Combining Philosophers

All the ideas for Galen, Adrian Bardon and Fraser MacBride

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61 ideas

1. Philosophy / D. Nature of Philosophy / 5. Aims of Philosophy / a. Philosophy as worldly
Philosophy must start from clearly observed facts [Galen]
2. Reason / A. Nature of Reason / 7. Status of Reason
Early empiricists said reason was just a useless concept introduced by philosophers [Galen, by Frede,M]
3. Truth / A. Truth Problems / 2. Defining Truth
We might define truth as arising from the truth-maker relation [MacBride]
3. Truth / B. Truthmakers / 1. For Truthmakers
Phenomenalists, behaviourists and presentists can't supply credible truth-makers [MacBride]
3. Truth / B. Truthmakers / 2. Truthmaker Relation
If truthmaking is classical entailment, then anything whatsoever makes a necessary truth [MacBride]
3. Truth / B. Truthmakers / 3. Truthmaker Maximalism
'Maximalism' says every truth has an actual truthmaker [MacBride]
Maximalism follows Russell, and optimalism (no negative or universal truthmakers) follows Wittgenstein [MacBride]
3. Truth / B. Truthmakers / 5. What Makes Truths / a. What makes truths
The main idea of truth-making is that what a proposition is about is what matters [MacBride]
3. Truth / B. Truthmakers / 6. Making Negative Truths
There are different types of truthmakers for different types of negative truth [MacBride]
There aren't enough positive states out there to support all the negative truths [MacBride]
3. Truth / B. Truthmakers / 8. Making General Truths
Optimalists say that negative and universal are true 'by default' from the positive truths [MacBride]
3. Truth / B. Truthmakers / 12. Rejecting Truthmakers
Does 'this sentence has no truth-maker' have a truth-maker? Reductio suggests it can't have [MacBride]
Even idealists could accept truthmakers, as mind-dependent [MacBride]
Maybe 'makes true' is not an active verb, but just a formal connective like 'because'? [MacBride]
Truthmaker talk of 'something' making sentences true, which presupposes objectual quantification [MacBride]
5. Theory of Logic / E. Structures of Logic / 2. Logical Connectives / a. Logical connectives
Connectives link sentences without linking their meanings [MacBride]
5. Theory of Logic / E. Structures of Logic / 2. Logical Connectives / c. not
'A is F' may not be positive ('is dead'), and 'A is not-F' may not be negative ('is not blind') [MacBride]
6. Mathematics / A. Nature of Mathematics / 3. Nature of Numbers / d. Natural numbers
Numbers are identified by their main properties and relations, involving the successor function [MacBride]
6. Mathematics / A. Nature of Mathematics / 5. The Infinite / l. Limits
The modern idea of 'limit' allows infinite quantities to have a finite sum [Bardon]
6. Mathematics / B. Foundations for Mathematics / 7. Mathematical Structuralism / e. Structuralism critique
For mathematical objects to be positions, positions themselves must exist first [MacBride]
7. Existence / A. Nature of Existence / 3. Being / e. Being and nothing
An equally good question would be why there was nothing instead of something [Bardon]
7. Existence / A. Nature of Existence / 6. Criterion for Existence
Maybe it only exists if it is a truthmaker (rather than the value of a variable)? [MacBride]
7. Existence / C. Structure of Existence / 1. Grounding / a. Nature of grounding
Different types of 'grounding' seem to have no more than a family resemblance relation [MacBride]
Which has priority - 'grounding' or 'truth-making'? [MacBride]
7. Existence / C. Structure of Existence / 6. Fundamentals / d. Logical atoms
Russell allows some complex facts, but Wittgenstein only allows atomic facts [MacBride]
8. Modes of Existence / A. Relations / 1. Nature of Relations
It may be that internal relations like proportion exist, because we directly perceive it [MacBride]
8. Modes of Existence / A. Relations / 2. Internal Relations
Internal relations are fixed by existences, or characters, or supervenience on characters [MacBride]
8. Modes of Existence / A. Relations / 4. Formal Relations / a. Types of relation
'Multigrade' relations are those lacking a fixed number of relata [MacBride]
10. Modality / A. Necessity / 6. Logical Necessity
Wittgenstein's plan to show there is only logical necessity failed, because of colours [MacBride]
15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 1. Mind / c. Features of mind
The spirit in the soul wants freedom, power and honour [Galen]
15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 1. Mind / d. Location of mind
Galen showed by experiment that the brain controls the body [Galen, by Hankinson]
15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 8. Brain
Stopping the heart doesn't terminate activity; pressing the brain does that [Galen, by Cobb]
15. Nature of Minds / C. Capacities of Minds / 1. Faculties
We just use the word 'faculty' when we don't know the psychological cause [Galen]
Philosophers think faculties are in substances, and invent a faculty for every activity [Galen]
17. Mind and Body / E. Mind as Physical / 1. Physical Mind
The brain contains memory and reason, and is the source of sensation and decision [Galen]
18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 5. Rationality / a. Rationality
The rational part of the soul is the desire for truth, understanding and recollection [Galen]
23. Ethics / C. Virtue Theory / 2. Elements of Virtue Theory / f. The Mean
Galen's medicine followed the mean; each illness was balanced by opposite treatment [Galen, by Hacking]
23. Ethics / C. Virtue Theory / 3. Virtues / a. Virtues
Each part of the soul has its virtue - pleasure for appetite, success for competition, and rectitude for reason [Galen]
25. Social Practice / D. Justice / 3. Punishment / a. Right to punish
We execute irredeemable people, to protect ourselves, as a deterrent, and ending a bad life [Galen]
26. Natural Theory / C. Causation / 9. General Causation / c. Counterfactual causation
Why does an effect require a prior event if the prior event isn't a cause? [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / A. Classical Physics / 2. Thermodynamics / d. Entropy
Becoming disordered is much easier for a system than becoming ordered [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / C. Space / 6. Space-Time
The universe expands, so space-time is enlarging [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 1. Nature of Time / c. Idealist time
We should treat time as adverbial, so we don't experience time, we experience things temporally [Bardon, by Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 1. Nature of Time / i. Denying time
How can we question the passage of time, if the question takes time to ask? [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 2. Passage of Time / b. Rate of time
What is time's passage relative to, and how fast does it pass? [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 2. Passage of Time / e. Tensed (A) series
The A-series says a past event is becoming more past, but how can it do that? [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 2. Passage of Time / f. Tenseless (B) series
The B-series needs a revised view of causes, laws and explanations [Bardon]
The B-series is realist about time, but idealist about its passage [Bardon]
The B-series adds directionality when it accepts 'earlier' and 'later' [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 2. Passage of Time / g. Time's arrow
To define time's arrow by causation, we need a timeless definition of causation [Bardon]
We judge memories to be of the past because the events cause the memories [Bardon]
The psychological arrow of time is the direction from our memories to our anticipations [Bardon]
The direction of entropy is probabilistic, not necessary, so cannot be identical to time's arrow [Bardon]
It is arbitrary to reverse time in a more orderly universe, but not in a sub-system of it [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 2. Passage of Time / h. Change in time
It seems hard to understand change without understanding time first [Bardon]
We experience static states (while walking round a house) and observe change (ship leaving dock) [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 2. Passage of Time / i. Time and motion
The motion of a thing should be a fact in the present moment [Bardon]
Experiences of motion may be overlapping, thus stretching out the experience [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 2. Passage of Time / j. Time travel
At least eternal time gives time travellers a possible destination [Bardon]
Time travel is not a paradox if we include it in the eternal continuum of events [Bardon]
27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 3. Parts of Time / d. Measuring time
We use calendars for the order of events, and clocks for their passing [Bardon]