a given research problem. It shows that integrating concepts and methods from History of Science and Philosophy of Science is not a methodological crime and that integrating the two approaches advances metascience. The chapter shows that the issue of understanding past research practice constitutes a suitable research problem for history-and-philosophy-of-science (iHPS). It explains scientists’ research practices, material, social and epistemic factors need to be considered together, which is why the input from both History of Science and Philosophy of Science is necessary. The chapter also argues that mainstream History of Science and mainstream Philosophy of Science tend to leave interesting questions unanswered – questions that iHPS scholarship can resolve. It focuses on the general structure of research problems that are particularly pertinent to iHPS studies, with a view to explaining the concept of ‘interdependent means’.