Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'The Sign of Four', 'Why there isn't a ready-made world' and 'works'

expand these ideas     |    start again     |     specify just one area for these texts

---

8 ideas

7. Existence / D. Theories of Reality / 2. Realism

17644

Metaphysical realism is committed to there being one ultimate true theory [Putnam]

7. Existence / D. Theories of Reality / 4. Anti-realism

17648

It is an illusion to think there could be one good scientific theory of reality [Putnam]

9. Objects / B. Unity of Objects / 3. Unity Problems / c. Statue and clay

17643

Shape is essential relative to 'statue', but not essential relative to 'clay' [Putnam]

12. Knowledge Sources / B. Perception / 4. Sense Data / b. Nature of sense-data

17642

The old view that sense data are independent of mind is quite dotty [Putnam]

14. Science / C. Induction / 1. Induction

22200

If you eliminate the impossible, the truth will remain, even if it is weird [Conan Doyle]

26. Natural Theory / C. Causation / 8. Particular Causation / d. Selecting the cause

17645

An alien might think oxygen was the main cause of a forest fire [Putnam]

27. Natural Reality / A. Classical Physics / 2. Thermodynamics / b. Heat

20972

Joule showed that energy converts to heat, and heat to energy [Joule, by Papineau]

20645

Heat is a state of vibration, not a substance [Joule]