J ul 1 99 8 Is Science going through a critical stage ?

The unexpected discoveries at the beginning of the century, particularly thanks to Heisenberg, Bohr, and Gödel, has driven the science to drastic changes, opening new, extraordinary, and infinite research fields. After this, many scientists saw, and still today see, a crisis, with dreadful meaning, in the science. However, this crisis is only present in that type of science, driven by determinism, which is strictly linked to the common sense. Originally published in italian: L. Foschini, La Scienza è in crisi?, AEI 83, (1996), 455-458. English translation by Ms. Simona Baldoni. Revised by the author. The first half of this century has been one of the most intense period in human history: tragic episodes the two world wars were interwoven with moments of great cultural activity. At the end of the XIX century, the world was still permeated with an extremely determinist spirit, which was the result of the philosophical ideas of the previous centuries: Enlightment first and Positivism later on. The former which historically coincides with the XVIII century tried to “enlighten” the mind of man, seized by ignorance and superstition, through science and knowledge. The latter borne on the wave of the great scientific discoveries of the time may well be seen as an