Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'fragments/reports', 'Concepts:where cogn.science went wrong' and 'Essays on Intellectual Powers 6: Judgement'

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24 ideas

1. Philosophy / F. Analytic Philosophy / 5. Linguistic Analysis
23657 The existence of tensed verbs shows that not all truths are necessary truths [Reid]
2. Reason / D. Definition / 13. Against Definition
12619 We have no successful definitions, because they all use indefinable words [Fodor]
2. Reason / F. Fallacies / 7. Ad Hominem
23655 An ad hominem argument is good, if it is shown that the man's principles are inconsistent [Reid]
7. Existence / A. Nature of Existence / 2. Types of Existence
12620 If 'exist' is ambiguous in 'chairs and numbers exist', that mirrors the difference between chairs and numbers [Fodor]
8. Modes of Existence / C. Powers and Dispositions / 6. Dispositions / c. Dispositions as conditional
12613 Empiricists use dispositions reductively, as 'possibility of sensation' or 'possibility of experimental result' [Fodor]
11. Knowledge Aims / B. Certain Knowledge / 4. The Cogito
23659 If someone denies that he is thinking when he is conscious of it, we can only laugh [Reid]
11. Knowledge Aims / C. Knowing Reality / 1. Perceptual Realism / b. Direct realism
23662 The existence of ideas is no more obvious than the existence of external objects [Reid]
11. Knowledge Aims / C. Knowing Reality / 4. Solipsism
23661 We are only aware of other beings through our senses; without that, we are alone in the universe [Reid]
12. Knowledge Sources / D. Empiricism / 2. Associationism
12617 Associationism can't explain how truth is preserved [Fodor]
12. Knowledge Sources / E. Direct Knowledge / 1. Common Sense
23654 In obscure matters the few must lead the many, but the many usually lead in common sense [Reid]
12. Knowledge Sources / E. Direct Knowledge / 4. Memory
23660 The theory of ideas, popular with philosophers, means past existence has to be proved [Reid]
15. Nature of Minds / B. Features of Minds / 1. Consciousness / a. Consciousness
23658 Consciousness is an indefinable and unique operation [Reid]
18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 8. Human Thought
23656 The structure of languages reveals a uniformity in basic human opinions [Reid]
18. Thought / C. Content / 2. Ideas
12615 Mental representations are the old 'Ideas', but without images [Fodor]
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 2. Origin of Concepts / c. Nativist concepts
6650 Fodor is now less keen on the innateness of concepts [Fodor, by Lowe]
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 3. Ontology of Concepts / a. Concepts as representations
12618 It is essential to the concept CAT that it be satisfied by cats [Fodor]
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 3. Ontology of Concepts / b. Concepts as abilities
12614 I prefer psychological atomism - that concepts are independent of epistemic capacities [Fodor]
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / b. Analysis of concepts
12621 Definable concepts have constituents, which are necessary, individuate them, and demonstrate possession [Fodor]
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / d. Concepts as prototypes
12622 Many concepts lack prototypes, and complex prototypes aren't built from simple ones [Fodor]
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / f. Theory theory of concepts
12623 The theory theory can't actually tell us what concepts are [Fodor]
18. Thought / E. Abstraction / 2. Abstracta by Selection
23653 If you can't distinguish the features of a complex object, your notion of it would be a muddle [Reid]
19. Language / C. Assigning Meanings / 2. Semantics
12616 English has no semantic theory, just associations between sentences and thoughts [Fodor]
21. Aesthetics / A. Aesthetic Experience / 3. Taste
23663 There are axioms of taste - such as a general consensus about a beautiful face [Reid]
28. God / A. Divine Nature / 1. God
6011 There is a remote first god (the Good), and a second god who organises the material world [Numenius, by O'Meara]