AhtiVeikkoPietarinen ahtiveikko.pietarinen@helsinki.

fi Professor,UniversityofHelsinki DepartmentofPhilosophy,History,Culture,andArtStudies FudanDaxue 512May2010

In this mini-course of six lectures, I will present the basic principles and practices that characterize analytic philosophy in the western philosophical tradition. The first two lectures introduce the key notions of analytic philosophy. The next two lectures concern the nature of arguments and their use in scientific research. The last two lectures are more practical in their orientation and address the matters of writing and publishing research papers in philosophy, concluding with some thoughts on the contemporary profession of philosophy.

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PhilosophyofLogic,Action,Norms, Probability,Induction,Causation:
TheLogicalProblemofInduction (1941) LogicalEmpiricism(1945) An EssayinModalLogic(1951) TheVarietiesofGoodness(1963) ExplanationandUnderstanding(1971) LogicandHumanism(1998) ManyeditionsofWittgensteinsworks

CulturalEssays:

LikeOswaldSpengler,vWbelievedinadeclineofwesternculture
(TheMythofProgress,1993)

Philosophybecomesfragmentary
(LogicandPhilosophyintheTwentiethCentury,1994,Chinesetranslationby ChenBo,PhilosophicalTranslationQuarterly2,2000.)
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No,philosophywillthrive,ifnew opportunitiesareusedwell: Therearenewkindsoflogics, newapproachesto mathematics,newkindsof thinking,...

Over30books: SocraticEpistemology (2007) ThePrinciplesofMathematicsRevisited(1996) TheGameofLogic(1979) KnowledgeandBelief(1962) FormandContentinQuantificationTheory(1953) Andover300papers...
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1989

2006 The Nobel Prize in Philosophy

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 BothvonWrightsandHintikkasteacher ParticipatedtheViennaCircle CoinedthetermLogicalEmpiricism Workedonmetaphysics,philosophyofscience andpsychology.

Kailathoughtthatlogicisa gatewaytoseriousphilosophising MuchofFinnishanalyticphilosophy traditionisprobablyduetohisteachings

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I:IntroducingAnalyticPhilosophy 1. WhatisAnalyticPhilosophy? 2. Analysis II:ArgumentationandPhilosophyofScience 3. Argumentation 4. ReasoninginScience III:PractisingPhilosophy 5. WritingandPublishinginPhilosophy 6. ProfessionalDevlopmentinPhilosophy

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AhtiVeikkoPietarinen FudanDaxue,5.5.2010

Reading:JohnSearle,ContemporaryPhilosophyintheUnitedStates,2003.

In this lecture, I look into the characteristic features of the mainstream western philosophy, commonly known as analytic philosophy. What is it? What are its methods? What distinguishes it from other areas of philosophy, such as continental philosophy? How was it born? What is the situation in the contemporary scenery of analytic philosophy?



ThedominantformofWesternphilosophy Roughly100yearsold Continuouswiththephilosophicaltradition NotonlyAngloAmerican:

RootsintheCentralEurope DominantalsoinScandinavia;increasinglysoinGermany,France,...

Beganasarevolutionarymovement,nowmainstream Situationnow:Demise?Crisis?Postanalyticphilosophy?

Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy

CoreAnalyticPhilosophy(AreasofSpecialization):
PhilosophyofMind,PhilosophyofLanguage PhilosophyofLogic,PhilosophyofMathematics Metaphysics&Epistemology(M&E) PhilosophyofScience HistoryofContemporary(20thCentury)Philosophy SystematicPhilosophy/TheoreticalPhilosophy

(especiallyinNorthEurope,whereTheoreticalandPractical philosophyareseparated,inFinlandevenbelongto differentdepartmentsandfaculties)

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Theoretical
Mind M&E

Language

Logic Mathematics

PhilosophyofScience Phenomenology Existentialism Hermeneutics Pragmatism Metaphilosophy Metaethics

Continental

Aesthetics Politicalphilosophy Ethics

Analytic

Structuralism Feminism Appliedethics Experimental philosophy

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Practical
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Theoretical
M&E

Austin,Kripke Davidson,Searle

Russell Frege,Dummett

Carnap,Quine,Hintikka Husserl Heidegger Habermas Peirce,Putnam Metaphilosophy Metaethics

Continental

Aesthetics Rawls Ethics

Analytic

Derrida Kristeva Appliedethics Experimental philosophy

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Practical
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Analysis (Greek:loosenup,dissolve): 1. Progressiveanalysis Plato/Socrates:decompositionofconcepts

Humanbeing(analysandum):rational+animal(analysans) Knowledge=justifiedtruebelief
2.

Regressiveanalysis Aristotle,Euclid:startwiththepropositionandtrytofindthe firstcausesorprinciplesthatdemonstratetheproposition

Forexample,PythagorassTheorem

Analytic/synthetic apriori/aposteriori (Kant) Conceptual,logicalanalysis(Bolzano,Frege,Russell, Moore,...) TheLinguisticTurn;OrdinaryLanguagePhilosophy (Wittgenstein,Ryle,Austin,Strawson,Grice,...).

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1.

BeganasarevolutionarymovementinVienna,Austria Phenomenalism,positivism(AugustComte,ErnstMach) Logicalpositivism/empiricism,TheViennaCircle(Morris Schlick,OttoNeurath,RudolfCarnap,...) Wittgenstein G.E.Moore,BertrandRussell,Frank Ramsey,...(CambridgeresistancetoOxford&British idealism) Strivefortheideallanguageofmathematics,thought,

TheFregeRusselllogicism,formalism TheUnityofScienceMovement,incontinentalEuropeaswellasin theUS(Carnap,Neurath,CharlesMorrisintheUS).

2.

AftertheWWII,theEnglishhemispherebeginstodominate.
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Confrontationbecauseofdifferencesinthemethodsofdoing philosophy,notsomuchinthesubjectmatter Oppositiongeneratesrivalschools,isms Controversiesbestaddressedonthemetaphilosophical level TheAnalytic:

Tostriveforincreaseinknowledge,clearnessofideas,rigourand

cogencyofarguments Torelyonexperimentsandobservations Totaketherolemodeltobeascientist Toleavenoroomforliteraryphilosophy:useplainlanguage,together withtechnicaltermsthatarewelldefined.

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HistoryofPhilosophy
Historymatters:Noonecanthinkinavacuum Butnottostudyhistoryonlyforitsownsake.

Breakingupwiththetradition?
Studyhistoryasifitisacontemporaryphenomenon,asifFrege

wasjustafellowofanothercollege(resultsinanachronisms?) Problemsandquestionsdefinethesubjectmatter,notwhat somebodyhassaidaboutsomething(thekeyideaofsystematic philosophy)

Orcontinuingthetradition?
Noradicalismanymoreinthemainideasandmethods

(andcertainlylesssothaninsomepartsofcontinentalphilosophy)
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ThedominantphilosophynowintheUS,UK,Canada, Australia,NewZealand,Scandinavia,Germany,... IncreasinglymoreinFrance,SouthEurope,LatinAmerica, China,... Progressandcrisis?

Considerableexpansionofitsscope Butbecomingtheestablishmentcreatesoppositionandselfcriticism Whatisthepowerofanalysis?Whatisthevalueofclarityandrigourin

philosophy?Whatisthesuccessofarationalargument?

Wewillcomebacktothesequestionsinthelastlecture6.

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AhtiVeikkoPietarinen ahtiveikko.pietarinen@helsinki.fi Professor,UniversityofHelsinki DepartmentofPhilosophy,History,Culture,andArtStudies FudanDaxue 6.5.2010

Reading:MichaelBeaney,Analysis,2009.

This lecture takes a look at the notion of analysis. We observe some developments in analytic philosophy variously found in the works of Frege, Russell, Carnap, Quine, Donald Davidson, J.L. Austin and Paul Grice, for example.

WhatisAnalyticPhilosophy? Studyofmeaning
1.

Thefirstattempt(19001950):
Searchforfoundations,doitbyreduction:
1. 2. 3. 4. Phenomenalism(logicalpositivism) Behaviourism Conventionalism(social,linguistic) Logicism

Conceptual,logicalanalysis(TheLinguisticTurn)
1. Analyseordinarylanguage 2. Developbetter,ideal,formal,symbolic,artificiallanguage (TheUnityofScienceMovement)
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Therewereproblemsfindingthefoundations! 2. Thesecondattempt(1950):

Rejectionoftheanalyticsyntheticdistinction
Quine(TwoDogmasofEmpiricism,1951)

Rejectionofconceptualschemas(critiqueofQuine)
Davidson(OntheVeryIdeaofaConceptualScheme,1975)

Criticismofthefactvaluedistinction
AustinSearle(speechacttheory);PaulGrice(logicofcommunication) HilaryPutnam(Reason,TruthandHistory,1981)

Rejectionoffoundationalism
Wittgenstein...

(Thesearestepstowardspragmatism)
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Sowhatremains?
Newphilosophiesofsciencehaveemerged
CognitiveScience&AI;Biology;Economics;Law;...

Takedistancetotheproblematictradition(Frege,

Russell,Quine,...) Avoidexcessnaturalism;leaveroomformetaphysics Backtoarenewedkindofconceptualanalysis

Newlogics,newtools,newmethods Studyofsemanticsandpragmatics

Arewenowinthepostanalyticphase?
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Analyticphilosophyshouldreallybeseenasasetof interlockingsubtraditions heldtogetherbyashared repertoireofconceptionsofanalysisuponwhichindividual philosophersdrawindifferentways.(Beaney 2009)

Theancientideaofanalysis(Greek:loosenup,dissolve): 1. Progressiveanalysis
Plato/Socrates:decompositionofconcepts Humanbeing(analysandum):rational+animal(analysans)

2.

Regressiveanalysis

Aristotle,Euclid:startwiththepropositionandtrytofindthe firstprinciplesthatdemonstratetheproposition
PythagorassTheorem
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The20thcenturynotionsofanalysis: 3. Theinterpretive analysis

Translatethestatementsintothecorrectlogicalform (Frege,Russell,...) (1),(2)and(3)arealreadyfoundinmedievalphilosophy (JohnBuridan,Summulae,c.1350) PortRoyalLogic(1662)emphasisesphilosophicalmethod:

Theartofarrangingaseriesofthoughtsproperly,eitherfor discoveringthetruthwhenwedonotknowit,orforprovingtoothers whatwealreadyknow,cangenerallybecalledmethod. Hencetherearetwokindsofmethod,onefordiscoveringthetruth, whichisknownasanalysis,...Theotherisformakingthetruth understoodbyothersonceitisfound.Thisisknownassynthesis [methodofcomposition,instruction].
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Translatestatementsintotheircorrectlogicalform

Frege:

Movefromsubjectpredicateformtofunctionargumentforms Forexample,Socratesisaphilosopher: f(x)=x isaphilosopher,a =Socrates,f(a)=content/judgment ThepresentKingofFranceisbald: ThereisoneandonlyoneKingofFrance,andwhateverisKingof Franceisbald:

Russell:
1. 2. 3.

x( K ( x) y (( K ( y ) ( y = x)) B( x))).

Wittgenstein:
Logic(truthfunctionalanalysis)isreallythestructureandnatureofthe world(Tractatus) Philosophyisamatterofgettingclearaboutthegrammarofour language(PhilosophicalInvestigations)

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RudolfCarnap:

Quasianalysis:dontseekanythingmorefundamentalby decomposition,butgivearelationbetweenconceptsthatthen definesorconstructsthings (abstraction) f (a ) = f (b) if and only if R(a, b).

Forexample:
Thenumberofas =Thenumberofbs ifftherearejustasmanyas asbs. Thedirectionofa =Thedirectionofbiffa isparalleltob.

Analysisisthusexplicationorrationalreconstruction. Thetaskofmakingmoreexactavagueconceptusedineveryday life...replacingitbyanewlyconstructed,moreexactconcept. (Carnap1947)

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SirMichaelDummett:Theonlyroutetotheanalysisofthoughtgoesthrough theanalysisoflanguage.(1993)(Strongclaim...) LinguisticPhilosophy(Ryle,Davidson,Chomsky,Austin,Strawson,Searle,Grice...)

Languagebeforethought?

Findthelogicalgeographyofconcepts(Ryle) Syntaxdeterminessemantics(Chomsky) Usethetheoryoftruthasatheoryofmeaning(Davidson) Studytheordinaryuseoflanguage:speechacttheory,pragmatics(Austin, Strawson,Searle) Explainmeaningintermsofintentionstocommunicate(Grice1957):

Literalmeaning:SentenceS meansXamongthegroupoflanguageusersG:= MembersofGuseStocommunicatethatX Speakersmeaning:ByutteringStotheinterpreterA,amemberUofthegroupG meansXbyintendingto: 1. getAtobelievethatX, 2. getA tothinkthatU intends(1),and 3. getA torecognizeUsintention(1)asareasontobelievethatX.
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Thoughtbeforelanguage?

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Whatanalysismeansinrecentanalyticphilosophy: Elucidation(explication,explanation)
Explaintheconceptualcomponents,insteadoftryingtoreducethemto

someidealnotation Investigatetheuseofconceptsandpractices associatedwithconcepts, insteadofgivingthenecessaryandsufficientconditionsthatareintended todefinetheirmeaning.

Actsofconstruction(likeCarnapsrationalreconstruction)
Findalternativeexpressions,statements,paraphrases,whichneednotbe

exactlysynonymoustotheanalysandum,butwhichareexact,fruitfuland simple,andservethecognitivepurposesequallywell(orsufficientlywell) astheoriginaldoes.

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SowhatisAnalyticPhilosophy?
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Studyofmeaning Emphasisonlinguisticmeaning Importanceofmethods Someunderstandingofthemethodofanalysis Importanceofargumentsandreasoning Importanceofknowingwhatgoesoninscience

Analyticphilosophy,then,isabroad...movementinwhich variousconceptionsofanalysiscompeteandpullindifferent directions.Reductiveandconnective,revisionaryand descriptive,linguisticandpsychological,formalandempirical elementsallcoexistincreativetension,[which]isthegreat strengthoftheanalytictradition.(Beaney2009)
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AhtiVeikkoPietarinen ahtiveikko.pietarinen@helsinki.fi Professor,UniversityofHelsinki DepartmentofPhilosophy,History,Culture,andArtStudies FudanDaxue 7.5.2010

Reading: http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/fallacies.html

We address the topics such as: What is an argument in philosophy? How to evaluate arguments? How to develop a cogent argument in philosophy? What are the common fallacies and how to deal with them? What is rhetoric?

1.

Suppose(asAristotlebelieved)thattheheavierabodyis,the fasteritfallstothegroundandsupposewehavetwobodies,a heavyonecalledM andalightonecalledm.Underourinitial assumptionM willfallfasterthanm.NowsupposethatM and m arejoinedtogetherthusM+m.Nowwhathappens?Well M+m isheavierthanM sobyourinitialassumptionitshould fallfasterthanM alone.ButinthejoinedbodyM+m,m andM willeachtendtofalljustasfastasbeforetheywerejoined,so m willactasabrakeonM andM+m willfallslowerthanM alone.HenceitfollowsfromourinitialassumptionthatM+m willfallbothfasterandslowerthanM alone.Sincethisis absurdourinitialassumptionmustbefalse.
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2.

EitherthereisaChristianGodorthereisnt.Supposeyou believeinHisexistenceandliveaChristianlife.Then,ifHedoes existyouwillenjoyeternalblissandifHedoesntexistyouwill loseverylittle.ButsupposeyoudontbelieveinHisexistence anddontliveaChristianlife.IfHedoesntexistyouwilllose nothing,butifHedoesexistyouwillsuffereternaldamnation! ! SoitisrationalandprudenttobelieveinGodsexistenceandto liveaChristianlife. Galilei Galileo,DialoguesConcerningTwoNewSciences,1638 PascalsWager,1661.

1. 2.

Question:Whatkindsofstrengthsandweaknessesyoucanfindinthese arguments?
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Arguments aimatestablishingconclusions by reasoning fromthepremises Weargueforacasebygivingreasonsforaccepting someconclusion.

Establish:prove,demonstrate,justify,show,support,... Conclusion:thatwhatwewanttoestablish Reasoning:themethodofestablishing Premises:wherewestartfrom,thereasonsgiven,the

assumptions,evidence,facts,data Accepting aconclusion:Dothegivenreasonsestablishit?

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Ifthemoneysupplyweretoincreaseatlessthan5% therateofinflationwouldcomedown.Since the moneysupplyisincreasingatabout10%inflationwill notcomedown.

Isthisanargument?

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Ifthemoneysupplyweretoincreaseatlessthan5%, therateofinflationwouldcomedown.Since the moneysupplyisincreasingatabout10%inflationwill notcomedown.

Isthisanargument? Yes:Premisses:If...andthemoneysupply...Conclusion: inflationwillnotcomedown. Isthisagood argument?

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Ifthemoneysupplyweretoincreaseatlessthan5%, therateofinflationwouldcomedown.Since the moneysupplyisincreasingatabout10%inflationwill notcomedown.

Isthisanargument? Yes:Premisses:If...andthemoneysupply...Conclusion: inflationwillnotcomedown. Isthisagood argument? No:Thisreasoningdoesnotestablishitsconclusion:the reasonscouldbothbetrueandtheconclusionfalse.Why?

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Ifthemoneysupplyweretoincreaseatless than5%,therateofinflationwouldcomedown. Since themoneysupplyisincreasingatabout 10%inflationwillnotcomedown.

Isthisanargument? Yes:Premisses:If...downandthemoneysupply...10% Conclusion:inflationwillnotcomedown. Isthisagoodargument? No:Thisreasoningdoesnotestablishitsconclusion:the reasonscouldbothbetrueandtheconclusionfalse.Why? Somethingelsecouldbringinflationdown,forexampleafall inthepriceofimports. Sothereisanerrorintheargument(itisnotsound).

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Allphilosophersarestrange Johnisstrange Therefore,Johnisaphilosopher 6000peoplediedasaresultofdrinkinglastyear. 4000peoplediedasaresultofdrivinglastyear. 500peoplediedasaresultofdrinkdrivinglastyear. Therefore,Drinkdrivingissaferthaneitherdrinkingordrivingalone. Nothingisbetterthanfreedom. Ontheotherhand,Prisonlifeisbetterthannothing. Therefore,Prisonlifeisbetterthanfreedom. Tobuildalargething,youneedaplan. Tomakeaplan,youneedawrittenlanguage. NeolithicBritishhadnowrittenlanguage. Therefore,aliensfromouterspacebuiltStonehenge.

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Theorem:Reductio adabsurdum(RAA)isnotagoodmethodof proof. Proof:byReductio adabsurdum. 1.SupposeRAAwereagoodmethodofproof. 2.Thenthisargumentwouldbegood. 3.Butthisargumentisnogood. Therefore,RAAisnotagoodmethodofproof.

http://consc.net/misc/proofs.html http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4yBvvGi_2A http://inquiry.mcdaniel.edu/videos/CrossfireIntelligentDesign.swf http://web.maths.unsw.edu.au/~jim/worst.html

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Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy

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Ifyoupresentatruestatement,Iwillgiveyou 10RMB.Ifyoupresentafalsestatement,you willgiveme100RMBorIwillgiveyou 1000RMB(Ichoosewhich),butIwillnotgive you10RMB.

Whichstatementwillyouchoose?

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Ifyoupresentatruestatement,Iwillgiveyou 10RMB.Ifyoupresentafalsestatement,youwill giveme100RMBorIwillgiveyou1000RMB(I choosewhich),butIwillnotgiveyou10RMB.

Whichstatementwillyouchoose?
Proof:IfAistrue,whatitsaysmustbethecase.Thatis,Iwillnot giveyou10RMBandIwillnotgiveyou1000RMB.Butforatrue statement,Ihavetogiveyou10RMB.Thisisacontradiction,soA mustbefalse.SinceAisfalse,whatissaysisnotthecase.Thatis,I willgiveyou10RMBor1000RMB.ButIcannotgiveyou10RMBfora falsestatement,soImustgiveyou1000RMB.
Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy 42

A:Youwillnotgiveme10RMBnor1000RMB.

AhtiVeikkoPietarinen ahtiveikko.pietarinen@helsinki.fi Professor,UniversityofHelsinki DepartmentofPhilosophy,History,Culture,andArtStudies

FudanDaxue 10.5.2010

Reading: Papineau, D. (2003). Philosophy of Science, The Blackwell Companion to Philosophy.

We introduce essentials of philosophy of science from the point of view of argumentative structures in science. Topics explained include induction, abduction, falsification, instrumentalism, realism. How to argue scientifically? What is the nature of reasoning in science? What is the structure of research?



EpistemologyofScience:
Whatcountsasscientificknowledge? Doessciencediscovertruths? Howtochoosebetweencompetingtheories? Whatistherelationshipbetweentheoriesand experiments?

MetaphysicsofScience:
Arealleventsdeterminedbycauses? Isthereapurposeinnature? Canothertheoriesbereducedtoothers(e.g.,tophysics)?
Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy 44

Theprocessbywhichscientistsdecide,basedonobservations andexperiments,thatsometheory,principleorlawistrue (AllAsareBs).

TheProblemofInduction
Howtogeneralisefromfiniteinformation? Isitathreattoscientificknowledge(scepticism)?

Falsificationism (SirKarlPopper)
Sciencedoesnotinfactrestoninduction First:comeupwithahypothesis oratheory,andthenseeifitstandsuptoa

test:
Iftestsprovenegative,theoryisfalsified Iftestsfitthetheory,continuetoupholditasundefeated. Scientificinterenceisrefutation:SomeAisnotB not:AllAsareBs.
Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy 45


1.

Somequestionsaboutfalsificationism:
Ifscientifictheoriesareconjecturalhypothesesthatcannotbe provedbyobservationandevidence,whatmakessciencebetteror moretrustworthythan,say,superstitionorreligiousbeliefs?
Popper:Theoriesarefalsifiable:
Theyareformulatedinpreciseterms,givedefinitepredictions Incontrast,nothingcanrefutesomethinglikeastrologyorfolkbeliefs.

Falsifiability distinguishessciencefromnonscience

(Poppersanswertotheproblemdemarcation):
Inscienceyoushouldbeabletosaybeforehand,whatobservational discoverieswouldmakeyoutochangeyourmindaboutyourtheoryis suchevidenceweretoariseinthefuture(fallibilism:wemightbe mistakenaboutoutknowledgeonebyone,butnoscepticismfollows) Ifnopossible,conceivableobservationcanadjustourthinking,weare notdoingsciencebutaredogmatistsaboutourbeliefs.
Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy 46

2.

Itseemsthatfalsificationismdoesnotsolve(orthatitevades) theproblemofinduction
Whatshowsthatascientifictheoryisright? Whatistherationalbasisforbelievingthatthepredictionsthatatheory makesareright?Whatistheroleofpastevidence? Wedontbelieveinnewtheoriesimmediately,theystartoutas hypotheses.

Doweneedtotrytosolveit?
Yes:Bayesianism
Beliefscomeindegreesinwhichwetakesomethingtobeprobable(theseare subjectiveprobabilities) Pr( E / H )

Pr( E ) No:Inductionisanaturalformofreasoning(seenextslide).
Amountstorationalbeliefrevision

Pr( H / E ) = Pr( H )

(Bayes Formula)

Whydorationalthinkersexpectfuturetobelikethepast?
Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy 47

1.

Deduction: MisP SisM Sis(necessarily)P Allthebeansinthisbagarewhite Thesebeansinmyhandarefromthisbag Thesebeansinmyhandarewhite. Thesebeansinmyhandarefromthisbag Thesebeansinmyhandarewhite Allthebeansinthisbagarewhite.

2.

Induction: S1,S2,S3,...areM S1,S2,S3,...areP AnyMis(probably)P

3.

Abduction: MisP1,P2,P3,... SisP1,P2,P3,... Sis(plausibly)M

Allthebeansinthisbagarewhite Thesebeansinmyhandarewhite Thesebeansinmyhandarefromthisbag.

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1.

Howdoweknowaboutunobservablethings? (Electromagneticwaves,viruses,electrons,quarks,...)
Realists thinkthatobservablefactsaresufficienttoenableusto indirectlyinfertheexistenceofunobservablethings.

Inadditiontomakingpredictions,theoriesexplain phenomena.

2.

Instrumentalists thinkthattheoriesaboutunobservablesare usefultoolsformanycalculationsandpredictions,butsaynothing abouttheirtruths.

Scientistspostulateallkindsofthingsbutneednotbelieveinthem.

Isthedistinctionbetweenobservable/unobservablemeaningfulin thefirstplace?
No:Kuhn,Feyerabend Underdeterminationoftheoriesbyevidence(TheDuhemQuinethesis)

Pessimisticmetainduction:mostpasttheoriesturnedoutfalse.
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Keyissuesinclude: 1. Causationandexplanation 2. Lawsandaccidents 3. Teleologyandpurpose 4. Theoreticalreduction Wewillnotgointothesetopicsinphilosophyofsciencethis time.

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AhtiVeikkoPietarinen
ahtiveikko.pietarinen@helsinki.fi Professor,UniversityofHelsinki DepartmentofPhilosophy,History,Culture,andArtStudies
FudanDaxue 11.5.2010
Readings: http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/philosophy.html. Shatz, D. (2004). Peer Review and the Marketplace of Ideas, in Peer Review: A Critical Inquiry.

In these last two lectures, we look inside the academic profession of philosophy in the Western tradition. The first lecture focuses on how to write and publish papers in philosophical journals. What do the editors and reviewers expect of a submission? How does the peer review work? What was the Sokal Affair? How to find the right journal? What is the todays publication scene in philosophy?

Beforewriting,thinkof 1. towhomdoyouwrite? 2. thescientificattitude 3. howtomaketheresearchplan

Whatisthephilosophicalquestion/problem? 2. Whatisthecontext? 3. Howtotackletheproblem?Whatmethodstouse? 4. Whatisthethesis/result/conclusion?
1.

4.

Thencomestheimplementation(thewriting process,alsoknownasperspiration)...
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1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13.

Whatisthegeneralareaofinvestigation? Whatkindsofresearchproblemsarethere? Forwhatquestionsyouaresearchingforanswers? Thenmakethetopicmoreprecise Makeastructureoftheplan Findapreliminarythesis Istheplannowfeasible? Isthetopicworthinvestigating? Whatistheexpectedcontribution? Whatbackgroundtheoriesareneeded? Howistheplanconnectedwithwhathasbeendonebefore? Howdoyousearchforanswers?Howtosolvetheproblems? Dosomeinterestingconclusionsfollow?
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Somecommonproblemsinthetopicselection: 1. toobroad(ortoonarrow)topic 2. trendytopics 3. ignoringtheresearchstrengthsoftheinstitution 4. choosingany topicfromtheinstructor 5. changingthetopicinthemiddle.

Goodtopicsandgoodquestionsproduce newideas Abiganswertoasmallquestionmaybe betterthanasmallanswertoabig question...
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Problems/questionsclear Contribution Creativity,ideas Succesfulargumentation Criticalattitude Systematicity,coherence Conceptualclarity Communicability Scholarlyattitude ...

Notjust areport onwhat othershavesaid Methodsforyourthesis:

Criticise Defend Findcounterexamples Comparetwoapproaches Arguethatonethesis implies somethingelse Arguethatonethesis presupposes something ...
55

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Thekeycomponent:PeerReview
Thisishowsciencereallyworks:journals,press,

conferenceprogramcommittees,job/tenure committees,fundingorganizations,...allusepeerreview Therefereesrecommend(andthusdetermine)the acceptance/resubmission/rejection Seemstoensuretheacademicquality,protectusfrom errorsanddisinformation,leadtoscientificprogress

Thekeyrequirementforacceptance:Thesubmissionmakesa significantcontributiontoknowledge Reviewedpublicationsarethemostvaluableonesforeverybody.
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Howcompellingisthisrationaleforpeerreview? Itsnotaperfectsystem:
Slow Doesntkeepupwellwith technology&theincreasein information Errors(evenfrauds)may undergoundetected Affiliationbias Referee/Editorialbias Heavilycitedandfamouspapers mayhavebeenoriginallyrejected

Peerreviewworksinthelargescale,however...Doubleblind reviewhelpsherealittlebit...Butisitenough?
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Letstrytheinitialassumptionof TheMarketplaceofIdeas Letthemillionsofflowersbloom. Thatis,couldwehaveanopenpeerreviewsysteminsteadofa closedone?

Probablynot:
Toomuchjunk,gobbledegookandcrackpotscienceoutthere Betterletsomebodytodothetoughreviewworkforus Universities,journals,pressesneedprestigeandpower Highstandardsmakeiteasiertojudgequalityinscholarly performance Theclosed,expertbasedsystem,ratherthanproliferation,is boundtoleadtotruthandscientificprogress.
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Anyonewhobelievesthatthelaws ofphysicsaremeresocial conventionsisinvitedtotry transgressingthoseconventions fromthewindowsofmy apartment.Iliveonthe21stfloor.

AlanSokal:TransgressingtheBoundaries:Towardthe TransformativeHermeneuticsofQuantumGravity,SocialText 1996.

Thepointwasnotonlytoshowproblemswiththejournalspeerreview

practices,buttodefendthestandardsofscientific&philosophicalworkfrom thethreatsofthosepostmodern literaryintellectualspontificatingonscience anditsphilosophyandmakingacompletebungleofboth.

CheckoutSokals newbook:BeyondtheHoax:Science, PhilosophyandCulture,OxfordUniversityPress,2009.

Explainstheoriginaljokesentencebysentence IncludesanAfterwordthatwasrejectedbySocialTextjournalonthe

groundsthatitdidnotmeettheirintellectualstandards.
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Sometopgeneralphilosophyjournals (resubmissionrate;aver.reviewtime): Analysis(4%;0.69) AustralasianJ.ofPhilosophy (49%;4.18) Erkenntnis JournalofPhilosophy (3%;12.59) Mind (27%;7.62) Monist Nos (17%;3.47) PhilosophicalQuarterly (12%;2.32) PhilosophyandPhenomenological Research (26%;2.67) PhilosophicalReview (12%;7.62) PhilosophicalStudies (12%;3.81) Synthese
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Sometopspecialphil.journals:
BritishJ.forthePhilosophyofScience BulletinofSymbolicLogic EconomicsandPhilosophy Ethics JournaloftheHistoryofIdeas JournalofPhilosophicalLogic JournalofSymbolicLogic LinguisticsandPhilosophy MindandLanguage NotreDameJournalofFormalLogic Philosophia Mathematica PhilosophyofScience Studia Logica TheoryandDecision Vivarium
60

Plato: SOCRATES:Isitnottruethatp? GLAUCON:Iagree. CEPHALUS:Itwouldseemso. POLEMARCHUS:Necessarily. THRASYMACHUS:Yes,Socrates. ALCIBIADES:Certainly,Socrates. PAUSANIAS:Quiteso,ifwearetobeconsistent. ARISTOPHANES:Assuredly. ERYXIMACHUS:Theargumentcertainlypointsthatway. PHAEDO:Byallmeans. PHAEDRUS:Whatyousayistrue,Socrates.
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Sellars hasestablishedtoMcDowell'sandmysatisfactionthatP. ThereforeP.[BobBrandom] Sellars arguesthatP.(Actually,Sellars arguesthatnotP,but thatwaswearinghisblackhat.)ThereforeP.[BobBrandom] SomedaysomeonemightdiscoverthatP,andIwanttogetthe credit.ThereforeP.[ColinMcGinn] TheargumentfornotPhassevensteps,andI'mwaytoooldfor that.ThereforeP.[JohnSearle]

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AhtiVeikkoPietarinen
ahtiveikko.pietarinen@helsinki.fi Professor,UniversityofHelsinki DepartmentofPhilosophy,History,Culture,andArtStudies
FudanDaxue 12.5.2010

This last lecture presents some thoughts on the status of philosophy in present-day academia. Questions to be taken up include: What is the difference between being a philosopher and being a philosophy professor? What is the real work professors get to do at the universities? What is the relationship to other disciplines? Is philosophy science, humanities, or neither? What is the contribution academic philosophy has to the society? Where is philosophy now and where is it going?

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Howdophilosophersandphilosophyprofessorsdifferfrom oneanother? Whatistherealworkphilosophersgettodoatthe universities? Whatcharacterisesprofessionalism? Andwhatcharacterisesacademicjobhunting? Howdoesphilosophyrelatetootherdisciplines? Whatisthecontributionofphilosophytothesociety? Whereisphilosophy? Whatdoesthefutureofphilosophylooklike?
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Never let facts get in the way of arguments

1. Therearemorephilosophersthanprofessionalphilosophers
Theformermaybeagroupoflessexpertdilettante,butwidelyattunedtoby thelaymen(politicians,businessmen,artists,...) Butisthatphilosophy?ArenttheySophists,theantagonistsofPlato?

2.

Universities`ThirdMission(OECD): Expectincreasedcontributiontothesociety
Whatdoesthismean?Universitieshavealwaysbeeninthesociety Universitiesdontteachpublicintellectuanism,nordotheyshould SohowtocarryouttheThirdMission?
YES:Learnhowtoexplaincomplexissues:Writeclearly;Writegeneralscience,

textbooks;Givepubliclectures.Butdontoverdo. NO:Commentonwhateverhappenstobethecurrentissueinthemedia.

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Spendtheirtimereading&knowingeverything?Publish bestsellerbooksthatgodowninhistory?Engageinperipatetic discoursewithcolleaguesondaytodaybasis? Teachaclassortwopersemester sohowcantheybesobusy? TheReality:

Ok,writethatbook,andearnabout19$peryear Gradestudentpapersuntilmidnight Arguewithyourcolleagues,butnotquiteonphilosophy... Sitinsillycommitteesthatmakenodifferencetoyourrealwork...

Prof.Lounasmaasreceipeforwannabescientists:
24h=18hresearch+1heating+1hsocialising+4huptoyoutodecide... (PaulErds:makeit19hours...)
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Toughpathtofollow:
Grad.student PhD Postdoc Fellowships TenureTracks(assist./associateprof.) Tenures Promotions...

Bottlenecks,reasonsforearlyfailures:
Graduatefromaweakprogram(7mainGPsintheUSget70%ofTTs;aTT

callfromsomeofthesemayget500+applications) NoenoughsupportfromPhD&postdocsupervisors;Mentors WithoutTTsitsreallydrifting(=writinggrantapplications)

Engageinstrategicplanning:
PPP:GetinvolvedwithProjects;WorkonProblems;Publishearly Earlyinthecareerandpretenure,dontwastetimewith Monographs,nonjournalpublication,unnecessaryadmin,thesameold University...

Newideasisallthatreallymatters!
Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy 67

1.

Disintrestedness
1.

AutonomyoftheHEinstitution
Maintananceofacademicstandards;Highdegreeofjobsecurity. Guaranteedbyselfregulation.

2.

Specialization
Contributiontoknowledge;Masteryofmethods;Transmissibilityof skills Hardtobalancewiththeexternalpressuresformoregeneralization (neededinsciencepolitics,butlesssoinscholarshipandeducation)

2.

Professionalresearchethics
1.

Autonomyofscience
Searchfortruth;Reliabilityofknowledge;Objectivity;Progress

2.

Normsofresearch(goodscientificpractice)
Pietarinen: Analytic Philosophy 68

IsitScienceorHumanities?
Philosophy:theclosestthingtoscience,butitisusingwordsinafunny

way(R.Feynman) BemindfuloftheEthicsofTerminology(C.Peirce) Philosophyunjustlyassociatedwiththehumanities? OrunjustlyassociatedwithQuineannaturalism?

(The2010USpostdocfellowshipsinhumanities:53,noneinphilosophy)

C.P.Snow:TheTwoCultures(1959)
Thisstillexists?

TheSokalAffair
BeyondtheHoax (2009):TheLiteraryHumanistsneverreallygotthejoke;

justbecamemoreandmoredefensible.
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TheCrisisinPhilosophy(JasonStanley2010) 1. Legitimacyissuesinitsforeignpolicy?

Happenedwiththehumanitiesinthe1970s,needtojustify themselves,politicalpressure Nowitsphilosophysturntojustifyitself,alsogiventheprevailing economicsituations

2.

Internaldispersion?
Philosophybecomesfragmentary;Noncommunicationbetween groupsof,say,analyticandcontinentalphilosophers Thecure?Admitthatliteraryphilosophyisbetteroffwiththe literature/artstudies;andtheresthasitshomewiththesocial& naturalsciences.

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LetsgobacktotheThirdMission:
1.

Whatisitthatreallychangestheworld?
Politicaldecisions?Wars,naturaldisasters?Arts? Howabout: Ideas.Scientificdiscoveries. Newmethodsandnewmediaofcommunication.

2.

Philosophyisscience,whosefindingsconcernfundamental conceptualthinking. Rightlyunderstood,ourfuturedependsonthe progressofsciencemorethanonanythingelse.

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1. Searle,John(2003).ContemporaryPhilosophyintheUnitedStates,inTheBlackwell CompaniontoPhilosophy (2ndEdition).EditedbyNicholasBrunnin andE.P.TsuiJames, Blackwell,122. 2. Beaney,Michael(2009).Analysis,inTheStanfordEncyclopedia ofPhilosophy,EdwardN. Zalta (ed.),http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/analysis/ 3. AHandoutonFallacies,TheWritingCenter,UniversityofNorthCarolinaatChapelHill: http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/fallacies.html 4. Papineau,David(2003).PhilosophyofScience,TheBlackwellCompaniontoPhilosophy (2ndEdition).EditedbyNicholasBrunnin andE.P.TsuiJames,Blackwell,286316. 5. a.Philosophy,TheWritingCenter,UniversityofNorthCarolinaatChapelHill: http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/philosophy.html b.Shatz,David(2004).PeerReviewandtheMarketplaceofIdeas,inPeerReview:A CriticalInquiry,NewYork:Rowman,1534.(Appearedin1996asIsPeerReview Overrated?,Monist79,536563.) 6. a.Leiter Reports:APhilosophyBlog:http://leiterreports.typepad.com/ b.Stanley,Jason(2010).TheCrisisinPhilosophy: http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2010/04/05/stanley

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FurtherSources

http://leiterreports.typepad.com/ http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2010/04/05/stanley http://philosophysmoker.blogspot.com/ Feibelman,P.J.1993.APhDIsNotEnough!AGuidetoSurvivalinScience, Cambridge:Mass.:PerseusBooks. Feynman,R.P.1985.SurelyYoureJoking,Mr.Feynman,Reading: Vintage. Fisher,Alec2004.TheLogicofRealArguments,2ndEdition.Cambridge: CambridgeUniversityPress. Menand,Louis2010.TheMarketplaceofIdeas,NewYork:Norton. Smyllyan,Raymond1978.WhatistheNameofThisBook?,PrenticeHall.

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Feynman:Theorem: Mathematicianscanprove onlytrivialtheorems,becauseeverytheoremthatis provedistrivial. (Statement: Philosopherscansayonlyobvious things,becauseeverythingthatissaidisobvious.) Erds:Mathematicianisthemachinethatturns coffeeintotheorems (Philosopheristhemachinethatturnsteainto ideas.)
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