Download or read book Ampliative Inference and the Principle of Sufficient Reason written by Amanda Hicks and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The twentieth century saw a surge in the development of logic, and in particular of methods that contribute to our understanding of deduction and validity. These contributions include developing a precise understanding of logical consequence, logical form, and deductive validity in tandem with - and arguably made possible by- an emphasis on extensional semantics rather than intensional semantics. These tools - extenional semantics, logical implication, logical form, and rules of deduction - are excellent resources for teasing out the information that is already contained in a set of propositions, which is the task of deductive inference. However, many inferences in the natural sciences are not adequately described by deduction. They do not simply tease out what is already contained in a set of propositions, but actually result in new information. For example, while C. S. Peirce offered a formal syllogism for abductive inference - that is inference that results in a hypothesis to be tested - and Peter Lipton has offered an account of inference to the best explanation, neither accounts for how we arrive at the conclusion that x would explain y if true. That is, the question of how hypotheses are generated or even deemed relevant to a problem under investigation could be fruitfully - though certainly not exhaustively - explored in terms of logical analysis, but only if we broaden our set of tools beyond those that have been developed in the context of deduction. To begin fashioning these tools I turn to the principle of sufficient reason as it is formulated in Leibniz's more mature works. In particular, I argue that a revised understanding of the principle of sufficient reason contributes to our understanding of the processes of generating hypotheses and modifying scientific theories in light of new information. Using episodes from the history of planetary science as case studies, I show that hypothesis generation and theory modification rely on a process of analysis in which we discover clusters of concepts that mutually constrain one another, thereby narrowing the field of plausible candidates of explanations and also giving rise to canonical foils that are natural candidates for q in Lipton's contrastive questions of the form why p rather than q? In the first three chapters I examine applications of the principle of sufficient reason to begin developing tools for the logical analysis of theory and hypothesis generation. I argue that some of the tools we ought to include are a) a contrastive account of the principle of sufficient reason, b) an understanding of logical terms that regards their intensional meaning as relational, and c) considering relations among propositions beyond truth functional, logical consequences. The last two chapters of the dissertation turn to the question of the justification of the principle of sufficient reason. In Chapter One I argue that Leibniz understood the intension of a term to involve relations over and above the genus-difference definition and focus on Leibniz's work on the universal characteristic in 1679. Moreover, I think it is correct and useful to view intensional meaning this way. This provides compelling reasons to accept the Grosholz-Yakira interpretation of Leibnizian analysis as determining the rational conditions of a concept's being the way it is rather than viewing analysis as restricted to unpacking what is already thought in a concept. I then examine how the intensional meaning of the term `planet' shifted in the Copernican Revolution as well as in the recent Pluto controversy and show that these shifts were the result of reconsidering how planets relate to other astronomical objects and concepts. In Chapter Two I argue that inference to the best explanation of the kind developed and defended by Peter Lipton and abductive inference as developed and defended by C. S. Peirce both rely on analysis as an early step of the inference; both determine the conditions of intelligibility of a particular phenomenon by taking into account the relations it bears to other objects in the domain. For example, prior to the discovery of Neptune, Uranus' orbit did not follow the predicted trajectories, and several hypotheses were advanced. Each hypothesis represented possible explanations of these discrepancies by considering Neptune in relation to other things such as a possible unknown planet pulling Neptune off its course. Lipton sketches an account of inference to the best explanation in terms of a foil or contrast to the problematic phenomenon; in the case of Neptune, the predicted orbit serves as a foil to Neptune's observed orbit. The question at hand is, why does Neptune have this particular, observed orbit rather than the predicted orbit? Leibniz's later formulation of the principle of sufficient reason, (that) in virtue of which no fact can be real or existent, no statement true, unless there be a sufficient reason why it is so and not otherwise, assures us that this contrastive question can be answered. An alternative way of reading the principle of sufficient reason is that Lipton's contrastive questions always have answers. In Chapter Three I show that concepts, in virtue of being relational, form clusters in which they mutually constrain one another. Consider the fact that inaccurate observations of Uranus could have lead to inaccuracies in the tables predicting Uranus' position, leading in turn to discrepancies between Uranus' predicted and observed orbits, known as residuals. From these considerations it follows that, residuals, inaccurate planetary observations, and inaccurate planetary tables, form a cluster. These clusters are akin to number families in arithmetic; for example, given the operations of +/- and the numbers 5 and 7, the third number in the family is not unique since either 2 or 12 will result in a family of numbers, but it is nevertheless constrained by the givens. Similarly generating hypotheses exploits the fact that concepts form mutually constraining clusters, thereby narrowing the field of plausible candidates of explanation. I also show that in Newton's Principia contrastive foils are ordered so that depending on where one is in the inquiry certain foils are natural foils, and thereby help to provide structure to the inquiry as a whole. The second part of this dissertation grapples with ways of justifying the principle. In Chapter Four I argue that Michael Della Rocca's and Alexander Pruss's arguments, though compelling, ultimately ought to be rejected as inadequate to account for the contrastive sense of the principle of sufficient reason. My examination of their arguments show that the contrastive form of the principle of sufficient reason really is substantially different from the non-contrastive forms and that something significant has been lost in not heeding Leibniz's contrastive formulation. In the final chapter I provide justification for the principle of sufficient reason by showing that the realization that comets are supra-lunar contributed to a shift from thinking of the proper objects of systematic knowledge as eternal to including mutable phenomena. To illustrate this point, I examine Leibniz's attempts to justify the possibility of history as a systematic body of knowledge. In both cases we find that the possibility of the systematization of history depends on a subalternate maxim of the principle of sufficient reason. The justification for the principle, then, lies in this shift in the philosophy of science, where mutable and contingent truths are also recognized as having a basis in systematic knowledge. The result of this was an ecumenical view of the proper objects of knowledge as including both eternal and ephemeral truths that we still embrace today. This view has its roots in the Scientific Revolution and persists in contemporary science, in which the evolution of species, languages, and cultures are systematically investigated according to methods that rely on generating hypotheses and modifying theories in light of new discoveries. Leibniz's principle of sufficient reason, in effect, is an answer to the question, what does the world have to be like in order for both immutable and mutable phenomena to be systematically knowable?

Download or read book A Treatise on the Principle of Sufficient Reason written by Penelope Frederica Fitzgerald and published by . This book was released on 1887 with total page 436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book A Treatise on the Principle of Sufficient Reason written by Mrs. P. F. Fitzgerald and published by Forgotten Books. This book was released on 2015-06-25 with total page 431 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from A Treatise on the Principle of Sufficient Reason: A Psychological Theory of Reasoning, Showing the Relativity of Thought to the Thinker, of Recognition to Cognition, the Identity of Presentation and Representation, of Perception The present volume is perhaps rather an elaboration of the theory of the Principles of thought (which I have already submitted to the reflective public under the title of "An Essay on the Philosophy of Self-Consciousness") than a sequel to my first volume, except in the sense that the present work treats rather of the synthesis of the spontaneous intuitions under the reflective principle of sufficient reason, than of each of the three principles of causality taken separately. The spiritual nature of man is seen in his capacity of reflecting on the passing phenomena of his own being, in his power of classifying them as sensational, emotional, intellectual, and moral, and in his faculty of generalization, under the categories of causality and of postulation or assumption, according to these, i.e. of inductive and deductive inference, according to the logical principle of non-contradiction of Being, or of Essential experience, which alone constitutes a sufficient reason for belief. It appears to me that the oriental statement that "a man must be born again to the spirit" (the Brahmins, Zoroastrians, Israelites, and others alike held it) is but a figurative mode of expressing the truth that man must rise above his animal nature through the exercise of his power of reflective introspection, which forms the basis of the religious life, with its faith and hope in a Future state of blessedness arising out of his necessary or logical assumption of a Supreme or Absolute Creative Being. It is a subject of great regret to me, in offering this fruit of my own life-long experience and reflection to the public, that my want of literary practice, bad memory, and failing sight (which have again necessitated my turning to the able friend who assisted me in my first work) disable me from doing more justice to my theory of reflective or sufficient reason. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Download or read book A Treatise on the Principle of Sufficient Reason written by Penelope Frederica Fitzgerald and published by Palala Press. This book was released on 2016-05-24 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Download or read book A History of the Principle of Sufficient Reason written by Wilbur Marshall Urban and published by . This book was released on 1897 with total page 98 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Foundations of Scientific Inference written by Wesley C. Salmon and published by University of Pittsburgh Press. This book was released on 2017-07-14 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After its publication in 1967, The Foundations of Scientific Inference taught a generation of students and researchers about the problem of induction, the interpretation of probability, and confirmation theory. Fifty years later, Wesley C. Salmon’s book remains one of the clearest introductions to these fundamental problems in the philosophy of science. With The Foundations of Scientific Inference, Salmon presented a coherent vision of the nature of scientific reasoning, explored the philosophical underpinnings of scientific investigation, and introduced readers to key movements in epistemology and to leading philosophers of the twentieth century—such as Karl Popper, Rudolf Carnap, and Hans Reichenbach—offering a critical assessment and developing his own distinctive views on topics that are still of central importance today. This anniversary edition of Salmon’s foundational work in the philosophy of science features a detailed introduction by Christopher Hitchcock, which examines the book’s origins, influences, and major themes, its impact and enduring effects, the disputes it raised, and its place in current studies, revisiting Salmon’s ideas for a new audience of philosophers, historians, scientists, and students.

Download or read book A Treatise on the Principle of Sufficient Reason written by Penelope Frederica Fitzgerald and published by . This book was released on 1888 with total page 410 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book A Treatise on the Principle of Sufficient Reason a Psychological Theory of Reasoning Showing the Relativity of Thought to the Thinker of Recognition to Cognition the Identity of Presentation and Representation of Perception and Apperception written by Penelope Frederica Fitzgerald and published by Palala Press. This book was released on 2015-08-31 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Download or read book The History of the Principle of Sufficient Reason written by Wilbur Marshall Urban and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 88 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Starry Reckoning Reference and Analysis in Mathematics and Cosmology written by Emily Rolfe Grosholz and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-11-25 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book deals with a topic that has been largely neglected by philosophers of science to date: the ability to refer and analyze in tandem. On the basis of a set of philosophical case studies involving both problems in number theory and issues concerning time and cosmology from the era of Galileo, Newton and Leibniz up through the present day, the author argues that scientific knowledge is a combination of accurate reference and analytical interpretation. In order to think well, we must be able to refer successfully, so that we can show publicly and clearly what we are talking about. And we must be able to analyze well, that is, to discover productive and explanatory conditions of intelligibility for the things we are thinking about. The book’s central claim is that the kinds of representations that make successful reference possible and those that make successful analysis possible are not the same, so that significant scientific and mathematical work typically proceeds by means of a heterogeneous discourse that juxtaposes and often superimposes a variety of kinds of representation, including formal and natural languages as well as more iconic modes. It demonstrates the virtues and necessity of heterogeneity in historically central reasoning, thus filling an important gap in the literature and fostering a new, timely discussion on the epistemology of science and mathematics.

Download or read book For the Sake of the Argument written by Isaac Levi and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1996-01-26 with total page 380 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Suppositions made "for the sake of the argument" sometimes conflict with our beliefs, and when they do, some beliefs are rejected and others retained. Thanks to such hypothetical belief contravention, adding content to a supposition can undermine conclusions reached without it. Subversion can also arise because suppositional reasoning is ampliative. These two types of nonmonotonicity are the focus of this book.

Download or read book The Logic of Scientific Inference written by Jennifer Trusted and published by MacMillan Publishing Company. This book was released on 1979 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book A Treatise of the Principle of Sufficient Reason O Psychological Theory of Reasoning etc London Thomas Laurie 1887 written by Penelope-F ..... Fitzgerald and published by . This book was released on 1887 with total page 410 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book A treatise on the Principle of Sufficient Reason A psychological theory of reasoning etc written by Penelope F. FITZGERALD and published by . This book was released on 1888 with total page 410 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book A Treatise on the Principle of Sufficient Reason A Psychological Theory of Reasoning Showing the Relativity of Thought to the Thinker of Perception and Apperception written by Penelope Frederica Fitzgerald and published by . This book was released on 1887 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Model Based Reasoning in Science and Technology written by Ángel Nepomuceno-Fernández and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-10-24 with total page 502 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book discusses how scientific and other types of cognition make use of models, abduction, and explanatory reasoning in order to produce important and innovative changes in theories and concepts. Gathering revised contributions presented at the international conference on Model-Based Reasoning (MBR18), held on October 24–26 2018 in Seville, Spain, the book is divided into three main parts. The first focuses on models, reasoning, and representation. It highlights key theoretical concepts from an applied perspective, and addresses issues concerning information visualization, experimental methods, and design. The second part goes a step further, examining abduction, problem solving, and reasoning. The respective papers assess different types of reasoning, and discuss various concepts of inference and creativity and their relationship with experimental data. In turn, the third part reports on a number of epistemological and technological issues. By analyzing possible contradictions in modern research and describing representative case studies, this part is intended to foster new discussions and stimulate new ideas. All in all, the book provides researchers and graduate students in the fields of applied philosophy, epistemology, cognitive science, and artificial intelligence alike with an authoritative snapshot of the latest theories and applications of model-based reasoning.

Download or read book Inductive Probability written by J. P. Day and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-12-30 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: First published in 1961, Inductive Probability is a dialectical analysis of probability as it occurs in inductions. The book elucidates on the various forms of inductive, the criteria for their validity, and the consequent probabilities. This survey is complemented with a critical evaluation of various arguments concerning induction and a consideration of relation between inductive reasoning and logic. The book promises accessibility to even casual readers of philosophy, but it will hold particular interest for students of Philosophy, Mathematics and Logic.