An Ignored Argument for Scientific Realism
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14394/filnau.2020.0007Słowa kluczowe:
scientific realism, no-miracles argument, observational success, explanatory success, basic argument, abductionAbstrakt
Why believe in scientific realism? The answer that overwhelms the mainstream debate is “the no-miracles argument” (NMA): realism best explains the observational success of scientific theories. Yet more than thirty years ago another argument was proposed by Smart, Devitt, Glymour, McMullin, and Salmon and called “the basic argument” (BA) by Devitt: realism best explains the observed phenomena. Rather than having been addressed and assessed since, BA has been almost entirely ignored. The paper carefully distinguishes BA from NMA and argues that whereas NMA is dubious, BA is good. Why has BA been ignored? Experience suggests that philosophers may find it too close to science and mistakenly hanker after a “more philosophical” justification for realism. No such justification is needed or desirable.
Bibliografia
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Frost-Arnold G. (2010), “The No-Miracles Argument for Realism: Inference to an Unacceptable Explanation,” Philosophy of Science 77, 35-38. https://doi.org/10.1086/650207
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Maddy P. (2007), Second Philosophy: A Naturalistic Method, Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199273669.001.0001
Magnus P. D., Callender C. (2004), “Realist Ennui and the Base Rate Fallacy,” Philosophy of Science 71, 320-338. https://doi.org/10.1086/421536
Miller R. W. (1987), Fact and Method: Explanation, Confirmation and Reality in the Natural and Social Sciences, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Musgrave A. (1988), “The Ultimate Argument for Scientific Realism” [in:] Relativism and Realism in Sciences, R. Nola (ed.), Dordrecht: Kluwer, 229-252. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2877-0_10
Psillos S. (1999), Scientific Realism: How Science Tracks Truth, London: Routledge.
Putnam H. (1975), Mind, Language, and Reality: Philosophical Papers, vol. 2, London: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511625251
Putnam H. (1978), Meaning and the Moral Sciences, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Putnam H. (1987), The Many Faces of Realism, LaSalle: Open Court.
Salmon W. C. (1984), Scientific Explanation and the Causal Structure of the World, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Smart J. J. C. (1963), Philosophy and Scientific Realism, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Smart J. J. C. (1968), Between Science and Philosophy: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Science, New York: Random House.
Smart J. J. C. (1982), “Difficulties for Realism in the Philosophy of Science” [in:] Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science VI: Proceedings of the Sixth Annual Congress of Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science, Hannover 1979, L. J. Cohen, J. Łoś, H. Pfeiffer, K. P. Podewski (eds.), Amsterdam: North-Holland, 363-375. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0049-237X(09)70206-X
van Fraassen B. C. (1980), The Scientific Image, Oxford: Clarendon Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/0198244274.001.0001
van Fraassen B. C. (1989), Laws and Symmetry, Oxford: Clarendon Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/0198248601.001.0001
Boyd R. N. (1984), “The Current Status of Scientific Realism” [in:] Leplin 1984: 41-82.
Brown J. R. (1994), Smoke and Mirrors: How Science Reflects Reality, New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203305355
Devitt M. (1984), Realism and Truth, 1st ed., Oxford: Basil Blackwell. [2nd ed., 1991. Reprinted with new Afterword, Princeton University Press, Princeton 1997. Citations are to the 2nd ed.]
Devitt M. (2001), “Incommensurability and the Priority of Metaphysics” [in:] Incommensurability and Related Matters, P. Hoyningen-Huene, H. Sankey (eds.), Dordrecht: Kluwer, 143-157. [Reprinted with Postscript in Devitt 2010: 99-120.] https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9680-0_5
Devitt M. (2005), “Scientific Realism” [in:] The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Philosophy, F. Jackson, M. Smith (eds.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, 767-791. [Reprinted with Postscript in Devitt 2010: 67-98. Citations are to Devitt 2010.] https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199234769.003.0026
Devitt M. (2010), Putting Metaphysics First: Essays on Metaphysics and Epistemology, Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199280803.001.0001
Devitt M. (2011a), “No Place for the A Priori” [in:] What Place for the A Priori?, M. J. Shaffer, M. L. Veber (eds.), Chicago–La Salle: Open Court, 9-32. [Reprinted in Devitt 2010: 271-279. Citations are to Devitt 2010.] https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/ 9780199280803.003.0014
Devitt M. (2011b), “Are Unconceived Alternatives a Problem for Scientific Realism?,” Journal for General Philosophy of Science 42, 285-293. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10838-011-9166-9
Doppelt G. (2007), “Reconstructing Scientific Realism to Rebut the Pessimistic Metainduction,” Philosophy of Science 74, 96-118. https://doi.org/10.1086/520685
Dummett M. (1978), Truth and Other Enigmas, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Fine A. (1986a), The Shaky Game: Einstein, Realism, and the Quantum Theory, Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Fine A. (1986b), “Unnatural Attitudes: Realist and Instrumentalist Attachments to Science,” Mind 95, 149-177. https://doi.org/10.1093/mind/XCV.378.149
Fine A. (1991), “Piecemeal Realism,” Philosophical Studies 61, 79-96. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00385834
Frost-Arnold G. (2010), “The No-Miracles Argument for Realism: Inference to an Unacceptable Explanation,” Philosophy of Science 77, 35-38. https://doi.org/10.1086/650207
Gauker C. (2006), “Scientific Realism as an Issue in Semantics” [in:] Truth and Realism, P. Greenough, M. Lynch (eds.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, 125-136. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199288878.003.0007
Ghins M. (2002), “Putnam’s No-Miracle Argument: A Critique?” [in:] Recent Themes in the Philosophy of Science: Scientific Realism and Commonsense, S. Clarke, T. Lyons (eds.), Dordrecht: Kluwer, 121-138. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-2862-1_6
Glymour C. (1984), “Explanation and Realism” [in:] Leplin 1984, 173-192.
Hacking I. (1983), Representing and Intervening: Introductory Topics in the Philosophy of Natural Science, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511814563
Harker D. (2010), “Two Arguments for Scientific Realism Unified,” Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 4, 192-202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shpsa.2010.03.006
Kitcher P. (1993), The Advancement of Science: Science without Legend, Objectivity without Illusions, New York: Oxford University Press.
Kukla A. (1998), Studies in Scientific Realism, New York: Oxford University Press.
Laudan L. (1981), “A Confutation of Convergent Realism,” Philosophy of Science 4, 19-49. https://doi.org/10.1086/288975
Leplin J. (ed.) (1984), Scientific Realism, Berkeley: University of California Press.
Levin M. (1984), “What Kind of Explanation is Truth?” [in:] Leplin 1984, 124-139.
Lipton P. (1991), Inference to the Best Explanation, London: Routledge.
McAllister J. W. (1993), “Scientific Realism and Criteria for Theory-Choice,” Erkenntnis 38, 203-222. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01128980
McMullin E. (1984), “A Case for Scientific Realism” [in:] Leplin 1984, 8-40.
McMullin E. (1991), “Comment: Selective Anti-realism,” Philosophical Studies 61, 97-108. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00385835
Maddy P. (2007), Second Philosophy: A Naturalistic Method, Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199273669.001.0001
Magnus P. D., Callender C. (2004), “Realist Ennui and the Base Rate Fallacy,” Philosophy of Science 71, 320-338. https://doi.org/10.1086/421536
Miller R. W. (1987), Fact and Method: Explanation, Confirmation and Reality in the Natural and Social Sciences, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Musgrave A. (1988), “The Ultimate Argument for Scientific Realism” [in:] Relativism and Realism in Sciences, R. Nola (ed.), Dordrecht: Kluwer, 229-252. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2877-0_10
Psillos S. (1999), Scientific Realism: How Science Tracks Truth, London: Routledge.
Putnam H. (1975), Mind, Language, and Reality: Philosophical Papers, vol. 2, London: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511625251
Putnam H. (1978), Meaning and the Moral Sciences, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Putnam H. (1987), The Many Faces of Realism, LaSalle: Open Court.
Salmon W. C. (1984), Scientific Explanation and the Causal Structure of the World, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Smart J. J. C. (1963), Philosophy and Scientific Realism, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Smart J. J. C. (1968), Between Science and Philosophy: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Science, New York: Random House.
Smart J. J. C. (1982), “Difficulties for Realism in the Philosophy of Science” [in:] Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science VI: Proceedings of the Sixth Annual Congress of Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science, Hannover 1979, L. J. Cohen, J. Łoś, H. Pfeiffer, K. P. Podewski (eds.), Amsterdam: North-Holland, 363-375. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0049-237X(09)70206-X
van Fraassen B. C. (1980), The Scientific Image, Oxford: Clarendon Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/0198244274.001.0001
van Fraassen B. C. (1989), Laws and Symmetry, Oxford: Clarendon Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/0198248601.001.0001
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Opublikowane
2020-06-30
Jak cytować
Devitt, M. (2020). An Ignored Argument for Scientific Realism. Filozofia Nauki, 28(2), 5–24. https://doi.org/10.14394/filnau.2020.0007
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