Questions tagged [reference-request]
This tag should be used when the question is asking for specific references.
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Would you recommend the book "Philosophical devices: Evidence, Probability, Possibility and Sets" by David Papineau?
Would you recommend the book "Philosophical devices: Evidence, Probability, Possibility and Sets"?
I am not familiar with the author, David Papineau, and would like to ask for an opinion ...
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0answers
56 views
Laws of logic literature recommendations
What are some books/papers/articles I could read to develop an informed perspective on questions like "where do the laws of logic come from? Do they have a deep connection with the structure of ...
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2answers
117 views
To which extent mathematics tools allow to grasp the world beyond human intuition?
To which extent Mathematics formalisms are an extension of intuitive reasonning as tools to grasp the world in the fields of Quantum Physics and Relativity ?
My feeling is that when intuitive ...
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0answers
27 views
Cassirer and the Categorical Imperative
I've been reading some of the shorter works of the neo-Kantian and proto-semiologist Ernst Cassirer. While I find him a valuable bridge across the "continental divide," I'm not sure yet that ...
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1answer
46 views
Is the synthetic/analytic distinction about metaphysics?
Is the distinction between synthetic/analytic a claim about epistemology, ontology or something else altogether?
Where can one read more about the stakes of the relevant arguments?
I did read the The ...
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1answer
240 views
What is mathematics? What are some of the most predominant philosophical definitions of mathematics?
Philosophers have given the nature of mathematics a lot of thought. As a beginner exploring philosophy, one of the questions which presents itself is 'what is X', and in this case, X is mathematics.
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32 views
What's a good introduction to formal epistemology for a math/philosophy double major?
Preferably one that has exercises and is geared towards people who have more of a background in math than philosophy.
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1answer
49 views
What is philosophical position is it for only the things that are in your immediate vicinity to exist at any given time?
You can only know so much about what is going on around you. For example, it is impossible for me to know what is going on in China right now if I am in South America. I might try to look at the news, ...
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1answer
80 views
Rousseau Experts, Assemble! (to identify a quote)
I know this is a long shot, but I am looking for a quote from Rousseau. I heard it a long time ago and have looked for it many times, but I have not been able to find it.
In the quote (only about 1-to-...
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33 views
can some one please tell me about iqbals "ego" [closed]
what ever you know about it ? he says that the ultimate way to understand the purpose of one's existence on earth is by "khudi" (Persian word for self)
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1answer
43 views
What makes any linear function linear? [closed]
Is it the fact that the function's graph includes a non cursive line (but not necessarily a totally straight line)?
Is it something else?
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31 views
Is there an equivalent reading to Russel's 'The Problems of Philosophy' but for metaphysics?
I'm looking for an overview of the field of metaphysics accessible to laymen. If there is anything that leans in any way towards the social sciences, I would be particularly interested in it.
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60 views
John Locke on socks and identity : reference request
I am aware that the question is somewhat vague, but I am trying to locate where in Locke's writings the argument about identity – exemplified with him repairing his socks again and again – is to be ...
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1answer
73 views
Resources for Philosophy of Mathematics
Are there any suggestions to go through the foundations and logic of mathematics step by step. I understand that there are lot of resources to go through but I keep losing motivation as these are ...
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2answers
101 views
Are there scholarly works on philosophy of language treatment of the Gettier problem?
I found two essays on a kind of response to the Gettier problem. One is a Philosophy Now article, and another is a blog post. On both sources, they argue that Smith's belief (on the original Gettier ...
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5answers
412 views
Essential reading list in the philosophy of science
I'm a mathematician, not a philosopher, by education. I would like to get some reading suggestions to get acquainted with the philosophy of science as intended today. I am mainly talking about the ...
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3answers
94 views
Is there no such thing as rigorous and formal in philosophy?
I once asked a question on a rigorous and formal definition of conceivable, and was told that there is no such thing as rigorous and formal in philosophy or science. Is this really true? I thought ...
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48 views
Philosophy of social motivations
There is a certain philosophy that social status seeking motivations stand in opposition to finding out the truth.
A social-status-motivated person will look first at status markers on arguments, ...
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1answer
63 views
Modeling of persuasion [closed]
I'd like to set out a model of how the mind changes its beliefs based on persuasive evidence, and I'm interested to know what work has been done similar to this.
Borrowing some of the terminology of ...
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2answers
79 views
Use of the term "diabolism" in philosophy or critical/systems theory
This is mainly just a reference question. I seem to recall long ago encountering the term "diabolism" in some social theoretical writings, used not in any theological sense but in its ...
2
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1answer
164 views
Kant’s claim “there are only three kinds of proof for the existence of God”
There are only three kinds of proof for the existence of God possible from speculative reason.
All paths on which one may set forth with this aim either begin from determinate experience and the ...
2
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0answers
54 views
Motivations for ontological pluralism – suggested reading?
I’m looking for suggested reading on ontological pluralism.
There are so many contested entities (?) like numbers, holes, the poems of Lord Byron, universals, various types of non-existent objects (...
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1answer
117 views
Why are minor chords perceived as melancholic?
In occidental music there are minor and majors chords, differing only by half a tone of one note.
Usually major chords feel more vibrant and energetic, while minor chords sound more melancholic. ...
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0answers
134 views
Does the sum of all being exist itself?
Can we conceptually build the (mereological) “sum” of “all being” / “everything that exists” without running into problems or paradoxes?
Can we think of the resulting concept (sometimes called “Being”,...
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57 views
Are there any book recommendation for identity, especially personal identity or metaphysics？
I have studied philosophy on my own for a long time and gained overall impression on the history of philosophy. And I am interested in self-consciousness，particular in personal identity. Recently I ...
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2answers
134 views
A Study Plan in Philosophy
I am a graduate student in mathematics but I've done philosophy in high school (we have majors in high school where I live). Having gone through a bachelor in mathematics, I would like to revisit ...
2
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1answer
78 views
Aristotle quote on how developing friendship takes a long time
Conor Gallagher, If Aristotle's Kid Had an iPod: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Parents ch. 10 says:
“WISHING TO BE FRIENDS IS QUICK WORK, BUT FRIENDSHIP IS A SLOW RIPENING FRUIT.”—ARISTOTLE
I'm assuming ...
2
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1answer
102 views
Which 20th century male philosopher contended that creating and composing gets increasingly difficult, as time progresses?
I can't remember where, but I stumbled on this quotation in some print book on postmodernism or 20th century music, written in English because I can't read any other language. The author was a ...
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4answers
114 views
Philosophy of Math question: Has anyone ever claimed that one minus one does not equal zero, but instead equals negative one(or just 1-1)?
This question is based off of the observation that the notion of zero depends on the presence of absence. I can say there is 1 banana right over there or there are 2 bananas right over there and when ...
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5answers
408 views
How can statements of probability be verified?
Suppose I said, "There is a 50% chance of it raining tomorrow", and someone else said, "No, it is actually 60%". How can we know which person, if either, is correct? What I am ...
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2answers
169 views
Is there a philosophical justification for the dichotomy in discimination law?
In the UK, and in many other countries, it is illegal to discriminate on certain personal characteristics in many circumstances, including employment and accommodation. These characteristics include ...
4
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2answers
247 views
Why doesn't Searle's argument apply against humans?
Here's "Complete argument" from Wikipedia:
(A1) "Programs are formal (syntactic)." A program uses syntax to
manipulate symbols and pays no attention to the semantics of the
...
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3answers
49 views
Reference request: books about meta-ethics theory
I want to construct an ethics system, my ethics. When I studied logic was very fruitful to understand the theory of the theory of logic (meta-theory). Now I want to learn about ethics because I want ...
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1answer
71 views
Does Plato ever call God "Father"?
This article suggests in several places that Plato at times called God (or, perhaps the Demiurge) by the name of "Father". However, I cannot find any such primary sources to validate the ...
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33 views
Fireflies in a mechanical car
I remember reading a short story a long time ago which illustrated the mind body problem with a metaphor of "fireflies inhabiting a mechanical car", or something like that. Possibly the ...
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0answers
50 views
The structure of the epistemic regress
I just read this essay on coherentism, and it resonated with a question I have about reconciling foundationalism, coherentism, and infinitism. The gist of the essay is that there are graph-theoretic ...
3
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1answer
73 views
Where and from whom can I learn about Wittgenstein's family resemblance?
After reading the relevant Wikipedia article as well as the relevant Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article, I still feel like I need a gentle introduction to Wittgenstein's Philosophical ...
3
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1answer
62 views
Informative diagram of Whitehead's philosophy?
I've been reading Whitehead's Process and Reality for the past few months, and I now realize that his writing is indeed very much hard to read (Concept of Nature was much easier in comparison). He ...
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1answer
35 views
Quote about serving to someone better than you
I remember reading something along the lines of "what can be better than to serve to someone who is better than you" in my philosophy class back in the days. I was pretty sure that I read ...
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1answer
88 views
Comparing Albert Camus and Karl Marx
My brother is lawyer. He likes reading philosophy and writing about law. He wants to find a source about a conflict ideas of revolution as you know Albert Camus and Karl Marx have. He wants to write ...
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2answers
237 views
Reference needed: why is the Liar Paradox regarded as not important/fringe by some?
Most people, when first encountering the Liar Paradox, react in one of two ways. One reaction is not to take the Paradox seriously and say they will not reason any more about it. - Dowden, IEP article ...
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3answers
141 views
Where can I find good place to obtain philosophy articles, journals, and books for free?
Where can I find a good place to obtain philosophy articles, journals, and books for free?
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1answer
337 views
Where is the source of the Seneca quote “to be good, it is not enough to be better than the worst”?
Where Seneca says something like:
To be good, it is not enough to be better than the worst.
I am looking for the correct preferably online reference.
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0answers
38 views
Justification logic and set theory
I was reading the SEP article on justification logic and the question arose for me, whether the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic justifications of set-theoretic axioms (a difference that has ...
2
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0answers
37 views
Analysis of Liar-like sentences in fuzzy logic
Let t0 = FALSE and t1 = TRUE. In fuzzy logic, 0 or 1 can be switched out for any real number in the interval [0,1]. This lets us construct all manner of liar/honest-like sentences, ranging from, "...
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2answers
151 views
Which specific branch of philosophy defines the 'realness' of something?
One or two years ago I read an article about what was termed a newer branch of philosophy that examined not only what was real, but what took precedence in importance in certain areas depending on ...
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1answer
128 views
How is ~CH derived in paraconsistent set theory?
This question on MathOverflow has been left unanswered. The respondents pointed mainly towards "Transfinite Numbers in Paraconsistent Set Theory", an article to which I don't have access. ...
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0answers
63 views
What does 'language' mean in Political Philosophy?
This practical and critical objective is achieved in two steps. The first is a critical survey of the languages and practices in which the struggles arise, and various theoretical solutions are ...
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83 views
A comprehensive reading of Foucault's theory of power
I have repeatedly encountered mentions and uses of Foucault's ideas when discussing socio-political issues, but have not had a proper introduction to his ideas. Recently, certain concepts from his ...
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44 views
How would infinitism intersect ethical beliefs?
Assuming that some moral knowledge is to be action-guiding, how could one appeal to an infinite chain of reasons to justify moral beliefs? (This is at least another "proof-of-concept" issue ...