ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book concentrates on two holistic concepts which are often used in philosophical, sociological and historical studies of science, namely the notion of discourse, which is more related to cognitive holism, and the notion of practice, which is more related to social holism. It investigates the latter kind of practice. The book argues that the kind of constraints acting on practices can be used to give an account of objectivity as an attribute not of judgements but of practices. It aims to defend the claim that scientific practice can be viewed, in some respects, as a single whole, as opposed to the claim that science is made up of unconnected local practices. The book shows that the inclusion of holism in our understanding of science obliges one to explore the relation between scientific practice and common practice.
