Miracle argument

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The Miracle Argument is an argument in favor of scientific realism . It explains the success of scientific theories by stating that they have to describe reality at least approximately correctly, i.e. H. must be at least approximately true. The basic thesis is that any interpretation of a scientific theory that is not based on realism makes the success of this theory appear as a pure miracle. The argument was represented by Moritz Schlick , John Jamieson Carswell Smart , Hilary Putnam and Richard Boyd . The main critics of the argument are Bas van Fraassen , Larry Laudan and Arthur Fine .

Simplified reconstruction of the argument

Possible logical reconstruction of the Miracle Argument as an abductive conclusion ( IBE ):


Realism: "Theory refers to reality"
well-confirmed theory → empirical success
IBE Realism applies

literature

  • Moritz Schlick: General Knowledge (1918), 2nd edition 1925, reprint Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt 1979
  • Hilary Putnam: Philosophical Papers I (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1975).
  • JJC Smart: Philosophy and Scientific Realism (London: Routledge, 1963).
  • JR Brown: The Miracle of Science. The Philosophical Quarterly, 128 (1982), pp. 232-44.
  • Jarrett Leplin (Ed.): Scientific Realism (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1984)
  • Bas van Fraassen: The scientific Image (Oxford: 1980)

Web links