Guo, Bixin (2022) Can Humeans be Scientific Realist? [Preprint]

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Abstract

Many philosophers who defend a Humean account of laws also endorse scientific realism, such as David Lewis and Barry Loewer. It seems as if scientific realism and Humean accounts of laws of nature are orthogonal to, and so are naturally compatible with, one another. I argue otherwise: Humean accounts of laws are at odds with scientific realism. In particular, I focus on two of the most prominent Humean accounts, Lewis’ Best System Account and Loewer’s Package Deal Account, and argue: the latter conflicts with standard scientific realism, while the former does not conform to scientific practice.

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Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Guo, Bixin
Keywords:	Humean Accounts of Laws, Scientific Realism, Scientific Practice, Objectivity, Scientific Objects
Subjects:	General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics General Issues > Laws of Nature General Issues > Philosophers of Science General Issues > Realism/Anti-realism
Depositing User:	Bixin Guo
Date Deposited:	08 Feb 2023 23:26
Last Modified:	08 Feb 2023 23:26
Item ID:	21738
Subjects:	General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics General Issues > Laws of Nature General Issues > Philosophers of Science General Issues > Realism/Anti-realism
Date:	2022
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/21738

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• Can Humeans be Scientific Realist? (deposited 08 Feb 2023 23:26) [Currently Displayed]
  • Can Humeans be Scientific Realists? (deposited 27 Oct 2023 20:32)

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