Singletons and Multiples in Scientific Discovery¶
Merton, R. K. (1961). Singletons and Multiples in Scientific Discovery: A Chapter in the Sociology of Science. Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, 105(5), 470-486.
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Primes¶
- Convergent Evolution
- In mathematics and science, independent discovery is the same pattern: calculus was developed independently by Newton and Leibniz, non-Euclidean geometry by Bolyai, Lobachevsky, and Gauss, natural selection by Darwin and Wallace, and the same theorem is often proved independently by separate groups — the recurrence indicating that the mathematical or empirical landscape funnels independent inquiry toward the same result, the phenomenon Merton catalogued as "multiple discovery."
This sourceDocuments the prevalence of independent multiple discovery (calculus, natural selection, non-Euclidean geometry) and argues discoveries are 'ripe,' driven by the state of the field rather than solitary genius.
- In mathematics and science, independent discovery is the same pattern: calculus was developed independently by Newton and Leibniz, non-Euclidean geometry by Bolyai, Lobachevsky, and Gauss, natural selection by Darwin and Wallace, and the same theorem is often proved independently by separate groups — the recurrence indicating that the mathematical or empirical landscape funnels independent inquiry toward the same result, the phenomenon Merton catalogued as "multiple discovery."
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