“More often than not, nothingness is reluctantly and despairingly taken to be the only hypothesis possible when all the others have failed, since by definition it cannot be disproven and is beyond the scope of reason.” ReasonTakenDefinitionsNothingnessHypothesisScope Book:The Impostor Source: The Impostor
“The degree of confirmation assigned to any given hypothesis is sensitive to properties of the entire belief system... simplicity, plausibility, and conservatism are properties that theories have in virtue of their relation to the whole structure of scientific beliefs taken collectively. A measure of conservatism or simplicity would be a metric over global properties of belief systems.” WholeWould BeBeliefGivenVirtueTakenTheoryDegreesRelationStructurePropertySimplicitySensitiveHypothesisConservatismBelief SystemsConfirmationMetrics Author:Jerry Fodor
“Therefore, a grotesque account of a period some thousands of years ago is taken seriously though it be built by piling special assumptions on special assumptions, ad hoc hypothesis [invented for a purpose] on ad hoc hypothesis, and tearing apart the fabric of science whenever it appears convenient. The result is a fantasia which is neither history nor science.” YearsPurposeResultsTakenSpecialEvolutionPeriodsBuiltYears AgoAccountsAssumptionAdsFabricHypothesisConvenientGrotesqueFantasiaTearing Apart Author:James Bryant Conant
“The man who has successfully solved the problem of his relations with the two worlds of data and symbols is a man who has no beliefs. With regard to the problems of practical life he entertains a series of working hypotheses, which serve his purposes, but are taken no more seriously than any other kind of tool or instrument. In other words, symbols should never be raised to the rank of dogmas, nor should any system be regarded as more than a provisional convenience.” MenWorldShouldKindTwoProblemPurposeBeliefTakenHe ManToolsRelationRegardInstrumentsSeriesRaisedPracticalsSymbolsDataDogmaHypothesisConvenienceTwo WorldsPractical Life Author:Aldous Huxley
“Taken as hypotheses, religious claims do very badly. Yet the striking fact is that this does not worry Christians.” DoeFactsChristianReligiousWorryTakenClaimsHypothesis Author:Tim Crane