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"One of the main tasks for human reason is to make the universe we live in understandable to ourselves. This is the task of science. There are two different components of about equal importance in this enterprise. The first is poetic inventiveness ..."
– Karl Popper
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Category Archives: epistemology
Guides and other e books
The Guide to The Logic of Scientific Discovery has been reloaded with some minor corrections, also the links from the table of contents now work. Other books are now available in addition to the five guides, including my MA thesis … Continue reading
Posted in epistemology
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Beyond The Outsider
In “The Popular Popper, The Guide to The Open Society and Its Enemies” (2013) Rafe Champion mentions Bryan Magee’s attendance at Popper’s 1958 address, titled “Back to the Pre-Socratics”, to the Aristotelian Society in London. Magee relates this in Chapter … Continue reading
Posted in epistemology
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How to Win a Debate
I’ve been reading Teachers Without Goals: Students Without Purposes by Henry J. Perkinson. I cannot recommend this book enough. The book totally embraces Karl Popper’s ideas as far as learning, and moreover, also embraces the concept of evolutionary epistemology. I … Continue reading
What does Popper’s falsifiability criterion achieve?
Michael Kennedy writes on the criticism page: Popper’s falsifibility criterion is only a necessary condition for scientific status. If by demarcation criterion we mean a frontier with scientific statements on one side of the line and non-science on the other … Continue reading
Posted in epistemology, science
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Critical Rationalism vs. Inductive and Subjective Interpretations of Probability
So I am trying to understand the critical rationalist arguments against the inductive and subjective interpretations of probability. I am not all that familiar with the matter, and so I have likely made some elementary mistakes — feedback is appreciated. … Continue reading
Posted in epistemology, logic
74 Comments
A Pancritical Paradox?
In Retreat to Commitment, Bartley characterises a pancritical rationalist as one who, holds all his positions, including his most fundamental standards, goals, and decisions, and his basic philosophical position itself, open to criticism; one who protects nothing from criticism by … Continue reading
Posted in epistemology, logic
11 Comments
Scientism vs Liberalism
In his book, “The Counter-Revolution of Science”, Hayek argued against scientism – attempts by the social sciences to ape the methods of the natural sciences by ignoring the subjectivity of economic value. I will apply these ideas to criticise of some current ideas that the government should use force to make people happier. Continue reading
Posted in epistemology, ethics, open society
10 Comments
Howson on Deutsch
In Chapter 7 of his book The Fabric of Reality, David Deutsch has a dialogue in which he discusses critical rationalism with a crypto-inductivist, a philosopher who thinks there is an induction shaped hole in his worldview although he agrees … Continue reading
Posted in epistemology, science
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Popper on Schools and Universities
It has been said, only too truly, that Plato was the inventor of both our secondary schools and our universities. I do not know a better argument for the optimistic view of mankind than the fact that this devastating system of education has not utterly ruined them. Continue reading
Posted in epistemology, ethics, open society, quote
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The Myth of the Framework
The Myth of the Framework is an essay Popper wrote that was published in the book of the same title. The point of the essay is that relativists tend to set excessively high standards for making progress. I would add that this is not just a problem for relativists: it is is a very widespread and extremely damaging obstacle to intellectual and moral progress. Continue reading
Posted in epistemology, ethics
30 Comments