Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'The Elm and the Expert', 'Philosophy of Mind: 1950-2000' and 'The History of the Jews'

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51 ideas

2. Reason / A. Nature of Reason / 8. Naturalising Reason
A standard naturalist view is realist, externalist, and computationalist, and believes in rationality [Fodor]
3. Truth / A. Truth Problems / 5. Truth Bearers
Psychology has to include the idea that mental processes are typically truth-preserving [Fodor]
5. Theory of Logic / A. Overview of Logic / 4. Pure Logic
Inferences are surely part of the causal structure of the world [Fodor]
5. Theory of Logic / E. Structures of Logic / 1. Logical Form
We now have a much more sophisticated understanding of logical form in language [Burge]
13. Knowledge Criteria / C. External Justification / 5. Controlling Beliefs
Control of belief is possible if you know truth conditions and what causes beliefs [Fodor]
14. Science / A. Basis of Science / 3. Experiment
Participation in an experiment requires agreement about what the outcome will mean [Fodor]
An experiment is a deliberate version of what informal thinking does all the time [Fodor]
We can deliberately cause ourselves to have true thoughts - hence the value of experiments [Fodor]
Interrogation and experiment submit us to having beliefs caused [Fodor]
14. Science / B. Scientific Theories / 1. Scientific Theory
Theories are links in the causal chain between the environment and our beliefs [Fodor]
15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 1. Mind / e. Questions about mind
I say psychology is intentional, semantics is informational, and thinking is computation [Fodor]
15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 6. Anti-Individualism
Anti-individualism says the environment is involved in the individuation of some mental states [Burge]
Broad concepts suggest an extension of the mind into the environment (less computer-like) [Burge]
15. Nature of Minds / B. Features of Minds / 1. Consciousness / f. Higher-order thought
We are probably the only creatures that can think about our own thoughts [Fodor]
16. Persons / C. Self-Awareness / 2. Knowing the Self
Anti-individualism may be incompatible with some sorts of self-knowledge [Burge]
17. Mind and Body / A. Mind-Body Dualism / 2. Interactionism
Cartesians consider interaction to be a miracle [Fodor]
Semantics v syntax is the interaction problem all over again [Fodor]
17. Mind and Body / C. Functionalism / 1. Functionalism
Some qualities of experience, like blurred vision, have no function at all [Burge]
17. Mind and Body / E. Mind as Physical / 1. Physical Mind
Type physicalism equates mental kinds with physical kinds [Fodor]
17. Mind and Body / E. Mind as Physical / 4. Connectionism
Hume has no theory of the co-ordination of the mind [Fodor]
18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 2. Propositional Attitudes
Propositional attitudes are propositions presented in a certain way [Fodor]
18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 5. Rationality / a. Rationality
Rationality has mental properties - autonomy, productivity, experiment [Fodor]
18. Thought / C. Content / 5. Twin Earth
XYZ (Twin Earth 'water') is an impossibility [Fodor]
18. Thought / C. Content / 6. Broad Content
Truth conditions require a broad concept of content [Fodor]
18. Thought / C. Content / 7. Narrow Content
Concepts aren't linked to stuff; they are what is caused by stuff [Fodor]
18. Thought / C. Content / 10. Causal Semantics
Knowing the cause of a thought is almost knowing its content [Fodor]
18. Thought / C. Content / 12. Informational Semantics
Is content basically information, fixed externally? [Fodor]
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 3. Ontology of Concepts / b. Concepts as abilities
In the information view, concepts are potentials for making distinctions [Fodor]
19. Language / A. Nature of Meaning / 1. Meaning
Semantic externalism says the concept 'elm' needs no further beliefs or inferences [Fodor]
If meaning is information, that establishes the causal link between the state of the world and our beliefs [Fodor]
19. Language / A. Nature of Meaning / 4. Meaning as Truth-Conditions
To know the content of a thought is to know what would make it true [Fodor]
19. Language / A. Nature of Meaning / 7. Meaning Holism / b. Language holism
For holists no two thoughts are ever quite the same, which destroys faith in meaning [Fodor]
19. Language / B. Reference / 4. Descriptive Reference / a. Sense and reference
It is claimed that reference doesn't fix sense (Jocasta), and sense doesn't fix reference (Twin Earth) [Fodor]
19. Language / C. Assigning Meanings / 2. Semantics
Broad semantics holds that the basic semantic properties are truth and denotation [Fodor]
19. Language / C. Assigning Meanings / 6. Truth-Conditions Semantics
Externalist semantics are necessary to connect the contents of beliefs with how the world is [Fodor]
24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 10. Theocracy
In Mosaic legal theory, crimes are sins and sins are crimes [Johnson,P]
Because human life is what is sacred, Mosaic law has no death penalty for property violations [Johnson,P]
25. Social Practice / A. Freedoms / 1. Slavery
The Pharisees undermined slavery, by giving slaves responsibility and status in law courts [Johnson,P]
25. Social Practice / B. Equalities / 3. Legal equality
Mosaic law was the first to embody the rule of law, and equality before the law [Johnson,P]
25. Social Practice / F. Life Issues / 1. Causing Death
Man's life is sacred, because it is made in God's image [Johnson,P]
29. Religion / A. Polytheistic Religion / 2. Greek Polytheism
The Jews sharply distinguish human and divine, but the Greeks pull them closer together [Johnson,P]
29. Religion / B. Monotheistic Religion / 2. Judaism
A key moment is the idea of a single moral God, who imposes his morality on humanity [Johnson,P]
Sampson illustrates the idea that religious heroes often begin as outlaws and semi-criminals [Johnson,P]
Isaiah moved Israelite religion away from the local, onto a more universal plane [Johnson,P]
The Torah pre-existed creation, and was its blueprint [Johnson,P]
Judaism involves circumcision, Sabbath, Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, New Year, and Atonement [Johnson,P]
In exile the Jews became a nomocracy [Johnson,P]
29. Religion / B. Monotheistic Religion / 3. Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrians believed in one eternal beneficent being, Creator through the holy spirit [Johnson,P]
29. Religion / D. Religious Issues / 2. Immortality / a. Immortality
Immortality based on judgement of merit was developed by the Egyptians (not the Jews) [Johnson,P]
The main doctrine of the Pharisees was belief in resurrection and the afterlife [Johnson,P]
29. Religion / D. Religious Issues / 2. Immortality / d. Heaven
Pious Jews saw heaven as a vast library [Johnson,P]