Single Idea 4793

[catalogued under 26. Natural Theory / D. Laws of Nature / 3. Laws and Generalities]

Full Idea

The statement "all gold cubes are smaller than one cubic mile" seems to have all the features demanded of a lawlike statement, yet it can hardly be said to express a law. It is a merely true universal generalisation.

Gist of Idea

"All gold cubes are smaller than one cubic mile" is a true universal generalisation, but not a law

Source

Stathis Psillos (Causation and Explanation [2002], §5.3)

Book Reference

Psillos,Stathis: 'Causation and Explanation' [Acumen 2002], p.141


A Reaction

Nice example. A trickier case is "all cubes of uranium are smaller than one cubic mile", which sounds like part of a law. It suggests a blurred borderline between the two. How much gold is there in the universe? Is that fact a natural necessity?