The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. This well-circulated quote is often attributed to Albert Einstein. I find it somewhat strange in that that is clearly not “the definition of insanity”. Insanity has multiple definitions. “Sane” and “insane” come from the Latin word for health. In…
Tag: philosophy of science
Is ice a rock?
I was asked this question recently, and my initial answer was “I don’t think so.” To investigate deeper, we need to figure out what a rock is: So it looks like we need to figure out what a mineral is next: Ice certainly seems to fit these definitions, such that a piece of ice could…
What it means to say “lobsters are conscious”
The creationist site Evolution News recently posted an article entitled What Does It Mean to Say “Lobsters Are Conscious”? The thrust of this article is to use research about animal sentience to uphold mind-body dualism while simultaneously downplaying the similarities between human and animal minds. In short, the author Denyse O’Leary is trying to have…
Structural realism in the philosophy of science
One of the core issues in the philosophy of science is realism vs. antirealism. This concerns two things, the ontological status of entities referred to in scientific laws and what the aim of science is (or should be). Realism is the view that entities referred to in scientific laws genuinely exist to the extent that…
Naïve realism and American folk science
The following post is a critique of a particular class of worldviews and perspectives. What is naïve realism and what do I mean by folk science? Realism is a class of philosophical positions that assert the bona fide existence of certain objects, or that certain objects have certain discernible properties. The definition is vague because…
thoughts on mind 