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Ladyman - Understanding Philosophy of Science (Ch. 3 Falsificationism…
Ladyman - Understanding
Philosophy of Science
Ch. 1
Induction
& Inductivism
Rationalism
Deduction
is
Truth-Preserving
deductive Conclusions are
Not Informative
(do not say smth new, smth that was not already implied in the premises)
Validity
has to do:
not w the T/F of
Premises/Conclusions
, But:
w the
Relation btw
them
Empiricism
Knowl
. comes
from Experience
Experiments
Observations
Testing data, etc.
Exp. differ from Obs. bc:
can Control and Manipulate Var.s
designed w 'Testing a theory' already in mind
Induction
Deductively Invalid
, but
allegedly Good
Arguments
Bacon's def.:
generalize
from a
Collection of Particular
instances to a
General Conclusion
Naive
Ind.
Observation is
Not Theory-Laden
Generalization from many obs. to all elements
Ch. 2 The
problem w Induction
and
other problems w Inductivism
distinction btw
Relation of Ideas
:
Analytic,
Non-I
nformative,
true
a priori
ex. all bachelors are unmarried, a horse is an animal
Matters of Fact
:
Synthetic
,
Informative
, depend on
Experience
ex. all swans are white, hot metal expands
Hume
All Reasoning bt the
Future
is
based on Cause-Effect
our
Knowl. bt Cause-Effects based on Experience
we can
Not Directly Observe
Cause-Effect
(just the conjunction/space-time contiguity/predecession)
the apparent
Uniformity of Nature
'until now' is
Not
a
rational base
for our
Inductive
knowl.
Sum Up
in Ind. reasoning, our
Conclusions depend on Past Experiences
we can
Not Demonstrate
the
Unformity of Nature
& observing All the Instances is itself an Inductive process
so they may
Always turn out to be Wrong
Ch. 3
Falsificationism
why a Theory of the Scientific Method?
to
Know
whether a sc. knowl. is
Justified
& its
Limits
to Decide if a theory is
Scientific or/ Not
Problem w
Marx & Freud
's theories,
compared w
Einstein
M. & F.:
too
High Explanatory Power
do
Not
make
Precise Predictions
(sometimes even) foreclose the possibility of criticism
E.:
risky
Precise Prediction
that could be
Refuted
it's
Not
much bt
Confirmation
, but
bt
Falsification
!
Popper's Solution
to
the Problem of
Induction
Theories must be
Refutable
,
Falsifiable
,
otherwise: Not Scientific
Not Scientific ≠ w/out Value
Science made up by
Conjectures
that scientist need to try to
Refute
Fallibilism:
All Knowl. is Provisional
we still
need Metaphysics
to
create
the
Conjectures
Contexts of
Discovery
&
of
Justification
Discovery
(Conceving a theory)
Generation of Scientific Theories
is Not Mechanical, but
a
Creative
activity
Justification
(Testing a th.)
(acc. to Popper) this only
is the field of Phil. of Science
undertaking the logical analysis
of the testing of scientific theories
Hypothetico-Deductivism
:
start w a Theory/Hypothesis
Deduce Consequences from it
Test these consequences through Experiment
Problems
:
Duhem
canNot Deduce what will be Observed
from a Single Hypothesis (in Isolation)
Hypotheses need
always be
Conjoined w Other Assumptions
Quine
there is
No completely Conclusive Refutation
of a theory
by an Experiment
(p. 80)
it requires Intersubjective Agreements amg Scientists on:
what is being tested
the experimental procedures and techniques involved in the exp., etc.
as
Falsification is Never Completely Conclusive
,
-->
No Qualitative Difference
btw
Falsification and/ Confirmation
some legitimate parts of science
are Not Falsifiable
like: any statement bt the probability of a single event
some Scientific Principles (like. II law of thermodynamics) are Not Falsifiable
Popper caNot account for
our Expectations bt the Future
Corroboration
Corroborated theories are those that we
tried to Falsify many times and Failed
scientists sometimes Ignore Falsification
Fundamental Attempt
Explain the Scientific Method
w/out
using any
Inductive
inference
Legacy
Features of
Good Science
:
Critical Attitude
to received wisdom
insistence on
Empirical Content
that is
Precise
and
Wide
in scope
use of
Creative Thinking
to solve problems w bold conjectures
canNot explain the Scientific Method and the Justification of sc. knowl. w/out Induction
Science is bt:
Confirmation
. as well as
Falsification
Answer
:
Sophisticated Inductivism (-->
Hypotheitico-Deductivism
)
Ch. 4
Revolutions
&
Rationality
Conceptions of Science:
Popper
:
Non-Inductive
Rational
Kuhn
Inductive
Non-Rational
the
Received View
of Science
Cumulative
Unified
single set of fundamental methods for all sciences
Reductionism
: all are reducible to physics
Sharp
Distinction
btw
Scientific and Non-scientific
theories
scientific
Terms
have
Fixed
and precise
Meanings
Kuhn
It is much More Complicated,
1962
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Paradigms
Disciplinary Matrix
set of Asnwers
to Fundamental Qq learned by Scientists through
Education
that
prepares
them
for Res.
provide the
Framework
within wh/
Science operates
More or Less Explicit
1 more item...
Exemplars
Paradigmatic Examples
Successful
parts of science that is
Learned
, and
provide a
Model
for future dev. of the subject
mostly contained in
Textbooks
Ex.:
world as a giant clock machine
some standard mathematical techniques applied to physical systems, etc.
Normal Science
that conducted
Within an Established Paradigm
Metaphor of
Puzzle-Solving
, in wh/ the
Rules
:
are quite Strict and
Determined
by the
Paradigm
Anomalies
-->
Crisis
-->
Revolution
(
Paradigm Shift
)
need
Multiple Anomalies
before a
Crisis
New Paradigm
is adopted
a
Revolution
or
Paradigm Shift
has occurred
2 more items...
ex. Phlogiston
Incommensurability
of Paradigms, &
of Theories within diff. paradigms
Paradigm change like
a
Gestalt Switch
(Holistic)
1 more item...
Meaning
incommensurability
1 more item...
No Clear Distinction
btw:
Observations
(facts, experiments)
Theory
Hanson's Thesis
Theory-Laden
Nature of Observation
Observations are Influenced by:
our Assumptions, Prior Knowl., prior Beliefs, etc.
5
core
Values Common to All Paradigms
.
A
Theory
should be:
Empirically
Accurate
within its domain
Consistent w Other
accepted theories
Wide in scope
- not just accomodate the facts it was designed to explain
Fruitful
in the sense of providing a
Framework for ongoing research
