display all the ideas for this combination of philosophers
2 ideas
2329 | Causal power is a good way of distinguishing the real from the unreal [Kim] |
Full Idea: A plausible criterion for distinguishing what is real from what is not real is the possession of causal power. | |
From: Jaegwon Kim (Mind in a Physical World [1998], §4 p.119) | |
A reaction: This is, of course, a physicalist view, but for physicalists it is probably the best criterion of what is real. A standard objection to platonism in mathematics is that it denies mathematics causal powers. |
3437 | 'Physical facts determine all the facts' is the physicalists' slogan [Kim] |
Full Idea: Physicalists are fond of saying that physical facts determine all the facts. | |
From: Jaegwon Kim (Philosophy of Mind [1996], p.232) | |
A reaction: I totally agree with this slogan. As a view, it seems to me that it is reinforced by essentialism (see the ideas of Brian Ellis), which gives some indication of how facts are physically determined, and why there is no alternative. |