Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'The Rationality of Science', 'The Journals of Kierkegaard' and 'works'

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25 ideas

1. Philosophy / D. Nature of Philosophy / 2. Invocation to Philosophy
16000 Fixed ideas should be tackled aggressively [Kierkegaard]
1. Philosophy / F. Analytic Philosophy / 5. Linguistic Analysis
16012 Philosophy can't be unbiased if it ignores language, as that is no more independent than individuals are [Kierkegaard]
1. Philosophy / G. Scientific Philosophy / 1. Aims of Science
3870 The real problem of science is how to choose between possible explanations [Newton-Smith]
3859 We do not wish merely to predict, we also want to explain [Newton-Smith]
3853 For science to be rational, we must explain scientific change rationally [Newton-Smith]
1. Philosophy / G. Scientific Philosophy / 2. Positivism
3854 Positivists hold that theoretical terms change, but observation terms don't [Newton-Smith]
3855 Critics attack positivist division between theory and observation [Newton-Smith]
3. Truth / A. Truth Problems / 6. Verisimilitude
3869 More truthful theories have greater predictive power [Newton-Smith]
3861 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
3867 De re necessity arises from the way the world is [Newton-Smith]
11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 4. Belief / a. Beliefs
3872 We must assess the truth of beliefs in identifying them [Newton-Smith]
11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 4. Belief / c. Aim of beliefs
6672 Moore's Paradox: you can't assert 'I believe that p but p is false', but can assert 'You believe p but p is false' [Moore,GE, by Lowe]
13. Knowledge Criteria / E. Relativism / 6. Relativism Critique
3857 Defeat relativism by emphasising truth and reference, not meaning [Newton-Smith]
14. Science / A. Basis of Science / 1. Observation
3858 A full understanding of 'yellow' involves some theory [Newton-Smith]
14. Science / A. Basis of Science / 5. Anomalies
3862 All theories contain anomalies, and so are falsified! [Newton-Smith]
3863 The anomaly of Uranus didn't destroy Newton's mechanics - it led to Neptune's discovery [Newton-Smith]
3864 Anomalies are judged against rival theories, and support for the current theory [Newton-Smith]
14. Science / B. Scientific Theories / 1. Scientific Theory
3865 Why should it matter whether or not a theory is scientific? [Newton-Smith]
14. Science / B. Scientific Theories / 5. Commensurability
3866 If theories are really incommensurable, we could believe them all [Newton-Smith]
20. Action / C. Motives for Action / 3. Acting on Reason / c. Reasons as causes
3871 Explaining an action is showing that it is rational [Newton-Smith]
22. Metaethics / B. Value / 2. Values / g. Love
16003 If people marry just because they are lonely, that is self-love, not love [Kierkegaard]
23. Ethics / F. Existentialism / 4. Boredom
21910 Our destiny is the highest pitch of world-weariness [Kierkegaard]
23. Ethics / F. Existentialism / 7. Existential Action
16001 Life may be understood backwards, but it has to be lived forwards [Kierkegaard]
29. Religion / B. Monotheistic Religion / 4. Christianity / a. Christianity
16008 The best way to be a Christian is without 'Christianity' [Kierkegaard]
20735 We need to see that Christianity cannot be understood [Kierkegaard]