Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'The Roots of Romanticism', 'comedies (frags)' and 'The Rationality of Science'

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


24 ideas

1. Philosophy / B. History of Ideas / 5. Later European Thought
Romanticism is the greatest change in the consciousness of the West [Berlin]
1. Philosophy / G. Scientific Philosophy / 1. Aims of Science
We do not wish merely to predict, we also want to explain [Newton-Smith]
The real problem of science is how to choose between possible explanations [Newton-Smith]
For science to be rational, we must explain scientific change rationally [Newton-Smith]
1. Philosophy / G. Scientific Philosophy / 2. Positivism
Critics attack positivist division between theory and observation [Newton-Smith]
Positivists hold that theoretical terms change, but observation terms don't [Newton-Smith]
3. Truth / A. Truth Problems / 6. Verisimilitude
More truthful theories have greater predictive power [Newton-Smith]
Theories generate infinite truths and falsehoods, so they cannot be used to assess probability [Newton-Smith]
10. Modality / C. Sources of Modality / 1. Sources of Necessity
De re necessity arises from the way the world is [Newton-Smith]
11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 4. Belief / a. Beliefs
We must assess the truth of beliefs in identifying them [Newton-Smith]
13. Knowledge Criteria / E. Relativism / 6. Relativism Critique
Defeat relativism by emphasising truth and reference, not meaning [Newton-Smith]
14. Science / A. Basis of Science / 1. Observation
A full understanding of 'yellow' involves some theory [Newton-Smith]
14. Science / A. Basis of Science / 5. Anomalies
All theories contain anomalies, and so are falsified! [Newton-Smith]
The anomaly of Uranus didn't destroy Newton's mechanics - it led to Neptune's discovery [Newton-Smith]
Anomalies are judged against rival theories, and support for the current theory [Newton-Smith]
14. Science / B. Scientific Theories / 1. Scientific Theory
Why should it matter whether or not a theory is scientific? [Newton-Smith]
14. Science / B. Scientific Theories / 5. Commensurability
If theories are really incommensurable, we could believe them all [Newton-Smith]
20. Action / C. Motives for Action / 3. Acting on Reason / b. Intellectualism
Most Enlightenment thinkers believed that virtue consists ultimately in knowledge [Berlin]
20. Action / C. Motives for Action / 3. Acting on Reason / c. Reasons as causes
Explaining an action is showing that it is rational [Newton-Smith]
22. Metaethics / C. The Good / 1. Goodness / a. Form of the Good
I can form no notion of what the good is [Amphis]
23. Ethics / C. Virtue Theory / 3. Virtues / a. Virtues
If we are essentially free wills, authenticity and sincerity are the highest virtues [Berlin]
23. Ethics / D. Deontological Ethics / 2. Duty
The Greeks have no notion of obligation or duty [Berlin]
23. Ethics / F. Existentialism / 1. Existentialism
Central to existentialism is the romantic idea that there is nothing to lean on [Berlin]
29. Religion / B. Monotheistic Religion / 2. Judaism
Judaism and Christianity views are based on paternal, family and tribal relations [Berlin]