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The Ignis Fatuus a of Reduction and Unification
Author(s) -
BRAKEL J.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2003.tb06083.x
Subject(s) - unification , supervenience , metaphysics , epistemology , reduction (mathematics) , variety (cybernetics) , philosophy , theoretical physics , chemistry , physics , mathematics , computer science , artificial intelligence , geometry , programming language
A bstract : Given the enormous variety of possible intertheoretical relations, the proliferation of definitions of reduction, supervenience, emergence, unification, and so on, as well as the fact that empirical studies have provided support for almost any metaphysical option or, alternatively, have shown rather conclusively that empirically the case is inconclusive, I suggest a moratorium on the use of words such as ‘reduction,’‘supervenience,’ and ‘unification’ and to go back to the rough ground and give perspicuous renderings of the practice of chemistry. What is needed are very detailed case studies and further discussions about them, instead of bickering about whether chemistry can be reduced to physics, supervenes on it, can be unified with it, and similar ‘metaphysical’ concerns.