Why Do Biologists Use So Many Diagrams?

Diagrams have distinctive characteristics that make them an effective medium for communicating research findings, but they are even more impressive as tools for scientific reasoning. To explore this role, we examine diagrammatic formats that have been devised by biologists to (a) identify and illumi...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Philosophy of Science Vol. 80; no. 5; pp. 931 - 945
Autores principales: Sheredos, Benjamin, Burnston, Daniel, Abrahamsen, Adele, Bechtel, William
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Cambridge University Press Dec2013
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Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
Descripción
Sumario:Diagrams have distinctive characteristics that make them an effective medium for communicating research findings, but they are even more impressive as tools for scientific reasoning. To explore this role, we examine diagrammatic formats that have been devised by biologists to (a) identify and illuminate phenomena involving circadian rhythms and (b) develop and modify mechanistic explanations of these phenomena.