Explaining the Cosmos : the Ionian Tradition of Scientific Philosophy

359 Pages·2008·1.211 MB·English

by  Graham, Daniel W

EXPLAINING THE COSMOS
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EXPLAINING THE COSMOS
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THE IONIAN TRADITION
OF SCIENTIFIC PHILOSOPHY
Daniel W. Graham
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS
PRINCETON AND OXFORD
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For Sarah and Joseph
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CONTENTS
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PREFACE xi
ABBREVIATIONSANDBRIEFREFERENCES xv
1
TheIonianProgram 1
1.1 Anaximander’sProject 4
1.2 Anaximander’sProjectasaScientificProgram 14
1.3 TowardanUnderstandingoftheIonianTradition 18
2
Anaximander’sPrinciples 28
2.1 OutoftheBoundless 28
2.2 PowersinConflict 34
2.3 ElementsandPowers 39
3
Anaximenes’TheoryofChange 45
3.1 TheTheoryofChange 45
3.2 MaterialMonism 48
3.3 ProblemswithMaterialMonism 50
3.4 AnaximenesandtheGeneratingSubstanceTheory 67
3.5 Anaximenes’Achievement 82
4
TheGeneratingSubstanceTheoryasanExplanatoryHypothesis 85
4.1 GSTFormalized 85
4.2 ACompromiseView? 88
4.3 GSTasaParadigmofExplanation 91
4.4 AdvantagesofGST 98
4.5 DisadvantagesofGST 106
5
Heraclitus’sCriticismofIonianPhilosophy 113
5.1 ExtremeInterpretations 113
5.2 Barnes’sArgumentforHeraclitus-F 118
5.3 TheUnityofOpposites 122
viii CONTENTS
5.4 TheFluxThesis 129
5.5 HeraclitusandGST 137
6
Parmenides’CriticismofIonianPhilosophy 148
6.1 Parmenides’ResponsetoHeraclitus 148
6.2 Parmenides’Criticism 155
6.3 PropertiesofWhat-Is 162
6.4 DeceptiveCosmology 169
6.5 Parmenides’ScientificDiscovery 179
6.6 Parmenides’ResponsetoGST 182
7
AnaxagorasandEmpedocles:EleaticPluralists 186
7.1 TheStandardInterpretation 186
7.2 QuestionsabouttheStandardIntepretation 188
7.3 TheElementalSubstanceTheory 195
7.4 ParmenidesandOriginsoftheElementalSubstanceTheory 201
7.5 TwoTheoriesofElements 208
7.6 EmpiricalAdvances 220
8
TheElementalSubstanceTheoryasanExplanatoryHypothesis 224
8.1 ESTFormalized 224
8.2 ESTandEleaticTheory 227
8.3 ESTwithandwithoutEmergence 229
8.4 AdvantagesofEST 233
8.5 DisadvantagesofEST 241
9
TheAtomistReform 250
9.1 TheChallenge 250
9.2 FoundationalArguments 256
9.3 AtomismandEST 269
9.4 BirthoftheCosmos 271
10
DiogenesofApolloniaandMaterialMonism 277
10.1 DiogenesinModernAccounts 277
10.2 DiogenesinaNewLight 279
10.3 DiogenesinHistoricalContext 284
10.4 ANewTheoryofMatter 290
CONTENTS ix
11
TheIonianLegacy 294
11.1 ParadigmsofExplanation 294
11.2 ExplanatoryProgress 298
11.3 ThePrimacyofIonianResearch 302
REFERENCES 309
INDEXLOCORUM 327
GENERALINDEX 337