Philosophy of Science Commons^™

The New Mechanical Philosophy, Stuart Glennan

Philosophy, Religion, and Classics

The New Mechanical Philosophy argues for a new image of nature and of science--one that understands both natural and social phenomena to be the product of mechanisms, and that casts the work of science as an effort to discover and understand those mechanisms. Drawing on an expanding literature on mechanisms in physical, life, and social sciences, Stuart Glennan offers an account of the nature of mechanisms and of the models used to represent them. A key quality of mechanisms is that they are particulars - located at different places and times, with no one just like another. The crux of the ...

The New Mechanical Philosophy, Stuart Glennan

Stuart Glennan

The New Mechanical Philosophy argues for a new image of nature and of science--one that understands both natural and social phenomena to be the product of mechanisms, and that casts the work of science as an effort to discover and understand those mechanisms. Drawing on an expanding literature on mechanisms in physical, life, and social sciences, Stuart Glennan offers an account of the nature of mechanisms and of the models used to represent them. A key quality of mechanisms is that they are particulars - located at different places and times, with no one just like another. The crux of the ...

Fish Sentience And The Precautionary Principle, Robert C. Jones

Robert C. Jones, Ph.D.

Key (2016) argues that fish do not feel pain based on neuroanatomical evidence. I argue that Key makes a number of conceptual, philosophical, and empirical errors that undermine his claim.

The Origins Of Morality, Paulina Sanchez

Dialogue & Nexus

In modern society, there exists a standard for moral conduct that seems to reign universal over many societies of people. Pinpointing the origins of morality, however, can become problematic because of how one approaches what morality is and what its purpose is in society. Psychologists may point out the social constructs and norms that allow for morality to unfold. Evolutionary biologists may give evidence of human-related species that have developed similar behavioral standards. A Christian theologian may look to scripture in explaining a Creator who ordained that all abide by the standards of conduct most pleasing to this deity. Which ...

The Altruistic Self, Nathan Dougherty

Dialogue & Nexus

Altruism as a purely naturalistic phenomenon self-defeats the term altogether; however, theology also makes unsubstantiated claims that some behaviors are purely selfless. I will first define various conceptual forms of altruism and then offer explanations of the term from neurological, evolutionary and psychological investigations. Despite the position that altruism can be reduced to a fantastical impossibility bearing neither the arms of science nor theology, it is also a fallacy to separate it from a religiously derived supernatural altruism that carries no implications for the realm of morality.

A New Taxonomy Of Altruism In Terms Of Prosocial Behaviors, Kristin Kaiser

Dialogue & Nexus

The definition of altruism has been studied, explained, and even confused by many scholars in various fields. The term itself has been inappropriately used to describe prosocial behaviors that do not fall within the definition of altruism. An evaluation of Grant Ramsey’s taxonomy of altruism, which includes biological altruism, psychological altruism, and helping altruism, proves that it is not adequate in categorizing organism’s behaviors. A new taxonomy, with the branches of kin selection, reciprocity, and aesthetic altruism, is presented and explained to clarify the definition of altruism and alleviate confusion about how to describe prosocial behaviors. Both naming ...

Neuroscience, Materialism, And The Soul: Limit Questions, Jeremy M. Aymard

Dialogue & Nexus

In light of recent discoveries in neuroscience linking the mind to physical processes, Christian philosophers have resorted to a more materialistic view of the human person, using neuroscience as support for their view that an immaterial soul does not exist. In this essay, I will point out a major flaw in the logic for defending a materialistic view, argue that either a bipartite or tripartite view of the human person is more aligned with Scripture, and hopefully point towards a more reliable means for attaining truth regarding human nature and the soul.

Intelligent Design: Should We Teach It?, Sarah-Kate Oliver

Dialogue & Nexus

Belief about the origins of the universe and mankind is an important aspect of most world religions. While many ‘progressive’ Christians view the Genesis accounts of creation as mythical or allegorical, some ‘fundamentalist’ Christians claim it is a literal and historical account of the origins of life. The scientific community, on the other hand, views Darwin’s Theory of Evolution as the definitive explanation of the origin of all species on Earth including humans. As science has continued to line up behind evolution, it has been integrated into the public school curriculum. The question examined by this paper is: should ...

Revolution In Ideology: Crafting A Holistic Scientific Dialectic, Nathan Neill

Dialogue & Nexus

Ideology drives scientific research far more than is acknowledged. Since science itself is conducted by individuals, each scientist has a biased conception of themselves and their surroundings relative to the rest of the universe, even if it is never explicated. This sense of relation to the greater universe is what defines the ideology of the individual. It is this sense of relation and self that creates the individual, who goes on to investigate the natural world by the scientific method. In this paper I will examine extant scientific ideology, particularly in Western science, and propose changes that could be helpful.

False Pretexts Of Altruism And The Truth About Cooperation, Selvin Villeda

Dialogue & Nexus

Without deeper analysis, altruism seems to be alive and present in our world today. However, most of what is called altruism is really mere cooperation. True altruism cannot be achieved unless you directly give up your life without receiving any benefit. Only by analyzing such acts and exploring the true motives of these acts, can we see that 1) biological influences (such as genetic relatedness) and 2) social components stemming from reciprocity are what determine these cooperative actions. We cooperate together for greater overall fitness of society. Through cooperation we can have a striving community that can grow together. Ultimately ...

Volume 3 Editorial, Daniel Brannan

Dialogue & Nexus

No abstract provided.

Model And World: Generalizing The Ontic Conception Of Scientific Explanation, Mark Povich

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Model and World defends a theory of scientific explanation that I call the “Generalized Ontic Conception” (GOC), according to which a model explains when and only when it provides (approximately) veridical information about the ontic structures on which the explanandum phenomenon depends. Causal and mechanistic explanations are species of GOC in which the ontic structures on which the explanandum phenomenon depends are causes and mechanisms, respectively, and the kinds of dependence involved are causal and constitutive/mechanistic, respectively. The kind of dependence relation about which information is provided determines the species of the explanation. This provides an intuitive typology of ...

Natural Debts, Natural Dangers: An Ideology Of Nation-State And Subject In An Immunology Text, Quinn Monette

Undergraduate Honors Theses

In an inquiry into the systems of metaphor used in an immunology text, I argue that the conceptualization of science is ideological, non-neutral, and has important consequences in the formation of subjects.

On Realism And The Pessimistic Meta-Induction, Stanford Howdyshell

Essays of Significance

In this paper I will discuss the Pessimistic Meta-Induction put forth by Larry Laudan in his paper A Confutation of Convergent Realism and discuss how it overcomes the No Miracles argument for scientific realism. I will then reconcile these two positions through the theory that scientific terms posit and refer to models of reality that are relevantly similar to how the world is.

This paper will begin with a discussion of the No Miracles argument and Pessimistic Meta-Induction, resulting in doubt that scientific terms genuinely refer to objects in the world. In order to overcome the anti-realist position that the ...

Knowing How: A Computational Approach, Joseph A. Roman

Student Publications

With advances in Artificial Intelligences being achieved through the use of Artificial Neural Networks, we are now at the point where computers are able to do tasks that were previously only able to be accomplished by humans. These advancements must cause us to reconsider our previous understanding of how people come to know how to do a particular task. In order to unpack this question, I will first look to an account of knowing how presented by Jason Stanley in his book Know How. I will then look towards criticisms of this view before using evidence presented by the existence ...

A Bite Of Technology – How Technologies Have Made Our Food “Transformers", Huanjia Zhang

Student Publications

This poster discusses one important metaphysical question concerning food and food technologies – that is, how technologies have gradually alienated food from its natural rooting and what are the consequent philosophical concerns behind that. In order to examine this question, this poster will discuss four key sources that each exemplifies a well-known, currently ongoing technology on different levels that has altered the natural properties of food and the controversy concerning such technology.

Mismeasuring Humanity: Dangers Of "The Contemporary Orthodoxy", Vincent M. Smiles

Headwaters

The various unjust discriminations (racism, sexism, xenophobia, etc.) that plague society are tied to the larger question of how human lives and minds are regarded in society as a whole. Humans have always had a problem of mismeasuring the “other,” but this problem is compounded by promotion, from powerful voices, of the view that humans are just so much physics and chemistry, that the mind is the brain, and that humans are deluded about the power of consciousness and freedom. Daniel Dennett refers to the latter as “the contemporary orthodoxy,” as though it is the view of humanity that all ...

How To Solve Hume’S Problem Of Induction, Alexander Jackson

Alexander Jackson

This paper explains what’s wrong with a Hume-inspired argument for skepticism about induction. Hume’s argument takes as a premise that inductive reasoning presupposes that the future will resemble the past. I explain why that claim is not plausible. The most plausible premise in the vicinity is that inductive reasoning from E to H presupposes that if E then H. I formulate and then refute a skeptical argument based on that premise. Central to my response is a psychological explanation for how people judge that if E then H without realizing that they thereby settled the matter rationally.

Editor's Words

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

Vol 8 No 1 Contents Page

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.