What do patterns in empirical data tell us about the structure of the world?

被引:8
|
作者
McAllister, James W. [1 ]
机构
[1] Leiden Univ, Inst Philosophy, NL-2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands
关键词
Empirical data; Evidence; Noise; Patterns; Phenomena; Structures;
D O I
10.1007/s11229-009-9613-x
中图分类号
N09 [自然科学史]; B [哲学、宗教];
学科分类号
01 ; 0101 ; 010108 ; 060207 ; 060305 ; 0712 ;
摘要
This article discusses the relation between features of empirical data and structures in the world. I defend the following claims. Any empirical data set exhibits all possible patterns, each with a certain noise term. The magnitude and other properties of this noise term are irrelevant to the evidential status of a pattern: all patterns exhibited in empirical data constitute evidence of structures in the world. Furthermore, distinct patterns constitute evidence of distinct structures in the world. It follows that the world must be regarded as containing all possible structures. The remainder of the article is devoted to elucidating the meaning and implications of the latter claim.
引用
收藏
页码:73 / 87
页数:15
相关论文
共 50 条
  • [1] What do patterns in empirical data tell us about the structure of the world?
    James W. McAllister
    Synthese, 2011, 182 : 73 - 87
  • [2] What Do Symmetries Tell Us about Structure?
    Barrett, Thomas William
    PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE, 2018, 85 (04) : 617 - 639
  • [3] What Do Global Metrics Tell Us about the World?
    Short, John Rennie
    Velez-Hagan, Justin
    Dubots, Leah
    SOCIAL SCIENCES-BASEL, 2019, 8 (05):
  • [4] What Do Survey Data Tell Us about US Businesses?
    Bhandari, Anmol
    Birinci, Serdar
    McGrattan, Ellen R.
    See, Kurt
    AMERICAN ECONOMIC REVIEW-INSIGHTS, 2020, 2 (04) : 443 - 458
  • [5] What Do Privileged Coordinates Tell Us about Structure?
    Barrett, Thomas William
    Manchak, J. B.
    PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE, 2024,
  • [6] What do census data tell us about headquarters location?
    Ono, Y
    ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT QUARTERLY, 2006, 20 (02) : 129 - 141
  • [7] What do sales data tell us about implant survival?
    Seemann, Rudolf
    Jirku, Alexander
    Wagner, Florian
    Wutzl, Arno
    PLOS ONE, 2017, 12 (02):
  • [8] What Do Range Maps and Surveys Tell Us About Diversity Patterns?
    Hawkins, Bradford A.
    Rueda, Marta
    Rodriguez, Miguel A.
    FOLIA GEOBOTANICA, 2008, 43 (03) : 345 - 355
  • [9] What Do Range Maps and Surveys Tell Us About Diversity Patterns?
    Bradford A. Hawkins
    Marta Rueda
    Miguel Á. Rodríguez
    Folia Geobotanica, 2008, 43
  • [10] What do Chinese macro announcements tell us about the world economy?
    Baum, Christopher F.
    Kurov, Alexander
    Wolfe, Marketa Halova
    JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL MONEY AND FINANCE, 2015, 59 : 100 - 122