Philosophy: logic Books

Book SynopsisDoes syllogistic logic have the resources to capture mathematical proof? This volume provides the first unified account of the history of attempts to answer this question, the reasoning behind the different positions taken, and their far-reaching implications. Aristotle had claimed that scientific knowledge, which includes mathematics, is provided by syllogisms of a special sort: ''scientific'' (''demonstrative'') syllogisms. In ancient Greece and in the Middle Ages, the claim that Euclid''s theorems could be recast syllogistically was accepted without further scrutiny. Nevertheless, as early as Galen, the importance of relational reasoning for mathematics had already been recognized. Further critical voices emerged in the Renaissance and the question of whether mathematical proofs could be recast syllogistically attracted more sustained attention over the following three centuries. Supported by more detailed analyses of Euclidean theorems, this led to attempts to extend logical theory to include relational reasoning, and to arguments purporting to reduce relational reasoning to a syllogistic form. Philosophical proposals to the effect that mathematical reasoning is heterogenous with respect to logical proofs were famously defended by Kant, and the implications of the debate about the adequacy of syllogistic logic for mathematics are at the very core of Kant''s account of synthetic a priori judgments. While it is now widely accepted that syllogistic logic is not sufficient to account for the logic of mathematical proof, the history and the analysis of this debate, running from Aristotle to de Morgan and beyond, is a fascinating and crucial insight into the relationship between philosophy and mathematics.Table of ContentsIntroduction 1: Aristotelian Syllogism and Mathematics in Antiquity and the Medieval Period 2: Extensions of the Syllogism in Medieval Logic 3: Syllogistic and Mathematics: The Case of Piccolomini 4: Obliquities and Mathematics in the 17th and 18th Centuries: From Jungius to Wolff 5: The Extent of Syllogistic Reasoning: From Rüdiger to Wolff 6: Lambert and Kant 7: Bernard Bolzano on Non-Syllogistic Reasoning 8: Thomas Reid, William Hamilton and Augustus De Morgan Conclusion

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Book SynopsisTruth and Paradox offers a comprehensive account of truth values and the norms governing claims about truth, based on a new approach to logic and semantics. Since the seminal work of Tarski in the mid-twentieth century, the Liar paradox and other related paradoxes have stood in the way of a precise philosophical account of truth. Tim Maudlin draws on analogies from mathematical physics to explicate the origin of classical truth-value gaps, and to provide an account of truth that avoids any hierarchy of languages or of truth predicates. He also closely investigates our reasoning about truth, including apparently unobjectionable reasoning about the paradoxical sentences. The fallacies in that reasoning are located not in any inferences concerning truth, but in the foundations of standard logic. Blocking the paradoxical arguments requires emendation of classical logic, and the requisite emendations call into question the existence of any a priori logical truths. Maudlin also includes a diTrade ReviewTim Maudlin's Truth and Paradox is a terrific book... the perspective it casts on [the] situation is completely novel ... sure to interest a wide range of philosophers, not just those with special interest in the paradoxes...lucid and lively, a pleasure to read. * Hartry Field, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research *Tim Maudlin offers a theory of truth that arises from a foundationalist picture of language. The picture is attractive, and Maudlin builds on it courageously (indeed, fearlessly) ... a though-provoking book, one that offers a novel way of conceptualizing a fixed-point theory of truth. * Anil Gupta, MIND *Table of Contents1. Two Versions of the Liar Paradox ; 2. On the Origin of Truth Values ; 3. What is Truth, and What is a Theory of Truth? ; 4. A Language That Can Express Its Own Truth Theory ; 5. The Norms of Assertion and Denial ; 6. Solving the Inferential Liar Antinomy ; 7. Reasoning about Permissible Sentences ; 8. The Permissibility Paradox ; 9. The Metaphysics of Truth ; Bibliography

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Book SynopsisThe Law of Non-Contradiction-that no contradiction can be true-has been a seemingly unassailable dogma since the work of Aristotle, in Book Gamma of the Metaphysics. It is an assumption challenged from a variety of angles in this collection of original papers. Twenty-three of the world''s leading experts investigate the ''law'', considering arguments for and against it and discussing methodological issues that arise whenever we question the legitimacy of logical principles. The result is a balanced inquiry into a venerable principle of logic, one that raises questions at the very centre of logic itself. The aim of this volume is to present a comprehensive debate about the Law of Non-Contradiction, from discussions as to how the law is to be understood, to reasons for accepting or re-thinking the law, and to issues that raise challenges to the law, such as the Liar Paradox, and a ''dialetheic'' resolution of that paradox. One of the editors contributes an introduction which surveys the Trade ReviewReview from previous edition Since dialetheism has, in recent years, scrounged its way from being a view easily defeated by the dreaded incredulous stare to being a major (but still sometimes ignored) contender in the contest for an adequate logical account of the semantic and set-theoretic paradoxes (or an adequate logical theory in general), the volume is to be commended merely for its existence. The fact that it contains, not just a number of good philosophers taking this view seriously, but also a lot of seriously good philosophy increases its worth. * Roy Cook, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Table of ContentsPART I: SETTING UP THE DEBATE ; PART II: WHAT IS THE LNC? ; PART III: METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES IN THE DEBATE ; PART IV: AGAINST THE LNC ; PART V: FOR THE LNC

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Book SynopsisHow strongly should you believe the various propositions that you can express?That is the key question facing Bayesian epistemology. Subjective Bayesians hold that it is largely (though not entirely) up to the agent as to which degrees of belief to adopt. Objective Bayesians, on the other hand, maintain that appropriate degrees of belief are largely (though not entirely) determined by the agent''s evidence. This book states and defends a version of objective Bayesian epistemology. According to this version, objective Bayesianism is characterized by three norms: Probability - degrees of belief should be probabilities Calibration - they should be calibrated with evidence Equivocation - they should otherwise equivocate between basic outcomesObjective Bayesianism has been challenged on a number of different fronts. For example, some claim it is poorly motivated, or fails to handle qualitative evidence, or yields counter-intuitive degrees of belief after updating, or suffers from a failureTable of ContentsPreface ; 1. Introduction ; 2. Objective Bayesianism ; 3. Motivation ; 4. Updating ; 5. Predicate Languages ; 6. Objective Bayesian Nets ; 7. Probabilistic Logic ; 8. Judgement Aggregation ; 9. Languages and Relativity ; 10. Objective Bayesianism in Perspective ; References ; Index

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Book SynopsisSaving Truth from Paradox is an ambitious investigation into paradoxes of truth and related issues, with occasional forays into notions such as vagueness, the nature of validity, and the Gödel incompleteness theorems. Hartry Field presents a new approach to the paradoxes and provides a systematic and detailed account of the main competing approaches. Part One examines Tarski''s, Kripke''s, and Lukasiewicz''s theories of truth, and discusses validity and soundness, and vagueness. Part Two considers a wide range of attempts to resolve the paradoxes within classical logic. In Part Three Field turns to non-classical theories of truth that that restrict excluded middle. He shows that there are theories of this sort in which the conditionals obey many of the classical laws, and that all the semantic paradoxes (not just the simplest ones) can be handled consistently with the naive theory of truth. In Part Four, these theories are extended to the property-theoretic paradoxes and to various othTrade Reviewone of the most impressive works on semantic paradoxes to have appeared in recent years... written with great clarity and meticulous rigour, the difficulty of the issues dealt with... The book, a must-read for everyone interested in semantic paradoxes (or in philosophical logic more generally), develops a highly-sophisticated theory of truth that aims at solving the resilient problems posed by the Liar Paradox... The book is a valuable source of inspiration ... . It will certainly shape the discussion on semantic paradoxes in the years to come. * José Martínez Fernández and Jordi Valor Abad, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Field is St George on a white charger (as portrayed by Raphael on the cover), come to save what he can of a theory of truth (the damsel) from the damage wreaked by the Liar paradox, König's paradox, Curry's paradox, and others (the dragon). * Stephen Read, Mind *Table of ContentsPART ONE: A SELECTIVE BACKGROUND; PART TWO: BROADLY CLASSICAL APPROACHES; STRATIFIED AND CONTEXTUAL THEORIES; PART FOUR: MORE ON PARACOMPLETE SOLUTIONS; PART FIVE: PARACONSISTENT DIALETHEISM

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Book SynopsisThe Law of Non-Contradiction has been high orthodoxy in Western philosophy since Aristotle. The so-called Law has been the subject of radical challenge in recent years by dialetheism, the view that some contradictions are indeed true. Many philosophers have taken the Law to be central to many of our most important philosophical concepts. In Doubt Truth to be a Liar, Graham Priest mounts the case against this. Starting with an analysis of Aristotle on the Law, he discusses the nature of truth, or rationality, or negation, and of logic itself, and argues that the Law is inessential to all of these things. The book takes off from Priest''s earlier book, In Contradiction (a second edition of which is also published by OUP), developing its themes largely without recourse to formal logic.The book is required reading for anyone who wishes to understand dialetheism; (especially) for anyone who wishes to continue to endorse the old Aristotelian orthodoxy; and more generally, for anyone who wishTrade ReviewReview from previous edition This wide-ranging book is divided into four Parts: Truth, Negation, Rationality and Logic. Priest's discussion of these topics is centered around their bearing on his doctrine of dialetheism, the view that some contradictions are true; but the discussions are of great interest independent of dialetheism. The quality of the discussion is generally very high, and the book is a must-read for anyone interested in the central questions of the philosophy of logic. . . . I found this a thoroughly stimulating book. I recommend it with great enthusiasm. * Hartry Field, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Table of ContentsI. TRUTH; II. NEGATION; III. RATIONALITY; IV. LOGIC

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Book SynopsisThe relationship of part to whole is one of the most fundamental there is, yet until now there has been no full-length study of this concept. This book shows that mereology, the formal theory of part and whole, is essential to ontology. Peter Simons surveys and criticizes previous theories, especially the standard extensional view, and proposes a more adequate account which encompasses both temporal and modal considerations in detail. This has far-reaching consequences for our understanding of such classical philosophical concepts as identity, individual, class, substance and accident, matter, form, essence, dependence, and integral whole. It also enables the author to offer new solutions to long-standing problems surrounding these concepts, such as the Ship of Theseus Problem and the issue of mereological essentialism. The author shows by his use of formal techniques that classical philosophical problems are amenable to rigorous treatment, and the book represents a synthesis of issuesTrade ReviewA clear and careful work both in metaphysics and in the history and logic of mereology....Simons's care and precision and his sensitivity to fine distinctions are what make the book a success. * The Philosophical Review *Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION; PART 1 EXISTENSIONAL PART-WHOLE THEORY; 1. CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES OF EXTENSIONAL MEREOLOGY; 2. SURVEY OF EXTENSIONAL MEREOLOGY; 3. PROBLEMS; 4. OCCURRENTS, CLASSES, AND MASSES; PART II MEREOLOGY OF CONTINUANTS; 5. TEMPORARY PARTS AND INTERMITTENT EXISTENCE; 6. SUPERPOSITION, COMPOSITION, AND MATTER; PART III ESSENCE, DEPENDENCE, AND INTEGRITY; 7. ESSENTIAL PARTS; 8. ONTOLOGICAL DEPENDENCE; 9. INTEGRAL WHOLES; CONCLUDING REMARKS; BIBLIOGRAPHY; INDEX.

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Book SynopsisAristotle''s Prior Analytics marks the beginning of formal logic. For Aristotle himself, this meant the discovery of a general theory of valid deductive argument, a project that he had described as either impossible or impracticable, probably not very long before he actually came up with syllogistic reasoning. A syllogism is the inferring of one proposition from two others of a particular form, and it is the subject of the Prior Analytics. The first book, to which this volume is devoted, offers a fairly coherent presentation of Aristotle''s logic as a general theory of deductive argument.Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION ; 1. TRANSLATION ; 2. COMMENTARY ; NOTES ON THE TEXT ; BIBLIOGRAPHY ; GLOSSARY ; INDEX OF PASSAGES CITED ; GENERAL INDEX

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Book SynopsisThis is a new edition, revised and expanded, of a seminal work in the logic and philosophy of time, originally published in 1968. Arthur N. Prior (1914-1969) was the founding father of temporal logic. His work has attracted increased attention in the decades since his death: its influence stretches beyond philosophy and logic to computer science and formal linguistics. Prior''s fundamental ideas about the logic of time are presented here along with his investigations into the formal properties of time and tense. Already in 1969 Prior had been planning a new edition of Papers on Time and Tense, to incorporate his more recent work. Because of his untimely death this plan was never followed through--till now. Seven important papers have been added to the original selection, as well as a comprehensive bibliography of his work and an illuminating interview with his widow, Mary Prior, about his life and work. In addition, the Polish logic which made the original book difficult for many readeTrade Review[An] excellent collection. Every paper is densely argued and challenging * Philosophy Journal, Vol. 82 *Table of Contents1. LIFE AND WORK OF ARTHUR N. PRIOR: 'AN INTERVIEW WITH MARY PRIOR'

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Book SynopsisAddresses fundamental and interrelated philosophical issues concerning modality and identity, issues that were pivotal to the development of analytic philosophy in the twentieth century. This work is intended for graduate students in the subject and professional philosophers.Trade ReviewThe essays make important contributions to contemporary debated concerning modality, individuation, mathmatical structuralism and personal identity. The collection is tus warmly recommended to anyone interested in these areas. * Oystein Linnebo MIND *the volume . . . is of high quality and contains important contributions to many areas of contemporary metaphysics * Matti Eklund, Notre Dame Philosophical Review *all in all, this is an impressive volume, of significant interest to anyone who wants to stay abreast of developments in contemporary metaphysics * Matti Eklund, Notre Dame Philosophical Review *Table of ContentsI. MODALITY ; II. IDENTITY AND INDIVIDUATION ; III. PERSONAL IDENTITY

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Book SynopsisThis is a book about semantic theories of modality. Its main goal is to explain and evaluate important contemporary theories within linguistics and to discuss a wide range of linguistic phenomena from the perspective of these theories. The introduction describes the variety of grammatical phenomena associated with modality, explaining why modal verbs, adjectives, and adverbs represent the core phenomena. Chapters are then devoted to the possible worlds semantics for modality developed in modal logic; current theories of modal semantics within linguistics; and the most important empirical areas of research. The author concludes by discussing the relation between modality and other topics, especially tense, aspect, mood, and discourse meaning.Paul Portner''s accessible guide to this key area of current research will be welcomed by students of linguistics at graduate level and above, as well as by researchers in philosophy, computational science, and related fields.Trade ReviewThis is a most welcome, challenging and insightful book...an invaluable source of information for both students and senior researchers in linguistic semantics. * Ferenc Keifer, The Journal of Linguistics *This book is sure to be recognized as the most thorough systematic survey of the semantics of modality yet undertaken...written with admirable care * Frank Veltman, Professor of Logic and Cognitive Science, University of Amsterdam *...constitutes an ideal introduction for the beginner; but also the expert will learn from it... An extremely valuable, up to date, inspiring resource. * Gennaro Chierchia, Haas Foundations Professor of Linguistics, Harvard University *A self-contained monograph, it does not assume much familiarity on the reader's part with modal logic or any major theory of linguistic modality, so that those who have just started exploring modality will find the book very accessible and helpful. On the other hand, experts will find the book an excellent resource to turn to when they want to have a quick brush-up on one theory of modality or another. An authoritative figure on linguistic modality, Portner takes an unimposing position when presenting his own ideas (where applicable). Overall the book is a great pleasure to read. * Zhiguo Xie, Department of Linguistics, Cornell University *Table of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. Modal Logic ; 3. Major Linguistic Theories of Modality ; 4. Sentential Modality ; 5. Modality and Other Intensional Categories ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisTruth Through Proof defends an anti-platonist philosophy of mathematics derived from game formalism. Classic formalists claimed implausibly that mathematical utterances are truth-valueless moves in a game. Alan Weir aims to develop a more satisfactory successor to game formalism utilising a widely accepted, broadly neo-Fregean framework, in which the proposition expressed by an utterance is a function of both sense and background circumstance. This framework allows for sentences whose truth-conditions are not representational, which are made true or false by conditions residing in the circumstances of utterances but not transparently in the sense. Applications to projectivism and fiction pave the way for the claim that mathematical utterances are made true or false by the existence of concrete proofs or refutations, though these truth-making conditions form no part of their sense or informational content. The position is compared with rivals, an account of the applicability of mathematics developed, and a new account of the nature of idealisation proffered in which it is argued that the finitistic limitations Gödel placed on proofs are without rational justification. Finally a non-classical logical system is provided in which excluded middle fails, yet enough logical power remains to recapture the results of standard mathematics.Trade ReviewIn this fascinating book, Weir defends a new account of what makes mathematical assertions objectively true or false. * Julian C. Cole, Philosophy in Review *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. Metaphysics ; 2. Ontological Reduction ; 3. Neo-formalism ; 4. Objections and Comparisons ; 5. Applying Mathematics ; 6. Proof Set in Concrete ; 7. Idealisation Naturalised ; 8. Logic ; Conclusion ; Appendix

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Book SynopsisThe Oxford Handbooks series is a major new initiative in academic publishing. Each volume offers an authoritative and up-to-date survey of original research in a particular subject area. Specially commissioned essays from leading figures in the discipline give critical examinations of the progress and direction of debates. Oxford Handbooks provide scholars and graduate students with compelling new perspectives upon a wide range of subjects in the humanities and social sciences. Ernie Lepore and Barry Smith present the definitive reference work for this diverse and fertile field of philosophy. A superb international team contribute more than forty brand-new essays covering topics from the nature of language to meaning, truth, and reference, and the interfaces of philosophy of language with linguistics, psychology, logic, epistemology, and metaphysics. It will be an essential resource for anyone working in the central areas of philosophy, for linguists interested in syntax, semantics, anTrade ReviewThis mammoth book should be read by anyone with an interest not only in philosophy of language, but in semantics and pragmatics, and even, though less centrally, in syntax. Though not introductory in the sense that it could be read by a first year student, it is well worth the effort of reading and, given the overall clarity of the chapters, accessible. The quality of the papers is sustained throughout and is of the highest sandard. * LinguistList *Table of ContentsTHE HISTORICAL CONTEXT; THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE; THE NATURE OF MEANING; THE NATURE OF REFERENCE; THE NATURE OF REFERENCE; SEMANTIC THEORY; LINGUISTIC PHENOMENA; VARIETIES OF SPEECH ACT; THE EPISTEMOLOGY AND METAPHYSICS OF LANGUAGE

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Book SynopsisThe Logic Manual is a clear and concise introduction to logic for beginning philosophy students. It offers a complete introductory course, guiding the reader carefully through the topics in logic that are most important for the study of philosophy. It covers propositional and predicate logic with and without identity. It includes an account of the semantics of these languages including definitions of truth and satisfaction. Natural deduction is used as a proof system. Volker Halbach introduces the essential concepts through examples and informal explanations as well as through abstract definitions. The Logic Manual provides the best entry to the general abstract way of thinking about language, logic, and semantics which is characteristic of contemporary philosophy. Exercises, examples, and sample examination papers are provided on an accompanying website.Table of Contents1. Sets, Relations, and Arguments ; 2. Syntax and Semantics of Propositional Logic ; 3. Formalisation in Propositional Logic ; 4. The Syntax of Predicate Logic ; 5. The Semantics of Predicate Logic ; 6. Natural Deduction ; 7. Formalisation in Predicate Logic ; 8. Identity and Definite Descriptions ; Natural Deduction Rules

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Book SynopsisThis volume of newly written chapters on the history and interpretation of Wittgenstein''s Tractatus represents a significant step beyond the polemical debate between broad interpretive approaches that has recently characterized the field. Some of the contributors might count their approach as ''new'' or ''resolute'', while others are more ''traditional'', but all are here concerned primarily with understanding in detail the structure of argument that Wittgenstein presents within the Tractatus, rather than with its final self-renunciation, or with the character of the understanding that renunciation might leave behind. The volume makes a strong case that close investigation, both biographical and textual, into the composition of the Tractatus, and into the various influences on it, still has much to yield in revealing the complexity and fertility of Wittgenstein''s early thought. Amongst these influences Kant and Kierkegaard are considered alongside Wittgenstein''s immediate predecessoTable of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. Wittgenstein's pre-Tractatus manuscripts: a new appraisal ; 3. Why does Wittgenstein say that ethics and aesthetics are one and the same? ; 4. Kierkegaard and the Tractatus ; 5. What is Frege's 'concept horse problem'? ; 6. Tractatus 5.4611: 'Signs for logical operations are punctuation marks' ; 7. Logical segmentation and generality in Wittgenstein's Tractatus ; 8. Does the Tractatus contain a private language argument? ; 9. Logic and solipsism ; 10. Was the author of the Tractatus a transcendental idealist? ; 11. Idealism in Wittgenstein: a further reply to Moore ; Index

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Book SynopsisNecessary Beings is concerned with two central areas of metaphysics: modality--the theory of necessity, possibility, and other related notions; and ontology--the general study of what kinds of entities there are. Bob Hale''s overarching purpose is to develop and defend two quite general theses about what is required for the existence of entities of various kinds: that questions about what kinds of things there are cannot be properly understood or adequately answered without recourse to considerations about possibility and necessity, and that, conversely, questions about the nature and basis of necessity and possibility cannot be satisfactorily tackled without drawing on what might be called the methodology of ontology. Taken together, these two theses claim that ontology and modality are mutually dependent upon one another, neither more fundamental than the other. Hale defends a broadly Fregean approach to metaphysics, according to which ontological distinctions among different kinds oTrade ReviewBob Hale's distinguished record of research places him among the most important and influential contemporary analytic metaphysicians. In his deep, wide-ranging, yet highly readable book Necessary Beings, Hale draws upon, but substantially integrates and extends, a good deal of his past research to produce a sustained and richly textured essay on - as promised in the subtitle - ontology, modality, and the relations between them. Christopher Menzel, Philosophia Mathematica [T]he essentialist theory presented in this book constitutes a significant contribution to an exciting research project concerning the relations between modality and essence. In addition, of course, Hale's development of the essentialist theory is only one aspect of the book's important contribution to central and fundamental topics concerning the nature of modality. Penelope Mackie, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews It is very a thorough book and Hale covers a lot of ground. It contains not only new research but also useful summaries of Hales views and overviews of the various positions he opposes or develops. Thus it is not only of interest to experts in the field, but it can also serve as an introduction to the topic to readers with a general knowledge of logic and metaphysics.Table of ContentsPreface and acknowledgements ; Introduction ; 1. Ontological preliminaries ; 2. The necessity of necessity ; 3. Irreducible modality ; 4. Absolute Modality ; 5. The Source of Logical Necessities ; 6. Metaphysical Necessities ; 7. Necessary beings: properties and numbers ; 8. Higher-order logics ; 9. Contingent beings ; 10. Possibilities ; 11. Essential knowledge ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisMathematics depends on proofs, and proofs must begin somewhere, from some fundamental assumptions. The axioms of set theory have long played this role, so the question of how they are properly judged is of central importance. Maddy discusses the appropriate methods for such evaluations and the philosophical backdrop that makes them appropriate.Trade Review'an engaging contribution to an important philosophical debate [which] deserves to be read far beyond the ranks of philosophers of mathematics' * Journal of Philosophy *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. The Problem ; 2. Proper Method ; 3. Thin Realism ; 4. Arealism ; 5. Morals ; Bibliography

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Book SynopsisRichard Tieszen presents an analysis, development, and defense of a number of central ideas in Kurt Gödel''s writings on the philosophy and foundations of mathematics and logic. Tieszen structures the argument around Gödel''s three philosophical heroes - Plato, Leibniz, and Husserl - and his engagement with Kant, and supplements close readings of Gödel''s texts on foundations with materials from Gödel''s Nachlass and from Hao Wang''s discussions with Gödel. As well as providing discussions of Gödel''s views on the philosophical significance of his technical results on completeness, incompleteness, undecidability, consistency proofs, speed-up theorems, and independence proofs, Tieszen furnishes a detailed analysis of Gödel''s critique of Hilbert and Carnap, and of his subsequent turn to Husserl''s transcendental philosophy in 1959. On this basis, a new type of platonic rationalism that requires rational intuition, called ''constituted platonism'', is developed and defended. Tieszen showTrade ReviewTieszen has long been one of the bridge builders in contemporary philosophy, who is engaged by the philosophical issues and studies them with a broad background and an open mind. There is much to be learned by this, and I am eagerly looking forward to Tieszen's continuation of this interesting and very valuable work. * Dagfinn Follesda, Philosophia MathematicaJuliette Kennedy, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Table of ContentsPreface ; 1. Setting the Stage ; 2. Consistency, and the Ascent to Platonic Rationalism ; 3. Godel's Path From Hilbert and Carnap to Husserl ; 4. A New Kind of Platonism ; 5. Consciousness, Reason, and Intentionality ; 6. Constituted Platonism, Reason, and Mathematical Knowledge ; 7. Minds and Machines ; 8. Reason, Science, and Evidence ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisIn order to perfectly describe the world, it is not enough to speak truly. In this ambitious and ground-breaking book, Theodore Sider argues that for a representation to be fully successful, truth is not enough; the representation must also use the right concepts--concepts that ''carve at the joints''--so that its conceptual structure matches reality''s structure. There is an objectively correct way to ''write the book of the world''. According to Sider, metaphysics is primarily about fundamentality rather than necessity, conceptual analysis, or ontology. Fundamentality is understood in terms of structure: the fundamental truths are those truths that involve structural (joint-carving) concepts. Sider argues that part of the theory of structure is an account of how structure connects to other concepts. For example, structure can be used to illuminate laws of nature, explanation, reference, induction, physical geometry, substantivity, conventionality, objectivity, and metametaphysics. AnTrade ReviewSiders book is a great and important milestone in contemporary metaphysics. I highly recommend it to all metaphysicians, although the reader has a mountain to climb. The book is rich in complex arguments requiring careful study, whether you are a realist or a deflationist. * Laszlo Kocsis, Philosophy in Review *Two issues have been heavily debated in recent metaphysics: a revival of the old meta-question concerning the substantivity of (at least some) metaphysical debates, and the first-order question of what we might or should mean by metaphysical 'fundamentality.' Theodore Sider addresses these and related matters with great care, sophistication, clarity, and originality. . . . a terrific achievement: profound, rigorously systematic, and full of clarifying insights and arguments. * Timothy O'Connor and Nickolas Montgomery, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Table of Contents1. Structure ; 2. Primitivism ; 3. Connections ; 4. Substantivity ; 5. Metametaphysics ; 6. Beyond the predicate ; 7. Questions ; 8. Rivals ; 9. Ontology ; 10. Logic ; 11. Time ; 12. Modality ; 13. A Worldview ; References

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Book SynopsisGraham Priest presents an original exploration of philosophical questions concerning the one and the many. He covers a wide range of issues in metaphysics--including unity, identity, grounding, mereology, universals, being, intentionality, and nothingness--and deploys the techniques of paraconsistent logic in order to offer a radically new treatment of unity. Priest brings together traditions of Western and Asian thought that are usually kept separate in academic philosophy: he draws on ideas from Plato, Heidegger, and Nagarjuna, among other philosophers.Trade ReviewA bracingly original treatise. The breadth and boldness of this work, as well as its technical rigor and historical sensitivity are very much to be admired. * Michael Price, Mind *If you are looking for a book doing something genuinely innovative, doing it with rigor, clarity, and a deep sensitivity to the breadth of philosophical tradition, then One is one for you. * Jason Turner, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews Online *In just 230 pages, One is a dense, remarkably clear, and unique treatment of a wide-range of topics in philosophy. What unifies the book is the topic of what unifies objects generally -- what Priest calls 'gluon theory' -- and allied themes in Buddhist thought. Gluon theory answers the question, What makes something one? What is it that 'glues' an object together into a unity? The impressive number of topics brought together by Priest's answer, which prominently services the fringe views for which he is well-known, speaks to its power and elegance. For this reason, One could also serve as a panoramic introduction to Priestâs work generally. * C. A. McIntosh, Philosophy in Review *Table of ContentsPART I: UNITY; PART II: IN PLATO'S TRAJECTORY; PART III: BUDDHIST THEMES

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Book SynopsisIn order to perfectly describe the world, it is not enough to speak truly. In this ambitious and ground-breaking book, Theodore Sider argues that for a representation to be fully successful, truth is not enough; the representation must also use the right concepts-concepts that ''carve at the joints''-so that its conceptual structure matches reality''s structure. There is an objectively correct way to ''write the book of the world''.Sider''s argument begins from the assertion that metaphysics is about the fundamental structure of reality. Not about what''s necessarily true; not about what properties are essential; not about conceptual analysis; and not about what there is. While inquiry into necessity, essence, concepts, or ontology might help to illuminate reality''s structure, the ultimate goal is insight into this structure. Sider argues that part of the theory of structure is an account of how structure connects to other concepts. For example, structure can be used to illuminate lawTrade ReviewTwo issues have been heavily debated in recent metaphysics: a revival of the old meta-question concerning the substantivity of (at least some) metaphysical debates, and the first-order question of what we might or should mean by metaphysical 'fundamentality.' Theodore Sider addresses these and related matters with great care, sophistication, clarity, and originality. . . . a terrific achievement: profound, rigorously systematic, and full of clarifying insights and arguments. * Timothy O'Connor and Nickolas Montgomery, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Sider works through an impressie list of philosophical problems and shows in each case how the idea of basic structure can help us address them ... there is much to applaud in this fascinating book. * A.W. Moore, London Review of Books *Siders book is a great and important milestone in contemporary metaphysics. I highly recommend it to all metaphysicians, although the reader has a mountain to climb. The book is rich in complex arguments requiring careful study, whether you are a realist or a deflationist. * László Kocsis, Philosophy in Review XXXIII *Table of Contents1. Structure ; 2. Primitivism ; 3. Connections ; 4. Substantivity ; 5. Metametaphysics ; 6. Beyond the predicate ; 7. Questions ; 8. Rivals ; 9. Ontology ; 10. Logic ; 11. Time ; 12. Modality ; 13. A Worldview ; References

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Book SynopsisHow do organizations become created? Entrepreneurship scholars have debated this question for decades, but only recently have they been able to gain insights into the non-linear dynamics that lead to organizational emergence, through the use of the complexity sciences. Written for social science researchers, Generative Emergence summarizes these literatures, including the first comprehensive review of each of the 15 complexity science disciplines. In doing so, the book makes a bold proposal for a discipline of Emergence, and explores one of its proposed fields, namely Generative Emergence. The book begins with a detailed summary of its underlying science, dissipative structures theory, and rigorously maps the processes of order creation discovered by that science to identify a 5-phase model of order creation in entrepreneurial ventures. The second half of the book presents the findings from an experimental study that tested the model in four fast-growth ventures through a year-long, weTable of ContentsChapter 1. Why Emergence ; Chapter 2. Prototypes of Emergence ; Chapter 3. Methods for Studying Emergence - 15 Fields of Complexity Science ; Chapter 4. Defining Emergence and Generative Emergence ; Chapter 5. Types of Emergence Studies ; Chapter 6. Dissipative Structures ; Chapter 7. Applications to Organizations ; Chapter 8. Introducing Dynamic States ; Chapter 9. Outcomes of Generative Emergence ; Chapter 10. Introducing the Five-Phase Process Model Of Generative Emergence ; Chapter 11. Phase 2 - Stress & Experiments ; Chapter 12. Phase 3 - Amplification and Critical Events ; Chapter 13. Phase 4 - New Order through Recombination ; Chapter 14. Phase 5 - Stabilizing Feedback ; Chapter 15. Cycles of Emergence ; Chapter 16. Cycles of Re-Emergence ; Chapter 17. Boundaries of Emergence, and Beyond the Boundaries ; Chapter 18. Enacting Emergence

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Book SynopsisWhen should I change my mind? What can I believe and what must I doubt? In this new philosophy of good reasons Wayne C. Booth exposes five dogmas of modernism that have too often inhibited efforts to answer these questions. Modern dogmas teach that you cannot reason about values and that the job of thought is to doubt whatever can be doubted, and they leave those who accept them crippled in their efforts to think and talk together about whatever concerns them most. They have willed upon us a befouled rhetorical climate in which people are driven to two self-destructive extremesdefenders of reason becoming confined to ever narrower notions of logical or experimental proof and defenders of values becoming more and more irresponsible in trying to defend the heart, the gut, or the gonads. Booth traces the consequences of modernist assumptions through a wide range of inquiry and action: in politics, art, music, literature, and in personal efforts to find identity or a self. In casting doubt on systematic doubt, the author finds that the dogmas are being questioned in almost every modern discipline. Suggesting that they be replaced with a rhetoric of systematic assent, Booth discovers a vast, neglected reservoir of good reasonsmany of them known to classical students of rhetoric, some still to be explored. These good reasons are here restored to intellectual respectability, suggesting the possibility of widespread new inquiry, in all fields, into the question, When should I change my mind?

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Book SynopsisThis study is an introduction to Kant's Critique of Pure Reason as well as an analysis of Kant's ideas. Intended to be read in conjunction with the philosopher's text, the commentary systematically examines the Critique chapter by chapter.Table of ContentsI: Introductory II: The Transcendental Aesthetic III: The Transcendental Deduction of the Categories IV: The Individual Categories and Their Proofs V: Kant's Attitude to Material Idealism. The Thing-in-Itself VI: The Paralogisms and the Antinomies VII: Theology and the Ideas of Reason Index Index of Comments on Particular Passages

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Book SynopsisEugene Garver considers the relationship between thought and character. He demonstrates how acts of deliberation and persuasion foster friendship between individuals, leading to common action and diversity.

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Book SynopsisIn this volume, Haack includes the complete text of Deviant Logic, as well as five additional papers that expand and update it. Two of these essays critique fuzzy logic, while three augment Deviant Logic's treatment of deduction and logical truth.

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Book SynopsisMcCawley supplements his earlier book-which covers such topics as presuppositional logic, the logic of mass terms and nonstandard quantifiers, and fuzzy logic-with new material on the logic of conditional sentences, linguistic applications of type theory, Anil Gupta's work on principles of identity, and the generalized quantifier approach to the logical properties of determiners.

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Book SynopsisPhilip R. Shields shows that ethical and religious concerns inform even the most technical writings on logic and language, and that, for Wittgenstein, the need to establish clear limitations is both a logical and an ethical demand. Rather than merely saying specific things about theology and religion, major texts from the Tractatus to the Philosophical Investigations express their fundamentally religious nature by showing that there are powers which bear down upon and sustain us. Shields finds a religious view of the world at the very heart of Wittgenstein's philosophy. Shields argues that the appearance throughout Wittgenstein's writings of such concepts as ritual, limit, transgression, a change of will, pride, temptation, and judgment implies a relation between religion and the logical aspects of Wittgenstein's philosophy.--Choice Of the many recent books about Wittgenstein, Logic and Sin is one of the very few that are well worth having--Fergus Kerr, Modern Theology What Shields hasTable of ContentsPreface Abbreviations 1: Logic and Sin: An Introduction 2: The Limit 3: The Fearful Judge 4: The Specter of Sin 5: Writing to the Glory of God Notes Selected Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisDemonstrates that ethical and religious concerns inform even the most technical writings on logic and language. This text also shows that, for Wittgenstein, the need to establish clear limitations is both a logical and an ethical demand, revealing a religious view of the world in his philosophy.

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Book SynopsisA new reading of Hegel's Science of Logic through the history of European mathematics. Conceptual Harmonies develops an original account of G. W. F. Hegel's perplexing Science of Logic from a simple insight: philosophical and mathematical thought have shaped each other since classical times. Situating Science of Logic within the rise of modern mathematics, Redding stresses Hegel's attention to Pythagorean ratios, Platonic reason, and Aristotle's geometrically inspired logic. He then explores how later traditions shaped Hegel's world, through both Leibniz and new forms of algebraic geometry. This enlightening reading recovers an overlooked stream in Hegel's philosophy that remains, Redding argues, important for contemporary conceptions of logic.Trade Review“The erudition and scope of Redding’s new book are staggering. This is a very fine book on the history of ancient logic and mathematics and its modern German reception, and it is also a major contribution to Hegel studies and philosophy. We finally have a clear and compelling answer to the question, What did Hegel actually think logic was? Redding has shown us the deep philosophical importance of that answer.” -- Robert B. Pippin, University of Chicago“Conceptual Harmonies powerfully challenges a long-standing barrier to a full appreciation of Hegel’s logic: the assumption that, given his trenchant critique of all ‘formalisms,’ Hegel’s logic is in no way mathematical. With his characteristic erudition and insight, Redding guides readers through a history of logic and mathematics from Plato to the twentieth century, toward an entirely new understanding of Hegelian logic. Redding’s latest is a must-read for anyone interested in Hegel and the history of logic, proving once again that Redding is one of the most original, rigorous, and historically sensitive interpreters of Hegel writing in any language.” -- Karen Ng, Vanderbilt University“In Conceptual Harmonies, Redding makes a breathtakingly original case for a new understanding of Hegel’s Logic. Expanding the examination of Hegel’s sources well beyond the standard Aristotelian and Kantian texts, Redding rewrites the history of logic to show that Hegel anticipated many developments in the mid-nineteenth century and beyond. This is a major achievement that opens up a new line of research into Hegel’s though -- Dean Moyar, Johns Hopkins UniversityTable of ContentsHegel’s Texts: Translations and Abbreviations Preface Introduction Beginning: Hegel’s Classicism 1 Logic, Mathematics, and Philosophy in Fourth-Century Athens 2 Hegel and the Platonic Origins of Aristotle’s Syllogistic 3 The General Significance of Neoplatonic Harmonic Theory for Hegel’s Account of Magnitude Middle: Classical Meets Modern 4 Geometry and Philosophy in Hegel, Schelling, Carnot, and Grassmann 5 The Role of Analysis Situs in Leibniz’s Modernization of Logic 6 Hegel’s Supersession of Leibniz and Newton: The Limitations of Calculus and Logical Calculus End: The Modern as Redetermined Classical 7 Exploiting Resources within Aristotle for the Rehabilitation of the Syllogism 8 The Return of Leibnizian Logic in the Nineteenth Century: From Boole to Heyting 9 Hegel among the New Leibnizians: Judgments 10 Hegel beyond the New Leibnizians: Syllogisms Conclusion: The God at the Terminus of Hegel’s Logic Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“The erudition and scope of Redding’s new book are staggering. This is a very fine book on the history of ancient logic and mathematics and its modern German reception, and it is also a major contribution to Hegel studies and philosophy. We finally have a clear and compelling answer to the question, What did Hegel actually think logic was? Redding has shown us the deep philosophical importance of that answer.” -- Robert B. Pippin, University of Chicago“Conceptual Harmonies powerfully challenges a long-standing barrier to a full appreciation of Hegel’s logic: the assumption that, given his trenchant critique of all ‘formalisms,’ Hegel’s logic is in no way mathematical. With his characteristic erudition and insight, Redding guides readers through a history of logic and mathematics from Plato to the twentieth century, toward an entirely new understanding of Hegelian logic. Redding’s latest is a must-read for anyone interested in Hegel and the history of logic, proving once again that Redding is one of the most original, rigorous, and historically sensitive interpreters of Hegel writing in any language.” -- Karen Ng, Vanderbilt University“In Conceptual Harmonies, Redding makes a breathtakingly original case for a new understanding of Hegel’s Logic. Expanding the examination of Hegel’s sources well beyond the standard Aristotelian and Kantian texts, Redding rewrites the history of logic to show that Hegel anticipated many developments in the mid-nineteenth century and beyond. This is a major achievement that opens up a new line of research into Hegel’s though -- Dean Moyar, Johns Hopkins UniversityTable of ContentsHegel’s Texts: Translations and Abbreviations Preface Introduction Beginning: Hegel’s Classicism 1 Logic, Mathematics, and Philosophy in Fourth-Century Athens 2 Hegel and the Platonic Origins of Aristotle’s Syllogistic 3 The General Significance of Neoplatonic Harmonic Theory for Hegel’s Account of Magnitude Middle: Classical Meets Modern 4 Geometry and Philosophy in Hegel, Schelling, Carnot, and Grassmann 5 The Role of Analysis Situs in Leibniz’s Modernization of Logic 6 Hegel’s Supersession of Leibniz and Newton: The Limitations of Calculus and Logical Calculus End: The Modern as Redetermined Classical 7 Exploiting Resources within Aristotle for the Rehabilitation of the Syllogism 8 The Return of Leibnizian Logic in the Nineteenth Century: From Boole to Heyting 9 Hegel among the New Leibnizians: Judgments 10 Hegel beyond the New Leibnizians: Syllogisms Conclusion: The God at the Terminus of Hegel’s Logic Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisWestern civilization is over. So begins Jan Zwicky’s trenchant exploration of the roots of global cultural and ecological collapse. Once Upon a Time in the West documents how a narrow epistemological style has left us blind to critical features of reality, and how the terrifying consequences of that shuttered vision are now unfolding.Trade Review“Zwicky's distinctive voice – warm, wise, sometimes colloquial or cutting – brings together these essays on diverse topics. Her sensibility is of course poetic, but also critical in the best sense: rigorous, probing, and committed. This is an engaging and enlightening portrait of a fine thinker in action.” Mark Kingwell, University of Toronto and author of Singular Creatures: Robots, Rights, and the Politics of Posthumanism“Lyric philosophy of the highest calibre. Jan Zwicky addresses the dilemmas we as a species are faced with today with great lucidity, seamlessly weaving together a wide variety of themes from philosophy, poetry, and ecology. Anyone interested in understanding the more-than-human world and our place in it is bound to find food for thought in these beautifully written and provoking philosophical essays.” Leonor María Martínez Serrano, University of Córdoba and author of Breathing Earth: The Polyphonic Lyric of Robert Bringhurst

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewFatalism, the sorrowful erasure of possibilities, is the philosophical problem at the heart of this book. To witness the intellectual exuberance and bravado with which the young Wallace attacks this problem, the ambition and elegance of the solution he works out so that possibility might be resurrected, is to mourn, once again, the possibilities that have been lost. -- Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of Thirty-six Arguments for the Existence of God: A Work of Fiction As an early glimpse at the preoccupations of one of the 20th century's most compelling and philosophical authors, it is invaluable, and Wallace's conclusion... is simply elegant. Publishers Weekly This book is for any reader who has enjoyed the works of Wallace and for philosophy students specializing in fatalism. Library Journal [A] tough and impressive book.Financial Times -- Anthony Gottlieb Financial Times an excellent summary of Wallace's thought and writing which shows how his philosophical interests were not purely cerebral, but arose from, and fed into, his emotional and ethical concerns. -- Robert Potts Times Literary Supplement Fate, Time, and Laguage contains a great deal of first-rate philosophy throughout, and not least in Wallace's extraordinarily professional and ambitious essay... -- Daniel Speak Notre Dame Philosophical Review Valuable and interesting. -- James Ley Australian Literary Review A philosophical argument that deserves a place in any college-level library interested in modern philosophical debate. A lively, debative tone keeps this accessible to newcomers. Midwest Book ReviewTable of ContentsPreface, by Steven M. Cahn and Maureen Eckert Introduction: A Head That Throbbed Heartlike: The Philosophical Mind of David Foster Wallace, by James Ryerson Part I: The Background Introduction, by Steven M. Cahn 1. Fatalism, by Richard Taylor 2. Professor Taylor on Fatalism, by John Turk Saunders 3. Fatalism and Ability, by Richard Taylor 4. Fatalism and Ability II, by Peter Makepeace 5. Fatalism and Linguistic Reform, by John Turk Saunders 6. Fatalism and Professor Taylor, by Bruce Aune 7. Taylor's Fatal Fallacy, by Raziel Abelson 8. A Note on Fatalism, by Richard Taylor 9. Tautology and Fatalism, by Richard Sharvy 10. Fatalistic Arguments, by Steven Cahn 11. Comment, by Richard Taylor 12. Fatalism and Ordinary Language, by John Turk Saunders 13. Fallacies in Taylor's "Fatalism," by Charles D. Brown Part II: The Essay 14. Renewing the Fatalist Conversation, by Maureen Eckert 15. Richard Taylor's "Fatalism" and the Semantics of Physical Modality, by David Foster Wallace Part III: Epilogue 16. David Foster Wallace as Student: A Memoir, by Jay Garfield Appendix: The Problem of Future Contingencies, by Richard Taylor

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Book Synopsis''Don''t hope that events will turn out the way you want, welcome events in whichever way they happen''How can we cope when life''s events seem beyond our control? These words of consolation and inspiration from the three great Stoic philosophers - Epictetus, Seneca and Marcus Aurelius - offer ancient wisdom on how to face life''s adversities and live well in the world.One of twenty new books in the bestselling Penguin Great Ideas series. This new selection showcases a diverse list of thinkers who have helped shape our world today, from anarchists to stoics, feminists to prophets, satirists to Zen Buddhists.

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Book SynopsisA thorough and practical introduction to inductive logic with a focus on arguments and the rules used for making inductive inferences.This textbook offers a thorough and practical introduction to inductive logic. The book covers a range of different types of inferences with an emphasis throughout on representing them as arguments. This allows the reader to see that, although the rules and guidelines for making each type of inference differ, the purpose is always to generate a probable conclusion.After explaining the basic features of an argument and the different standards for evaluating arguments, the book covers inferences that do not require precise probabilities or the probability calculus: the induction by confirmation, inference to the best explanation, and Mill's methods. The second half of the book presents arguments that do require the probability calculus, first explaining the rules of probability, and then the proportional syllogism, inductive generalization

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Book SynopsisAn introduction to awe-inspiring ideas at the brink of paradox: infinities of different sizes, time travel, probability and measure theory, and computability theory.This book introduces the reader to awe-inspiring issues at the intersection of philosophy and mathematics. It explores ideas at the brink of paradox: infinities of different sizes, time travel, probability and measure theory, computability theory, the Grandfather Paradox, Newcomb's Problem, the Principle of Countable Additivity. The goal is to present some exceptionally beautiful ideas in enough detail to enable readers to understand the ideas themselves (rather than watered-down approximations), but without supplying so much detail that they abandon the effort. The philosophical content requires a mind attuned to subtlety; the most demanding of the mathematical ideas require familiarity with college-level mathematics or mathematical proof.The book covers Cantor's revolutionary thinking about infinity,

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Book SynopsisAn examination of the cognitive tools that the mind uses to grapple with uncertainty in the real world.How do humans navigate uncertainty, continuously making near-effortless decisions and predictions even under conditions of imperfect knowledge, high complexity, and extreme time pressure? Taming Uncertainty argues that the human mind has developed tools to grapple with uncertainty. Unlike much previous scholarship in psychology and economics, this approach is rooted in what is known about what real minds can do. Rather than reducing the human response to uncertainty to an act of juggling probabilities, the authors propose that the human cognitive system has specific tools for dealing with different forms of uncertainty. They identify three types of tools: simple heuristics, tools for information search, and tools for harnessing the wisdom of others. This set of strategies for making predictions, inferences, and decisions constitute the mind's adaptive toolbox.T

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Book SynopsisAn exploration of quantum entanglement and the ways in which it contradicts our everyday assumptions about the ultimate nature of reality.Quantum physics is notable for its brazen defiance of common sense. (Think of Schrödinger's Cat, famously both dead and alive.) An especially rigorous form of quantum contradiction occurs in experiments with entangled particles. Our common assumption is that objects have properties whether or not anyone is observing them, and the measurement of one can't affect the other. Quantum entanglement—called by Einstein “spooky action at a distance”—rejects this assumption, offering impeccable reasoning and irrefutable evidence of the opposite. Is quantum entanglement mystical, or just mystifying? In this volume in the MIT Press Essential Knowledge series, Jed Brody equips readers to decide for themselves. He explains how our commonsense assumptions impose constraints—from which entangled particles break free.<

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Book SynopsisThe New Rhetoric is founded on the idea that since ""argumentation aims at securing the adherence of those to whom it is addressed, it is, in its entirety, relative to the audience to be influenced"", says Chaïm Perelman and L. Olbrechts-Tyteca. They rely for their theory of argumentation on the twin concepts of universal and particular audiences.Trade Review". . . a readable English translation of this highly influential work in which Perelman and Olbrechts-Tyteca point out historical and systematic inadequacies in much of contemporary logic and methodology." —The Review of Metaphysics"It is difficult to see how any rhetorician, rhetorical critic, logician interested in verbal logic, or student of either philosophical or popular argument can claim full competence without familiarity with this work. It challenges the orthodoxies of all and suggests fresh modes of inquiry to all." —The Quarterly Journal of Speech"An important work representing the recent increase of interest in rhetorical studies among Continental scholars. . . . The interest of philosophers of the rank of Perelman and Olbrechts-Tyteca in rhetoric marks a significant break from the influence of Ramus and Descartes upon Western philosophy's concept of reason and reasoning. An important work, highly recommended." —Choice"One of the best features of the book is that the authors have not merely described kinds of argument used in persuasive discourse, but have constantly shown how such arguments can be countered—and not merely by one's saying 'but that doesn't follow logically'. Even if we abandon the slogan 'deductive or defective' we are not required to abandon all criticism of nondeductive arguments. The non-logical has its own logic." —Mind"An important book, which should initiate re-estimation of the importance of a liberal art central to antiquity and the Renaissance, latterly eclipsed by the . . . logic of science and mathematics. . . . Dealing primarily with the written word, the authors analyze the constant and the variables in all argumentation, whether addressed to a universal audience or to one's self. Perelman claims that this work marks a break with a concept of reason which has dominated Western thought for three centuries. In 550 pages, he makes a good case for the claim." —The Key Reporter“Readers will find this volume a fascinating and firm first step toward the solution of some important philosophical problems."—Philosophy and Rhetoric

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