Lutz, Sebastian (2014) Carnap on Empirical Significance. [Preprint]

Preview

PDF carnap_on_emp_sig.pdf - Published Version Download (371kB)

Abstract

Carnap’s search for a criterion of empirical significance is usually considered a failure. I argue that the results from two out of his three different approaches are at the very least problematic, but that one approach led to success. Carnap’s criterion of translatability into logical syntax is too vague to allow for definite results. His criteria for terms—introducibility by chains of reduction sentences and his criterion from “The Methodological Character of Theoretical Concepts”—are almost trivial and have no clear relation to the empirical significance of sentences. However, his criteria for sentences—translatability, verifiability, falsifiability, confirmability—are usable, and under the assumptions needed for the Carnap sentence approach, verifiability, falsifiability, and translatability become equivalent. As a result of the Carnap sentence approach, metaphysics is rendered analytic.

---

Export/Citation:

EndNote | BibTeX | Dublin Core | ASCII/Text Citation (Chicago) | HTML Citation | OpenURL

Social Networking:

Share |

---

Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Lutz, Sebastian sebastian.lutz@gmx.net
Keywords:	empirical significance; cognitive significance; meaningfulness; Carnap; logical empiricism; Ramsey sentence; Carnap sentence; verifiability; falsifiability; testability; translatability
Subjects:	General Issues > Conventionalism General Issues > History of Philosophy of Science General Issues > Logical Positivism/Logical Empiricism General Issues > Philosophers of Science General Issues > Science vs. Pseudoscience General Issues > Theory/Observation
Depositing User:	Sebastian Lutz
Date Deposited:	27 Sep 2014 15:21
Last Modified:	27 Sep 2014 15:21
Item ID:	11049
Official URL:	http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11229-014-0561-8
DOI or Unique Handle:	10.1007/s11229-014-0561-8
Subjects:	General Issues > Conventionalism General Issues > History of Philosophy of Science General Issues > Logical Positivism/Logical Empiricism General Issues > Philosophers of Science General Issues > Science vs. Pseudoscience General Issues > Theory/Observation
Date:	26 August 2014
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/11049

Available Versions of this Item

• Carnap on Empirical Significance. (deposited 08 May 2014 11:45)
  • Carnap on Empirical Significance. (deposited 27 Sep 2014 15:21) [Currently Displayed]

Monthly Views for the past 3 years

Monthly Downloads for the past 3 years

Plum Analytics

Altmetric.com

Actions (login required)

View Item