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All the ideas for 'Essays on Intellectual Powers: Conception', 'works' and 'Explanation - Opening Address'

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23 ideas

2. Reason / A. Nature of Reason / 6. Coherence
17070 Coherence is consilience, simplicity, analogy, and fitting into a web of belief [Smart]
17072 We need comprehensiveness, as well as self-coherence [Smart]
6. Mathematics / A. Nature of Mathematics / 3. Nature of Numbers / g. Real numbers
13445 Descartes showed a one-one order-preserving match between points on a line and the real numbers [Descartes, by Hart,WD]
9. Objects / B. Unity of Objects / 2. Substance / e. Substance critique
16774 Descartes thinks distinguishing substances from aggregates is pointless [Descartes, by Pasnau]
9. Objects / D. Essence of Objects / 4. Essence as Definition
23647 Objects have an essential constitution, producing its qualities, which we are too ignorant to define [Reid]
10. Modality / D. Knowledge of Modality / 4. Conceivable as Possible / b. Conceivable but impossible
11958 Impossibilites are easily conceived in mathematics and geometry [Reid, by Molnar]
12. Knowledge Sources / B. Perception / 3. Representation
7400 Descartes said images can refer to objects without resembling them (as words do) [Descartes, by Tuck]
13. Knowledge Criteria / B. Internal Justification / 3. Evidentialism / a. Evidence
17073 I simply reject evidence, if it is totally contrary to my web of belief [Smart]
14. Science / D. Explanation / 1. Explanation / c. Direction of explanation
17077 The height of a flagpole could be fixed by its angle of shadow, but that would be very unusual [Smart]
17078 Universe expansion explains the red shift, but not vice versa [Smart]
14. Science / D. Explanation / 2. Types of Explanation / c. Explanations by coherence
17061 Explanation of a fact is fitting it into a system of beliefs [Smart]
17074 Explanations are bad by fitting badly with a web of beliefs, or fitting well into a bad web [Smart]
17076 Deducing from laws is one possible way to achieve a coherent explanation [Smart]
14. Science / D. Explanation / 2. Types of Explanation / d. Consilience
17071 An explanation is better if it also explains phenomena from a different field [Smart]
14. Science / D. Explanation / 2. Types of Explanation / g. Causal explanations
17062 If scientific explanation is causal, that rules out mathematical explanation [Smart]
14. Science / D. Explanation / 2. Types of Explanation / j. Explanations by reduction
17075 Scientific explanation tends to reduce things to the unfamiliar (not the familiar) [Smart]
16. Persons / F. Free Will / 4. For Free Will
4310 We have inner awareness of our freedom [Descartes]
17. Mind and Body / A. Mind-Body Dualism / 2. Interactionism
6553 Descartes discussed the interaction problem, and compared it with gravity [Descartes, by Lycan]
19. Language / B. Reference / 1. Reference theories
23646 Reference is by name, or a term-plus-circumstance, or ostensively, or by description [Reid]
19. Language / B. Reference / 3. Direct Reference / c. Social reference
23645 A word's meaning is the thing conceived, as fixed by linguistic experts [Reid]
26. Natural Theory / A. Speculations on Nature / 1. Nature
19676 Nature is devoid of thought [Descartes, by Meillassoux]
26. Natural Theory / A. Speculations on Nature / 7. Later Matter Theories / c. Matter as extension
6518 Matter can't just be Descartes's geometry, because a filler of the spaces is needed [Robinson,H on Descartes]
27. Natural Reality / B. Modern Physics / 1. Relativity / b. General relativity
17063 Unlike Newton, Einstein's general theory explains the perihelion of Mercury [Smart]