philo exam 1

What is Epistemology?

The study of knowledge, including what we can know and how.

What does Metaphysics study?

The study of reality, including existence, time, and space.

What is Axiology?

The study of values, including ethics and aesthetics.

What is Equivocation in the context of fallacies?

Using a word with multiple meanings in an argument.

What is Begging the Question (Circular Reasoning)?

An argument that assumes what it tries to prove.

What does Causal Fallacy refer to?

Incorrectly attributing a cause-and-effect relationship.

What is Rationalism?

The belief that knowledge comes from reason.

What is Empiricism?

The belief that knowledge comes from sensory experience.

What is a priori knowledge?

Knowledge that is independent of experience.

What is a posteriori knowledge?

Knowledge that is based on experience or empirical evidence.

What is Skepticism in philosophy?

Doubt about the reliability of knowledge.

What are Premises in an argument?

Statements that support the conclusion.

What is a Conclusion in an argument?

The statement being proven.

What is Induction?

Making general conclusions from specific observations.

What is Deduction?

Making specific conclusions from general premises.

What does Validity in logic mean?

Whether the conclusion logically follows from the premises.

What is Soundness in an argument?

The combination of validity and the truth of the premises.

What is Imagibility?

What can be vividly visualized.

What is Conceivability?

What can be mentally thought about.

What is Systematic Deception?

The idea that our senses and reasoning could mislead us.

What is Methodological Skepticism?

The practice of doubting everything to find certain knowledge.

What is Foundationalism in epistemology?

The belief that knowledge is built on self-evident beliefs.

What is the Cartesian Circle?

Descartes' circular reasoning involving clear and distinct perceptions and the existence of God.

What philosophical concept questions if virtue can be taught?

Socrates' proposal in Meno that virtue is knowledge.

What is Meno’s Paradox?

The question of how can we search for something we don't know or already know.

What is Recollection in Plato's philosophy?

The belief that knowledge is innate and discovered through questioning.

What does Plato's Divided Line represent?

The levels of understanding, from imagining shadows to understanding the Forms.

What is the goal of Descartes' First Meditation?

To find a foundation for knowledge through radical doubt.

What is the Evil Demon Hypothesis?

A thought experiment imagining a deceiver manipulating perception.

What is the Dream Argument in Descartes' philosophy?

Doubting waking reality by comparing it to dreams.

What is the main idea of Locke's Empiricism?

That all knowledge comes from sensory experience.

What does Personal Identity depend on according to Locke?

Continuous consciousness rather than the body or soul.

What is the distinction between Appearance and Reality according to Bertrand Russell?

Our perceptions may differ from the world as it truly is.

What is Phenomenalism?

The view that reality is made up of sensory experiences.

What does Realism assert?

Reality exists independently of our perceptions.

What does Russell's The Existence of Matter argue?

That the regularity of sensory experiences supports the existence of an external world.

What is Hume's Copy Principle?

All ideas stem from impressions; no idea can exist without prior sensory experience.

What distinguishes Simple Ideas from Complex Ideas in Hume's theory?

Simple Ideas are direct copies of impressions and Complex Ideas are combinations of simple ideas.

What is the goal of Popper's Philosophy of Science?

To define the scientific method and distinguish science from pseudoscience.

What does Falsifiability mean in Popper's approach?

A theory is scientific if it can be tested and potentially proven false.

What is Kuhn's concept of Paradigms?

Frameworks that guide research and interpretation in scientific fields.

What is a Paradigm Shift in science?

A radical change in the way the scientific community understands the world.

What does Russell conclude about perception and reality?

That our perception is an appearance of reality, not an exact mirror.

What does Materialism assert about matter?

That matter is the fundamental substance of the universe.