Full Idea
A capacity for abstraction is central to our capacity to think about the universe systematically.
Gist of Idea
Without abstraction we couldn't think systematically
Source
John Heil (The Universe as We Find It [2012], 09.7)
Book Reference
Heil,John: 'The Universe as We Find It' [OUP 2012], p.195
A Reaction
This strikes me as obvious. We pick out the similarities, and then discuss them, as separate from their bearers. We explain why things have features in common. Some would just say systematic thinking needs universals, but that's less good.