Class Session Notes on Incommensurability Problem and Instrumentalism

Overview of the Class Session

• Last class of the semester mentioned; emphasizes the progress students have made.
• Third test will be available starting today at noon, consisting of three questions.

Grading Strategy

• Encouragement to engage in class and put in effort; students can get at least a 95 if they meet expectations.
• Open format allowed for the third test (open notes, open internet).
• This test is described as a 'victory lap' after the stress of previous tests.

Assignment Submission Guidelines

• Students encouraged to be proactive about seeking feedback on assignments.
• Late submissions will receive less feedback as a deterrent against procrastination.
• Procrastination negatively impacts the assistance instructors can provide close to due dates.

Incommensurability Problem

• Discussion introduced about the incommensurability problem: the contradiction between general relativity and quantum mechanics.
  • General relativity is deterministic, while quantum mechanics is probabilistic.
  • Question posed about how both can be correct.

Principles of Reasoning

• Core principles of human reasoning discussed:
  • The principle of contradiction - cannot be both A and not A simultaneously.
  • The part-whole principle - if a part has a property, the whole must have that property too.
• Examples used: Cheese on pizza and contradictions in reasoning.

Instrumentalism as a Solution

• Introduction of instrumentalism as a philosophical solution to the incommensurability problem.
  • Instrumentalism argues that theories are tools for making predictions rather than seeking absolute truth.
  • Theories should not be considered more fake or more true; they are valuable based on their predictive power.
• Philosophers since 1950 have leaned towards instrumentalism as an underlying assumption in epistemology and ontology.

Truth and Theories

• Discussion on the nature of 'truth':
  • Truth, or 'reality,' exists independently of human perception, but its understanding is always through conceptual frameworks.
  • Multiple ontologies covered during the semester to illustrate how philosophical perspectives shape our understanding of reality and knowledge.

Comparison of Theories

• Key distinction made between the strength of theories based on their ability to make accurate predictions
  • Example: Special relativity is useful for predicting certain outcomes, not absolute truth.
  • Comparing theories across disciplines (science, philosophy) to understand their utility rather than their veracity.

Conceptual Frameworks

• The overlap between scientific theories and instrumentalism; theories are constructed and constructed to predict.
• Concepts like object permanence and self are suggested as foundational in our understanding of reality.
  • Concepts are not inherently true but constructed to help us navigate experiences effectively.

Evolutionary Instrumentalism

• Evolutionary instrumentalism examined as a function of survival:
  • Better predictive theories survive and become core beliefs.
  • Historical examples show transformations in belief systems (e.g., the shift from polytheism to scientific explanations).

Reality and Experience

• Reality's nature is deemed elusive; discussions about whether what we perceive can be assumed as absolute.
  • Examples given regarding the Earth’s shape relating to the context of prediction-making depending on the theory applied.

Philosophers' Contributions

• Mention of philosophers like Hume, Quine, and Tagore, focusing on their views towards knowledge and reality.
• Hume: introduced skepticism surrounding our ability to perceive truth.
• Quine: defined the web of concepts, with relations indicating different levels of conceptual centrality.

Epistemological Perspectives

• Nihilism, agnosticism, approximation, and rationalism delineated as various contemporary philosophical approaches:
  • Nihilism: Despair regarding the ability to know anything at all.
  • Agnosticism: Accepts limitations in knowledge but believes in improving predictive tools.
  • Approximation and rationalism suggest more progressive views on the ability to know or discover truth through philosophical inquiry.

Conclusion

• Closing remarks encouraging students in their philosophical journey and best wishes for future endeavors.