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Single Idea 22172

[filed under theme 14. Science / A. Basis of Science / 3. Experiment ]

Full Idea

Not all sciences are experimental - astronomers obviously cannot do experiments on the heavens, but have to content themselves with careful observation instead.

Gist of Idea

Not all sciences are experimental; astronomy relies on careful observation

Source

Samir Okasha (Philosophy of Science: Very Short Intro (2nd ed) [2016], 1)

Book Ref

Okasha,Samir: 'Philosophy of Science: very short intro (2nd ed)' [OUP 2016], p.2


A Reaction

Biology too. Psychology tries hard to be experimental, but I doubt whether the main theories emerge from experiments.


The 11 ideas from Samir Okasha

Virtually all modern views of speciation rest on relational rather than intrinsic features [Okasha]
Not all sciences are experimental; astronomy relies on careful observation [Okasha]
The discoverers of Neptune didn't change their theory because of an anomaly [Okasha]
Science mostly aims at confirming theories, rather than falsifying them [Okasha]
Randomised Control Trials have a treatment and a control group, chosen at random [Okasha]
Induction is inferences from examined to unexamined instances of a given kind [Okasha]
If the rules only concern changes of belief, and not the starting point, absurd views can look ratiional [Okasha]
Galileo refuted the Aristotelian theory that heavier objects fall faster [Okasha]
Multiple realisability is said to make reduction impossible [Okasha]
Theories with unobservables are underdetermined by the evidence [Okasha]
Two things can't be incompatible if they are incommensurable [Okasha]