The Ascent of Instrumentalism in the Natural Sciences and its Consequences

The paper analyses the historical and epistemological rise of instrumentalism in the natural sciences, tracing its roots to the second industrial revolution and focusing particularly on the German scientific and educational system. The authors argue that instrumentalism, understood as the reduction of scientific theories to predictive or utilitarian tools, cannot be separated from the processes of specialisation, state intervention, and the transformation of science into an economic resource. The paper contrasts this instrumentalist approach with the Enlightenment tradition of rational empiricism, emphasising the loss of critical reason, conceptual understanding, and unity of knowledge. The discussion extends to twentieth-century physics, technoscience, and contemporary Artificial Intelligence, which is presented as the ultimate form of instrumental knowledge devoid of genuine understanding.