Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'Mechanisms', 'The Methods of Ethics (7th edn)' and 'Essays on Intellectual Powers 6: Judgement'

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22 ideas

1. Philosophy / F. Analytic Philosophy / 5. Linguistic Analysis
23657 The existence of tensed verbs shows that not all truths are necessary truths [Reid]
2. Reason / F. Fallacies / 7. Ad Hominem
23655 An ad hominem argument is good, if it is shown that the man's principles are inconsistent [Reid]
11. Knowledge Aims / B. Certain Knowledge / 4. The Cogito
23659 If someone denies that he is thinking when he is conscious of it, we can only laugh [Reid]
11. Knowledge Aims / C. Knowing Reality / 1. Perceptual Realism / b. Direct realism
23662 The existence of ideas is no more obvious than the existence of external objects [Reid]
11. Knowledge Aims / C. Knowing Reality / 4. Solipsism
23661 We are only aware of other beings through our senses; without that, we are alone in the universe [Reid]
12. Knowledge Sources / E. Direct Knowledge / 1. Common Sense
23654 In obscure matters the few must lead the many, but the many usually lead in common sense [Reid]
12. Knowledge Sources / E. Direct Knowledge / 4. Memory
23660 The theory of ideas, popular with philosophers, means past existence has to be proved [Reid]
14. Science / B. Scientific Theories / 2. Aim of Science
17488 Empiricist theories are sets of laws, which give explanations and reductions [Glennan]
14. Science / D. Explanation / 2. Types of Explanation / i. Explanations by mechanism
17493 Modern mechanism need parts with spatial, temporal and function facts, and diagrams [Glennan]
17487 Mechanistic philosophy of science is an alternative to the empiricist law-based tradition [Glennan]
17489 Mechanisms are either systems of parts or sequences of activities [Glennan]
17490 17th century mechanists explained everything by the kinetic physical fundamentals [Glennan]
17491 Unlike the lawlike approach, mechanistic explanation can allow for exceptions [Glennan]
15. Nature of Minds / B. Features of Minds / 1. Consciousness / a. Consciousness
23658 Consciousness is an indefinable and unique operation [Reid]
16. Persons / F. Free Will / 2. Sources of Free Will
23111 If we say that freedom depends on rationality, the irrational actions are not free [Sidgwick]
18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 8. Human Thought
23656 The structure of languages reveals a uniformity in basic human opinions [Reid]
18. Thought / E. Abstraction / 2. Abstracta by Selection
23653 If you can't distinguish the features of a complex object, your notion of it would be a muddle [Reid]
21. Aesthetics / A. Aesthetic Experience / 3. Taste
23663 There are axioms of taste - such as a general consensus about a beautiful face [Reid]
23. Ethics / A. Egoism / 1. Ethical Egoism
23059 Self-interest is not rational, if the self is just a succession of memories and behaviour [Sidgwick, by Gray]
23. Ethics / E. Utilitarianism / 1. Utilitarianism
4129 It is self-evident (from the point of view of the Universe) that no individual has more importance than another [Sidgwick]
24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 4. Social Utilitarianism
20588 Sidwick argues for utilitarian institutions, rather than actions [Sidgwick, by Tuckness/Wolf]
26. Natural Theory / C. Causation / 4. Naturalised causation
17494 Since causal events are related by mechanisms, causation can be analysed in that way [Glennan]