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Single Idea 13131
[filed under theme 7. Existence / E. Categories / 2. Categorisation
]
Full Idea
It seems to be one of the central points of constructing systems of ontological categories that everything can be placed in some category or other.
Gist of Idea
The aim is that everything should belong in some ontological category or other
Source
Jan Westerhoff (Ontological Categories [2005], §49)
Book Ref
Westerhoff,Jan: 'Ontological Categories' [OUP 2005], p.122
A Reaction
After initial resistance to this, I suppose I have to give in. The phoenix (a unique mythological bird) is called a 'phoenix', though it might just be called 'John' (cf. God). If there were another phoenix, we would know how to categorise it.
The
17 ideas
with the same theme
[how the mind approaches putting things into categories]:
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13775
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We only succeed in cutting if we use appropriate tools, not if we approach it randomly
[Plato]
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16121
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I revere anyone who can discern a single thing that encompasses many things
[Plato]
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13435
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We can't categorise things by their real essences, because these are unknown
[Locke]
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12535
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If we discovered real essences, we would still categorise things by the external appearance
[Locke]
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6160
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Does Kant say the mind imposes categories, or that it restricts us to them?
[Rowlands on Kant]
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22649
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Classification can only ever be for a particular purpose
[James]
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4048
|
Infant brains appear to have inbuilt ontological categories
[Goldman]
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8986
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We should abandon classifying by pigeon-holes, and classify around paradigms
[Sainsbury]
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17376
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We should aim for a classification which tells us as much as possible about the object
[Dupré]
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4913
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Brain lesions can erase whole categories of perception, suggesting they are hard-wired
[Carter,R]
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15682
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Even fairly simple animals make judgements based on categories
[Gelman]
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15691
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Children accept real stable categories, with nonobvious potential that gives causal explanations
[Gelman]
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13131
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The aim is that everything should belong in some ontological category or other
[Westerhoff]
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10494
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Several words may label a category; one word can name several categories; some categories lack words
[Ellen]
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18573
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For each category of objects (such as 'dog') an individual seems to have several concepts
[Machery]
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18602
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A thing is classified if its features are likely to be generated by that category's causal laws
[Machery]
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18604
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Are quick and slow categorisation the same process, or quite different?
[Machery]
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