Philosophical justification and critique of science.
As the previous post noted here, nominalism seeks a minimal ontology, that is, a minimum of qualities. This qualitative parsimony leads toward the ultimate minimum ontology: an ontology of one. That is, the assertion that there is only one quality, one kind of stuff, whatever it may be called – matter, energy, or whatever. This …
Nominalism has three senses: A denial of metaphysical universals. An emphasis on reducing one’s ontology to a bare minimum, on paring down the supply of fundamental ontological categories. A denial of “abstract” entities. William of Ockham, the name most associated with nominalism, agreed with the first and second senses, and in a lesser way, the …
“Physics and Metaphysics” is the English title of an essay by Pierre Duhem in Essays in the History and Philosophy of Science, translated by Roger Ariew and Peter Barker (Indianapolis: Hackett, 1996). It was originally published in 1893 as “Physique et métaphysique.” Below are some excerpts. We have devoted ourselves above all to delineating the …
This post presents excerpts from Pierre Duhem’s The Aim and Structure of Physical Theory, first published (in French) in 1906, and translated into English in 1954 (Princeton University Press). See also the following post on Physics and metaphysics. [I]f the aim of physical theories is to explain experimental laws, theoretical physics is not an autonomous …
Modern science began with a turn away from medieval debates about metaphysics to focus on how things happen, rather than a metaphysically-adequate why. This was an indifference to metaphysics, not a deliberate ignorance or repudiation of the subject. But that began to change in the 19th century with the influence of materialism, secularism, and the …
It is often asked why the angel Gabriel treated Zechariah and Mary differently since their reaction was similar (Luke chapter 1). Note the parallel passages: 1:11-12 And there appeared to [Zechariah] an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and …
Science is the study of change. Where there is no change, there is no science. It is said that chemistry is the study of matter but it is really change that is studied: Every chemist I know studies change. Some chemists study a material before it has changed. Other chemists study a material after it …
This post continues the discussion posted here. Aristotle’s four causes (or my version of them) may be divided into two groups: an upper group and a lower group. I call the upper group hyperaitia (from Greek hyper, over, above + aitia, cause) and the lower group hypoaitia (from Greek hypo, under, beneath + aitia, cause): …
I’ve written about Aristotle’s four causes before (such as here and here). This also continues the discussion of observers and travelers, here. Forward kinematics refers to the use of the kinematic equations of a robot to compute the position of the end-effector (the device at the end of a robotic arm) from specified values for …
This post continues thoughts about design, last posted here. Here is a description of how cement is made from the Portland Cement Association: In its simplest form, concrete is a mixture of paste and aggregates, or rocks. The paste, composed of portland cement and water, coats the surface of the fine (small) and coarse (larger) …
