Single Idea 21706

[catalogued under 27. Natural Reality / B. Modern Physics / 4. Standard Model / a. Concept of matter]

Full Idea

In the beginning Russell's ontology included matter as basic, to be known, however, only by inference from sense-data. By the end he wanted to 'contruct' matter from sense-data.

Gist of Idea

At first matter is basic and known by sense-data; later Russell says matter is constructed

Source

report of Bertrand Russell (The Analysis of Matter [1927]) by Bernard Linsky - Russell's Metaphysical Logic 1

Book Reference

Linsky,Bernard: 'Russell's Metaphysical Logic' [CSLI 1999], p.5


A Reaction

[see also p.133] Russell always seems to have been a robust realist about the external world, but the later view seems a lot less realist than the earlier view.

Related Idea

Idea 21722 Better to construct from what is known, than to infer what is unknown [Russell]