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Inference to the Best Explanation and the Importance of Peculiarly Explanatory Virtues

Harker, David (2012) Inference to the Best Explanation and the Importance of Peculiarly Explanatory Virtues. In: UNSPECIFIED.

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Abstract

Inference to the best explanation has at times appeared almost indistinguishable from a rule that recommends simply that we should infer the hypothesis which is most plausible given available evidence. In this paper I argue that avoiding this collapse requires the identification of peculiarly explanatory virtues and consider Woodward's concept of invariance as an example of such a virtue. An additional benefit of augmenting IBE with Woodward's model of causal explanation is also suggested.


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Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (UNSPECIFIED)
Creators:
CreatorsEmailORCID
Harker, Davidharkerd@etsu.edu
Keywords: Inference to the best explanation; Lipton; Woodward; Invariance;
Subjects: General Issues > Confirmation/Induction
Depositing User: Dr David Harker
Date Deposited: 15 Aug 2012 15:37
Last Modified: 15 Aug 2012 15:37
Item ID: 9278
Subjects: General Issues > Confirmation/Induction
Date: 14 August 2012
URI: https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/9278

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