Ideas from 'LOT 2' by Jerry A. Fodor [2008], by Theme Structure
[found in 'LOT 2: the Language of Thought Revisited' by Fodor,Jerry A. [OUP 2008,978-0-19-954877-4]].
green numbers give full details |
back to texts
|
expand these ideas
1. Philosophy / D. Nature of Philosophy / 3. Philosophy Defined
|
12644
|
Who cares what 'philosophy' is? Most pre-1950 thought doesn't now count as philosophy
|
1. Philosophy / F. Analytic Philosophy / 3. Analysis of Preconditions
|
12633
|
Definitions often give necessary but not sufficient conditions for an extension
|
5. Theory of Logic / E. Structures of Logic / 2. Logical Connectives / d. and
|
12664
|
A truth-table, not inferential role, defines 'and'
|
5. Theory of Logic / F. Referring in Logic / 1. Naming / a. Names
|
12648
|
Names in thought afford a primitive way to bring John before the mind
|
|
12650
|
'Paderewski' has two names in mentalese, for his pianist file and his politician file
|
5. Theory of Logic / K. Features of Logics / 2. Consistency
|
12656
|
P-and-Q gets its truth from the truth of P and truth of Q, but consistency isn't like that
|
10. Modality / B. Possibility / 1. Possibility
|
12653
|
There's statistical, logical, nomological, conceptual and metaphysical possibility
|
11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 4. Belief / d. Cause of beliefs
|
12651
|
Some beliefs are only inferred when needed, like 'Shakespeare had not telephone'
|
11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 6. Knowing How
|
12628
|
Knowing that must come before knowing how
|
12. Knowledge Sources / D. Empiricism / 3. Pragmatism
|
12625
|
Pragmatism is the worst idea ever
|
15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 1. Mind / c. Features of mind
|
12636
|
Mental states have causal powers
|
15. Nature of Minds / C. Capacities of Minds / 7. Seeing Resemblance
|
12661
|
The different types of resemblance don't resemble one another
|
17. Mind and Body / C. Functionalism / 2. Machine Functionalism
|
12632
|
In the Representational view, concepts play the key linking role
|
17. Mind and Body / E. Mind as Physical / 4. Connectionism
|
12624
|
Only the labels of nodes have semantic content in connectionism, and they play no role
|
18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 1. Thought
|
12640
|
Associative thinking avoids syntax, but can't preserve sense, reference or truth
|
|
12641
|
Connectionism gives no account of how constituents make complex concepts
|
18. Thought / B. Mechanics of Thought / 4. Language of Thought
|
12643
|
Ambiguities in English are the classic reason for claiming that we don't think in English
|
18. Thought / B. Mechanics of Thought / 5. Mental Files
|
12647
|
Mental representations name things in the world, but also files in our memory
|
|
12649
|
We think in file names
|
18. Thought / B. Mechanics of Thought / 6. Artificial Thought / a. Artificial Intelligence
|
12655
|
Frame Problem: how to eliminate most beliefs as irrelevant, without searching them?
|
18. Thought / C. Content / 5. Twin Earth
|
12630
|
If concept content is reference, then my Twin and I are referring to the same stuff
|
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 2. Origin of Concepts / a. Origin of concepts
|
12658
|
Nobody knows how concepts are acquired
|
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 2. Origin of Concepts / c. Nativist concepts
|
12662
|
We have an innate capacity to form a concept, once we have grasped the stereotype
|
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 3. Ontology of Concepts / a. Concepts as representations
|
12635
|
Having a concept isn't a pragmatic matter, but being able to think about the concept
|
|
12652
|
Concepts have two sides; they are files that face thought, and also face subject-matter
|
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 3. Ontology of Concepts / b. Concepts as abilities
|
12626
|
Cartesians put concept individuation before concept possession
|
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 3. Ontology of Concepts / c. Fregean concepts
|
12637
|
Frege's puzzles suggest to many that concepts have sense as well as reference
|
|
12638
|
If concepts have sense, we can't see the connection to their causal powers
|
|
12639
|
Belief in 'senses' may explain intentionality, but not mental processes
|
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / a. Conceptual structure
|
12654
|
You can't think 'brown dog' without thinking 'brown' and 'dog'
|
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / d. Concepts as prototypes
|
12659
|
Maybe stereotypes are a stage in concept acquisition (rather than a by-product)
|
|
12660
|
One stereotype might be a paradigm for two difference concepts
|
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / g. Conceptual atomism
|
12629
|
For the referential view of thought, the content of a concept is just its reference
|
|
12631
|
Compositionality requires that concepts be atomic
|
18. Thought / E. Abstraction / 2. Abstracta by Selection
|
12657
|
Abstractionism claims that instances provide criteria for what is shared
|
19. Language / A. Nature of Meaning / 7. Meaning Holism / c. Meaning by Role
|
12634
|
'Inferential-role semantics' says meaning is determined by role in inference
|
19. Language / B. Reference / 1. Reference theories
|
12642
|
Co-referring terms differ if they have different causal powers
|
|
12663
|
We refer to individuals and to properties, and we use singular terms and predicates
|
19. Language / C. Assigning Meanings / 2. Semantics
|
12645
|
Semantics (esp. referential semantics) allows inferences from utterances to the world
|
|
12646
|
Semantics relates to the world, so it is never just psychological
|
20. Action / C. Motives for Action / 3. Acting on Reason / a. Practical reason
|
12627
|
Before you can plan action, you must decide on the truth of your estimate of success
|