The No Alternatives Argument
نویسندگان
چکیده
Scientific theories are hard to find, and once scientists have found a theory H, they often believe that there are not many distinct alternatives to H. But is this belief justified? What should scientists believe about the number of alternatives to H, and how should they change these beliefs in the light of new evidence? These are some of the questions that we will address in this paper. We also ask under which conditions failure to find an alternative to H confirms the theory in question. This kind of reasoning (which we call the No Alternatives Argument) is frequently used in science and therefore deserves a careful philosophical analysis.
منابع مشابه
Two Wrongs Do Not Make a Right: Flaws in Alternatives to Fee-for-Service Payment Plans Do Not Mean Fee-for-Service Is a Good Solution to Rising Prices; Comment on “Fee-for-Service Payment - An Evil Practice That Must Be Stamped Out?”
Professor Naoki Ikegami’s “Fee-for-service payment – an evil practice that must be stamped out” summarizes many of the failings of alternatives to fee-for-service (FFS) payment systems. His article also offers several suggestions for improving FFS systems. However, even powerful arguments against many of the alternatives to FFS, does not make a convincing argument for FFS systems. In addition, ...
متن کاملThe Argument of Possibility and necessity encountering the critiques of Russell, Hume, and Kant
The argument of possibility and necessity- which is considered as some of the most important arguments in proving the existence of God - have taken a key place in humanschr('39') thoughts. In history, among thinkers related to the creation of the universe, no major philosopher or thinker can be found other than those who have faced this argument; thus this argument has met many criticisms an...
متن کاملThe Effect of Dynamic Assessment of Toulmin Model through Teacher- and Collective-Scaffolding on Argument Structure and Argumentative Writing Achievement of Iranian EFL Learners
Considering the paramount importance of writing logical arguments for college students, this study investigated the effect of dynamic assessment (DA) of Toulmin model through teacher- and collective-scaffolding on argument structure and overall quality of argumentative essays of Iranian EFL university learners. In so doing, 45 male and female Iranian EFL learners taking part in the study were r...
متن کاملA Quadratic Programming Method for Ranking Alternatives Based on Multiplicative and Fuzzy Preference Relations
This paper proposes a quadratic programming method (QPM) for ranking alternatives based on multiplicative preference relations (MPRs) and fuzzy preference relations (FPRs). The proposed QPM can be used for deriving a ranking from either a MPR or a FPR, or a group of MPRs, or a group of FPRs, or their mixtures. The proposed approach is tested and examined with two numerical examples, and compara...
متن کاملA Correct Approach on Adding Criteria in the Analytic Hierarchy Process
This paper deals with addition besides deletion of indifferent or wash criteria on which the alternatives have equal performance in the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) against the misguided argument as shortcoming of the AHP. In such case, it is noted that careful attention and a correct approach are required in order not to be led towards a wrong decision with rank reversal when composing pri...
متن کامل