Scientists Vicent J. Martínez and Bernard J. T. Jones will discuss their research published in their book ‘The Reinvention of Science’. After the presentations, there will be a round table discussion led by Sonia Antoranz Contera, Professor of Biological Physics at the University of Oxford.
Vicent J. Martínez is a Spanish astronomer and professor at the University of Valencia, specialising in cosmology, particularly the study of the large-scale distribution of matter in the Universe and the formation and evolution of galaxies. He was a pioneer in the application of fractals in this field of research, as well as in introducing their study into university teaching in Spain. He is one of the authors of the giant planet with Trojans theory to explain the mysterious behaviour of Tabby's star. A staunch advocate of scientific dissemination and the transmission of knowledge to society, he received the 2013 José María Savirón Prize for Scientific Dissemination for his work.
Bernard Jones is professor emeritus at the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute of the University of Groningen (Netherlands). His research has covered many areas of astrophysics, both theoretical and observational, with a strong emphasis on cosmology, where he is widely published and cited. He is the author of the recent and acclaimed book Precision Cosmology: the first half million years (CUP 2017) and of ‘The Reinvention of Science: Slaying the Dragons of Dogma and Ignorance’, co-authored with Vicent Martínez and Virginia Trimble (World Scientific 2013).
Book synopsis:
Throughout the history of science, different thinkers, philosophers and scientists have postulated the existence of entities that, despite not being visible or detectable in their time, or perhaps ever, were useful in explaining the real world. We begin this book by analysing some of these entities. Among them were phlogiston to explain fire; luminiferous ether for the propagation of radiation; homunculus to explain heredity; and crystalline spheres to transport wandering planets around the Earth. Many of these erroneous beliefs had slowed progress, just as the dragons drawn on the edges of maps discouraged exploration. This pattern of scientific evolution continued throughout the centuries to the present day.
