Home / Quotes / Quote by David Papineau

Quote by David Papineau

“A certain kind of methodologically-minded philosopher of science is quick to read off metaphysical conclusions from features of scientific practice. Chemists don't derive their laws from fundamental physics, so reductive physicalism must be false. Biologists refer to natural numbers in some of their explanations, so numbers must exist. I think that this kind of thing makes for bad philosophy.”

Author

David Papineau

David Papineau is a British philosopher known for his contributions to metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of language. His research spans across various fields, including philosophy of mind, philosophy of science, and moral philosophy. more

“The relevant features of scientific practice often have mundane explanations which don't point to any deep metaphysical moral. (Thus it would simply be messy and pointless for the chemists to essay physical reductions, or for the biologists to offer number-free explanations. It's a weird kind of science-worship that views these practical considerations as clues to the nature of reality.)”

Kind Reality Views Numbers Moral Practice Offers Worship Practicals Features Explanation Consideration Relevant Metaphysical Clue Essays Messy Mundane Pointless Reduction Biologist Chemist

Author:David Papineau

“Fortune is like the market, where, many times, if you can stay a little, the price will fall.”

Ifs Littles Values Fall Business Fate Fortune Commerce

Book:The Works of Francis Bacon, Baron of Verulam, Viscount St. Alban, Lord High Chancellor of England ...: With Several Additional Pieces, Never Before Printed in Any Edition of His Works. To which is Prefixed, a New Life of the Author

Source: The Works of Francis Bacon, Baron of Verulam, Viscount St. Alban, Lord High Chancellor of England ...: With Several Additional Pieces, Never Before Printed in Any Edition of His Works. To which is Prefixed, a New Life of the Author

“Schrödinger's cat has a 50% quantum chance of coming out of the box alive and a 50% quantum chance of coming out dead. If you got in the box with it, the same would apply to you. So you really don't want to do that.”

Ifs Want Chance Alive Cat Boxes Coming Out Quantum

Author:David Papineau

“I favour an interpretation of quantum mechanics (the 'Everett interpretation') according to which reality branches in any chancy quantum situation. On this view, Schrödinger's set-up will give rise to in two future branches of reality, one with a live cat, and one with a dead cat - and the talk of '50% chances' just indicates that the two branches are both equally real futures of the cat that originally entered the box.”

Giving Two Real Reality Chance Views Situation Cat Boxes Branches Interpretation Quantum Favour Mechanic Quantum Mechanics

Author:David Papineau

“Everybody agrees that a future in which you are dead is a very bad thing, and that it isn't made any better by your not being around to notice how bad it is.”

Made Agree Bad Things

Author:David Papineau

“I don't have much use for the concept of innateness. The everyday concept incorporates a number of different notions that can come apart in in many ways, and as a result encourages a range of dangerously fallacious inferences.”

Way Different Use Results Numbers Concepts Notion Everyday Range Inference

Author:David Papineau