There are no such things as theories /

What is a scientific theory? Is it a set of propositions? Or a family of models? Or is it some kind of abstract artefact? These options are examined in the context of a comparison between theories and artworks. On the one hand, theories are said to be like certain kinds of paintings, in that they pl...

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Theories as sets of propositions --
Theories as families of models --
Theories as representations --
Theories as abstract entities --
Theories as abstract artefacts --
Theories as fictions --
Theories eliminated! --
Theories in history and practice --
Theories in the realism debate.
1. Verfasser:
French, Steven
Format:
Elektronisch E-Book
Sprache:
Englisch
Veröffentlicht:
Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2020.
Zusammenfassung:
What is a scientific theory? Is it a set of propositions? Or a family of models? Or is it some kind of abstract artefact? These options are examined in the context of a comparison between theories and artworks. On the one hand, theories are said to be like certain kinds of paintings, in that they play a representational role; on the other, they are compared to musical works, insofar as they can be multiply presented. I shall argue that such comparisons should be treated with care and that all of the above options face problems. Instead, I suggest, we should adopt a form of eliminativism towards theories, in the sense that a theory should not be regarded as any thing. Nevertheless, we can still talk about them and attribute certain qualities to them, where that talk is understood to be made true by certain practices. This shift to practices as truth-makers for theory talk then has certain implications for how we regard theories in the realism debate and in the context of the nature and role of representation in science. --
Umfang:
1 online resource (xiii, 266 pages)
Bibliografie:
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:
0-19-258746-3
0-19-188271-2
0-19-258745-5
Schlagworte:
Science > Philosophy.
Theory (Philosophy)
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