Scientific Essentialism科学本质主义

书籍目录

Preface    IntroductionPart One  Concepts　1  Concepts of Scientific Essentialism　　1.1   Real Properties and Relations    1.2   Natural Kinds and Essences    1.3   Species, Instances, and Tropes    1.4   Intrinsic Properties and Structures    1.5   Intrinsic Properties and Real Essences    1.6   Two Brands of Necessity    1.7   Necessity and A Priori Knowledge    1.8   Natural Necessity    1.9   The Humean Metaphysic    1.10  Empiricist and Essentialist Perspectives on Reality    1.11  Causal Powers and Causal Processes    1.12  Causal Powe'rs and Causal Laws　　NotesPart Two  Ontology　2  Natural Kinds    2.1   The Aims of Ontology    2.2   Ontological Dependence    2.3   The Natural Kinds Structure of the World    2.4   Accidental, Incidental, and Essential Properties    2.5   Spectral Kinds    2.6   The Theory of Ontological Reduction    2.7   Real Properties and Property Identity    2.8   Properties and Predicates    2.9   So What Are Natural Kinds?    2.10  The Logic of Natural Kinds　　Notes　3  Powers and Dispositions    3.1   Introduction    3.2   The DeadWorld of Mechanism    3.3   Forces as External to Objects    3.4   The Dubious Status of Dispositions    3.5   Categorical Realism    3.6   Dispositions and Categorical Realism    3.7   MeUor's Dispositional Foundationalism    3.8   An Analysis of Dispositions    3.9   Dispositional Essentialism    3.10  Dispositional Properties and Causal Laws    3.11  Meinongianism    3.12  Categorical Properties and Relations　　NotesPart Three  Scientific Explanation　4  Realism and Essentialism in Science    4.1   Essentialist Realism    4.2   Scientific Realism    4.3   Critique of the Standard Argument for Realism    4.4   Realism and the Humean Supervenience Thesis    4.5   Causal Process Realism    4.6   Essentialism in Chemistry    4.7   Essentialism in Physics    4.8   Essentialism in Biology    4.9   Essentialism in Psychology    4.10  Constructing Essentialist Explanations　　Notes　5  Essentialism in the Social Sciences    5.1   Scientific Essentialism and Social Theory    5.2   Historical Explanations    5.3   The Structure of Realist Explanations in Science    5.4   Economic Essentialism    5.5   Economic Models    5.6   Neo-Classical A Priorism    5.7   Theoretical Ideals and Explanatory Frameworks    5.8   Theoretical Models in Physics and Economics　……Part Four Laws of Naturepart Five The New EssentialismBibliography Index

作者简介

Scientific Essentialism defends the view that the fundamental laws of nature depend on the essential properties of the things on which they are said to operate, and are therefore not independent of them. These laws are not imposed upon the world by God, the forces of nature or anything else, but rather are immanent in the world. Ellis argues that ours is a dynamic world consisting of more or less transient objects which are constantly interacting with each other, and whose identities depend on their roles in these processes. Natural objects must behave as they do, because to do otherwise would be contrary to their natures. The laws of nature are, therefore, metaphysically necessary, and consequently, there are necessary connections between events. Brian Ellis calls for the rejection of the theory of Humean Supervenience and an implementation of a new kind of realism in philosophical analysis.

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