Overview

Science dominates modern intellectual life, yet few fully appreciate the path by which science evolved into such a driving cultural force. The Frontiers of Science traces the centuries-long development of science from an endeavour intertwined with other disciplines into an independent field with its own procedures and principles. Spanning key discoveries from 500 BCE to the modern day, including all areas from astronomy, physics, biology, neuroscience, computing and AI, it reveals how science advances, not in a straight line, but through a zigzag of progress and dead ends. Along the way, The Frontiers of Science explores pivotal junctures where pioneering thinkers took wrong turns, faced resistance from contemporary beliefs, and navigated challenging notions of truth. It analyzes how novel scientific ideas struggled to gain acceptance among scientists and in society until evidence and corrections hammered out their validity. The book considers how AI may change the nature of science, assesses the limits of science today, and discusses the dangers that pseudoscience and the rejection of science pose for society. Instead of viewing science through a societal lens, this book uniquely examines breakthroughs from the scientist’s perspective. It ultimately illuminates why the self-scrutinizing, self-correcting nature of science underpins its success in understanding the natural realm. For readers intrigued by science’s influence on modern times, this is an unparalleled guide to how it assumed a transformative role through a turbulent, obstacle-strewn evolution.

Full Product Details

Author:   Benjamin Lewin
Publisher:   Royal Society of Chemistry
Imprint:   Royal Society of Chemistry
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 4.60cm , Length: 22.80cm
Weight:   1.245kg
ISBN:  

9781837679676

ISBN 10:   1837679673
Pages:   750
Publication Date:   12 January 2026
Audience:   General/trade ,  College/higher education ,  General ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Prequel: Aristotle’s Doctrines: 600–300 BC Saint Augustine’s Legacy: 500–1300 Science in the East: 750–1458 CE Copernicus’ Revolution: 1543–1609 Galileo’s Movement: 1610–1659 Newton’s Laws: 1659–1687 Lavoisier’s Chemistry: 1750–1870 Industrial Revolution: 1760–1840 Maxwell’s Demon: 1820–1890 Popper’s Legacy: What is Science? Kuhn’s Paradigms: Changing Science Darwin’s Evolution: 1859–1980 Rutherford’s Atom: 1897–1945 Bohr’s Quantum: 1926– Heisenberg’s Uncertainties: 1927– Einstein’s Universe: 1905– Lemaître’s Big Bang: 1931– Science and War Crick’s Double Helix: 1953– Watson’s Genomes: 1990– Science and Medicine Cahal’s Neuron Doctrine: 1898– Turing’s Intelligence: Now Communication in Science Rabbit Holes in Science Science and Society Epilogue: Science and Modernity

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Author Information

Benjamin Lewin is a molecular biologist by background. He obtained his undergraduate degree and PhD at the University of Cambridge, and was founding editor of the international science journal Cell at MIT. He has written widely on genetics and on science in general, and has also authored a series of books on wine.

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