Understanding the Evolution of Circular Economy through Language Change

摘要

Drawing on the work of Thomas Kuhn, philosophers of science have developed understandings of the process of scientific development (Campbell, 1974b; Popper, 1972; Toulmin, 1967, 1972; Hull, 1988) using metaphors relating to Darwin's theory of natural selection. The consequence of this is the conceptualization of scientific development as constituting an 'evolutionary process'. The defining feature of adopting an evolutionary orientation in understanding scientific development is suggesting an analogy between the process of biological evolutionary process and that of gain in knowledge (Bradie, 1986). According to this perspective, in the course of evolution, species become more adaptive to their natural environment by undergoing natural selection. Likewise, scientific progress is a result of selection mechanisms on an individual level and in the scientific community.