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书名: Thought Experiments
作者: Roy A. Sorensen (Author)
出版社: Oxford University Press, USA (October 29, 1998)
语言: English
ISBN-10: 019512913X
ISBN-13: 978-0195129137
电子书格式：HTML
Book Description
Can merely thinking about an imaginary situation provide evidence for how the world actually is--or how it ought to be? In this lively book, Roy A. Sorensen addresses this question with an analysis of a wide variety of thought experiments ranging from aesthetics to zoology. Presenting the first general theory of thought experiment, he sets it within an evolutionary framework and integrates recent advances in experimental psychology and the history of science, with special emphasis on Ernst Mach and Thomas Kuhn.
Sorensen explores what thought experiments are, how they work, and what their virtues and vices are. In his view, philosophy differs from science in degree, but not in kind. For this reason, he claims, it is possible to understand philosophical thought experiments by concentrating on their resemblance to scientific relatives. Sorensen assesses the hazards of thought experiments and grants that there are interesting ways in which the method leads us astray, but attacks most scepticism about thought experiments as arbitrary. He maintains that they should be used--as they generally are--as part of a diversified portfolio of techniques, creating a network of cross-checks that make for impressive reliability.
Review
"The first full-scale treatment of thought experiments....The book is clearly written and largely nontechnical. It bears on the nature of theorizing in general, owing to its careful treatment of a wide range of cases of theoretical activity. Recommended for all libraries." -- Choice
"This book is written in a vivid, jaunty style....The array of philosophical positions and the many examples are presented with such clarity and freshness...that this book can be recommended both as an unusual but engaging introduction to philosophy and as a sensitive analysis and defence of the cognitive power of thought experiments." -- Times Higher Education Supplement
"Sorensen's book is a useful collection of reflections on the definition and logic of thought experiments." -- The Times Literary Supplement
"[An] important new book....Sorensen articulates what is sure to become one of the central views about thought experiments, but he also provides an excellent introduction to this wonderful subject. The topic has rather suddenly become a growth industry. Besides its other virtues, Roy Sorensen's Thought Experiments also offers a very good leg in." -- Canadian Journal of Philosophy
About the Author
Roy A. Sorensen is at New York University.
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分类 哲学 逻辑和语言 心理学 科学 • 科哲
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