Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'Truth (frags)', 'The Realm of Matter' and 'Events and Reification'

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2 ideas

7. Existence / A. Nature of Existence / 6. Criterion for Existence

18521	The criterion of existence is the possibility of action [Santayana]
	Full Idea: The possibility of action ...is the criterion of existence, and the test of substantiality.
	From: George Santayana (The Realm of Matter [1930], p.107), quoted by John Heil - The Universe as We Find It
	A reaction: I rather like this. I think I would say the power is the criterion of existence.

26. Natural Theory / C. Causation / 8. Particular Causation / b. Causal relata

10370	Causal relata are individuated by coarse spacetime regions [Quine, by Schaffer,J]
	Full Idea: Quine's view is that causal relata are individuated by spacetime regions, which is even less fine-grained than Davidson's account of events.... He says fine-grained events are poorly individuated and unfamiliar.
	From: report of Willard Quine (Events and Reification [1985]) by Jonathan Schaffer - The Metaphysics of Causation 1.2
	A reaction: [Schaffer cites Davidson 1985 as accepting this view] This is a nice suggestion, if we are looking for a naturalistic account of causal relata. It makes a minimum ontological commitment (a Quine trait), and I would supplement it with active 'powers'.