In Seeing Things, Robert Hudson argues that robustness reasoning lacks the special value it is often claimed to have. Robustness reasoning claims that an observation report is more likely to be true if the report is produced by multiple, independent sources.

Preface ; Introduction ; Chapter 1: For and Against Robustness ; The 'No-Miracle' Argument for Robustness ; Probabilistic Approaches to Robustness ; Pragmatic Approaches to Robustness ; Epistemic Independence Approaches to Robustness ; Summary ; Chapter 2: The Mesosome: a Case of Mistaken Observation ; Introducing the Mesosome: Rasmussen and Culp ; The Mesosome Experiments ; Reliable Process Reasoning ; Rasmussen's Indeterminism ; Chapter 3: The WIMP: the Value of Model-Independence ; Dark Matter and WIMPs ; DAMA's Model-Independent Approach ; Model-Dependent Approaches ; An Historical Argument Against Robustness ; Reliable Process Reasoning ; Chapter 4: Perrin's Atoms and Molecules ; Perrin's Table ; The Viscosity of Gases ; Brownian Movement: Vertical Distributions in Emulsions ; Brownian Movement: Displacement, Rotation and Diffusion of Brownian Particles Taking Stock ; Perrin's Realism about Molecules ; Chapter 5: Dark Matter and Dark Energy ; Dark Matter and the Bullet Cluster ; Type Ia Supernovae and Dark Energy ; Defeating Systematic Errors: the Smoking Gun ; Robustness in the Dark Energy Case? ; Chapter 6: Final Considerations Against Robustness ; Independence and the Core Argument ; The Need for Independence Does Not Equal the Need for Robustness The Converse to Robustness is Normally Resisted ; The Corroborating Witness: Not a Case of Robustness ; No Robustness Found in Mathematics and Logic ; Robustness Fails to Ground Representational Accuracy ; The Sociological Dimension of Robustness ; Chapter 7: Robustness and Scientific Realism ; The No-Miracle Argument for Scientific Realism ; In Support of Theoretical Preservationism ; Objections to Theoretical Preservationism ; Realism, the Pessimistic Induction and Preservationism ; The Improved Standards Response: 'Methodological Preservationism' ; Conclusion ; Appendix 1 ; Appendix 2 ; Appendix 3 ; Appendix 4 ; Bibliography ; Index

Seeing Things is the first of its kind, and for that reason alone it is a valuable contribution. More than this, however, it challenges the mainstream view of robustness. It is, therefore, an ambitious project.

"...Seeing Things addresses a number of cutting-edge issues in the domain of experimental robustness, which makes this book an important contribution to our understanding of the notion of robustness." --Metascience "Seeing Things is the first of its kind, and for that reason alone it is a valuable contribution. More than this, however, it challenges the mainstream view of robustness. It is, therefore, an ambitious project." -- Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews Online

Selling point: The first extended critique of a popular way of arguing called robustness reasoning. Selling point: Presents a novel approach to defending a realist interpretation of science. Selling point: Interweaves philosophical and historical topics concerning science.

Robert Hudson received his Ph.D. in the Philosophy of Science from the University of Western Ontario in 1992. He has taught at a number of universities throughout North America, and has been at the University of Saskatchewan since 2001. He works mainly in the areas of epistemology and the history and philosophy of science.

Selling point: The first extended critique of a popular way of arguing called robustness reasoning. Selling point: Presents a novel approach to defending a realist interpretation of science. Selling point: Interweaves philosophical and historical topics concerning science.