The Routledge Companion to Thought Experiments
Published on 20. July 2017
582 pages
978-1-351-70551-6 (ISBN)
Description
Thought experiments are a means of imaginative reasoning that lie at the heart of philosophy, from the pre-Socratics to the modern era, and they also play central roles in a range of fields, from physics to politics. The Routledge Companion to Thought Experiments is an invaluable guide and reference source to this multifaceted subject. Comprising over 30 chapters by a team of international contributors, the Companion covers the following important areas:
? the history of thought experiments, from antiquity to the trolley problem and quantum non-locality;
? thought experiments in the humanities, arts, and sciences, including ethics, physics, theology, biology, mathematics, economics, and politics;
? theories about the nature of thought experiments;
? new discussions concerning the impact of experimental philosophy, cross-cultural comparison studies, metaphilosophy, computer simulations, idealization, dialectics, cognitive science, the artistic nature of thought experiments, and metaphysical issues.
This broad ranging Companion goes backwards through history and sideways across disciplines. It also engages with philosophical perspectives from empiricism, rationalism, naturalism, skepticism, pluralism, contextualism, and neo-Kantianism to phenomenology. This volume will be valuable for anyone studying the methods of philosophy or any discipline that employs thought experiments, as well as anyone interested in the power and limits of the mind.
? the history of thought experiments, from antiquity to the trolley problem and quantum non-locality;
? thought experiments in the humanities, arts, and sciences, including ethics, physics, theology, biology, mathematics, economics, and politics;
? theories about the nature of thought experiments;
? new discussions concerning the impact of experimental philosophy, cross-cultural comparison studies, metaphilosophy, computer simulations, idealization, dialectics, cognitive science, the artistic nature of thought experiments, and metaphysical issues.
This broad ranging Companion goes backwards through history and sideways across disciplines. It also engages with philosophical perspectives from empiricism, rationalism, naturalism, skepticism, pluralism, contextualism, and neo-Kantianism to phenomenology. This volume will be valuable for anyone studying the methods of philosophy or any discipline that employs thought experiments, as well as anyone interested in the power and limits of the mind.
Reviews / Votes
"The Routledge Companion to Thought Experiments is a valuable resource for anyone interested in thought experiments. It contains discussions of the identity and nature of thought experiments, their roles in different disciplines, the ways they figure in reasoning and representation, and their contributions to understanding."Catherine Z. Elgin, Harvard University, USA
"This companion is a faithful reflection of contemporary discussions over thought experiments, which are more rich and complex than can be indicated in this short review."
Carla Rita Palmerino, Metascience, 2019
"The Routledge Companion to Thought Experiments is an extensive reference work for the lover of thought experiments. Scientists, philosophers and historians get their money's worth due to the multitude of perspectives included in the collection."
James Robert Brown, The Reading Club of Everything, 2020
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Reflowable
Illustrations
1 Tables, black and white; 22 Line drawings, black and white; 1 Halftones, black and white
File size
4,28 MB
ISBN-13
978-1-351-70551-6 (9781351705516)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Michael T. Stuart | Yiftach Fehige | James Robert Brown
The Routledge Companion to Thought Experiments
Book
05/2023
1st Edition
Routledge
€74.80
Shipment within 10-20 days
Michael T. Stuart | Yiftach Fehige | James Robert Brown
The Routledge Companion to Thought Experiments
Book
07/2017
1st Edition
Routledge
€313.50
Shipment within 15-20 days
Persons
Michael T. Stuart is a fellow of the Centre for Philosophy of Natural and Social Science, London School of Economics, UK.
Yiftach Fehige is Associate Professor at the Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology, University of Toronto, Canada.
James Robert Brown is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Toronto, Canada.
Yiftach Fehige is Associate Professor at the Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology, University of Toronto, Canada.
James Robert Brown is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Toronto, Canada.
Content
Contents
Thought Experiments: State of the Art - Michael T. Stuart, Yiftach Fehige and James Robert Brown
Part One: Selected History of Thought Experiments
The Triple Life of Ancient Thought Experiments - Katerina Ierodiakonou
Thought Experiments in Plato - Alexander Becker
Aristotle and Thought Experiments - Klaus Corcilius
Experimental Thoughts on Thought Experiments in Medieval Islam - Jon McGinnis
Galileo's Thought Experiments: Projective Participation and the Integration of Paradoxes - Paolo Palmieri
Thought Experiments in Newton and Leibniz - Richard T. W. Arthur
Kant, Hegel and Wittgenstein: Thought Experiments, Epistemology and Our Cognitive (In)Capacities - Kenneth R. Westphal
Part Two: Thought Experiments and their Fields
Thought Experiments in Political Philosophy - Nenad Miscevic
Thought Experiments in Economics - Margaret Schabas
Theology and Thought Experiments - Yiftach Fehige
Thought Experiments in Ethics - George Brun
Happiest Thoughts: Great Thought Experiments of Modern Physics - Kent A. Peacock
Thought Experiments in Biology - Guillaume Schlaepfer and Marcel Weber
Thought Experiments in Mathematics - Irina Starikova and Marcus Giaquinto
Part Three: Contemporary Philosophical Approaches to Thought Experiments
The Argument View: Are Thought Experiments Mere Picturesque Arguments? - Elke Brendel
Platonism and the A Priori in Thought Experiments - Thomas Grundmann
Cognitive Science, Mental Modeling, and Thought Experiments - Nancy J. Nersessian
Kantian Accounts of Thought Experiments - Marco Buzzoni
Phenomenology and Thought Experiments: Thought Experiments as Anticipation Pumps - Harald A. Wiltsche
Part Four: Issues, Challenges and Interactions
Intuition and Its Critics - Stephen Stich and Kevin Tobia
Thought Experiments and Experimental Philosophy - Kirk Ludwig
Thought Experiments in Current Metaphilosophical Debates - Daniel Cohnitz and Soeren Haeggqvist
Historicism and Cross-Culture Comparison - James W. McAllister
A Dialectical Account of Thought Experiments - Jean-Yves Goffi and Sophie Roux
The Worst Thought Experiment - John D. Norton
Thought Experiments and Idealizations - Julian Reiss
Thought Experiments and Simulation Experiments: Exploring Hypothetical Worlds - Johannes Lenhard
Images and Imagination in Thought Experiments - Letitia Meynell
Art and Thought Experiments - David Davies
How Thought Experiments Increase Understanding - Michael T. Stuart
On the Identity of Thought Experiments: Thought Experiments Rethought - Alisa Bokulich and Melanie Frappier
Thought Experiments: State of the Art - Michael T. Stuart, Yiftach Fehige and James Robert Brown
Part One: Selected History of Thought Experiments
The Triple Life of Ancient Thought Experiments - Katerina Ierodiakonou
Thought Experiments in Plato - Alexander Becker
Aristotle and Thought Experiments - Klaus Corcilius
Experimental Thoughts on Thought Experiments in Medieval Islam - Jon McGinnis
Galileo's Thought Experiments: Projective Participation and the Integration of Paradoxes - Paolo Palmieri
Thought Experiments in Newton and Leibniz - Richard T. W. Arthur
Kant, Hegel and Wittgenstein: Thought Experiments, Epistemology and Our Cognitive (In)Capacities - Kenneth R. Westphal
Part Two: Thought Experiments and their Fields
Thought Experiments in Political Philosophy - Nenad Miscevic
Thought Experiments in Economics - Margaret Schabas
Theology and Thought Experiments - Yiftach Fehige
Thought Experiments in Ethics - George Brun
Happiest Thoughts: Great Thought Experiments of Modern Physics - Kent A. Peacock
Thought Experiments in Biology - Guillaume Schlaepfer and Marcel Weber
Thought Experiments in Mathematics - Irina Starikova and Marcus Giaquinto
Part Three: Contemporary Philosophical Approaches to Thought Experiments
The Argument View: Are Thought Experiments Mere Picturesque Arguments? - Elke Brendel
Platonism and the A Priori in Thought Experiments - Thomas Grundmann
Cognitive Science, Mental Modeling, and Thought Experiments - Nancy J. Nersessian
Kantian Accounts of Thought Experiments - Marco Buzzoni
Phenomenology and Thought Experiments: Thought Experiments as Anticipation Pumps - Harald A. Wiltsche
Part Four: Issues, Challenges and Interactions
Intuition and Its Critics - Stephen Stich and Kevin Tobia
Thought Experiments and Experimental Philosophy - Kirk Ludwig
Thought Experiments in Current Metaphilosophical Debates - Daniel Cohnitz and Soeren Haeggqvist
Historicism and Cross-Culture Comparison - James W. McAllister
A Dialectical Account of Thought Experiments - Jean-Yves Goffi and Sophie Roux
The Worst Thought Experiment - John D. Norton
Thought Experiments and Idealizations - Julian Reiss
Thought Experiments and Simulation Experiments: Exploring Hypothetical Worlds - Johannes Lenhard
Images and Imagination in Thought Experiments - Letitia Meynell
Art and Thought Experiments - David Davies
How Thought Experiments Increase Understanding - Michael T. Stuart
On the Identity of Thought Experiments: Thought Experiments Rethought - Alisa Bokulich and Melanie Frappier
