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Single Idea 17598

[filed under theme 2. Reason / A. Nature of Reason / 6. Coherence ]

Full Idea

Informally, a theory of explanatory coherence has the principles of symmetry, explanation, analogy, data priority, contradiction, competition and acceptance.

Gist of Idea

Explanatory coherence needs symmetry,explanation,analogy,data priority, contradiction,competition,acceptance

Source

Paul Thagard (Coherence: The Price is Right [2012], p.44)

Book Ref

-: 'Southern Journal of Philosophy' [-], p.44


A Reaction

[Thagard give a concise summary of his theory here] Again Thagard makes a wonderful contribution in an area where most thinkers are pessimistic about making any progress. His principles are very plausible.


The 13 ideas from Paul Thagard

Coherence problems have positive and negative restraints; solutions maximise constraint satisfaction [Thagard]
Coherence is explanatory, deductive, conceptual, analogical, perceptual, and deliberative [Thagard]
Explanatory coherence needs symmetry,explanation,analogy,data priority, contradiction,competition,acceptance [Thagard]
Bayesian inference is forced to rely on approximations [Thagard]
The best theory has the highest subjective (Bayesian) probability? [Thagard]
Verisimilitude comes from including more phenomena, and revealing what underlies [Thagard]
Neither a priori rationalism nor sense data empiricism account for scientific knowledge [Thagard]
1: Coherence is a symmetrical relation between two propositions [Thagard, by Smart]
2: An explanation must wholly cohere internally, and with the new fact [Thagard, by Smart]
3: If an analogous pair explain another analogous pair, then they all cohere [Thagard, by Smart]
4: For coherence, observation reports have a degree of intrinsic acceptability [Thagard, by Smart]
5: Contradictory propositions incohere [Thagard, by Smart]
6: A proposition's acceptability depends on its coherence with a system [Thagard, by Smart]