Great Ideas of Philosophy

1. Rather, the history of science is laced with intuitive leaps, leaps of faith, the effort that only passioncan supply.2. His concept of “tacit knowledge” connects discovery to intuition.G. Polyani’s theory resembles Kant’s modality category, in which he places three pairs of subcategories:possibility-impossibility, existence-nonexistence, and necessity-contingency.VI. Were knowledge confined to empirical facts and empirical modes of knowing, there could be no concept ofnecessity or impossibility. These modal categories raise yet another ontological question: From the fact that anapple now is on the table, it must be the case that at some previous time, this apple was a possibility. Thequestion, of course, has to do with the ontological standing of “possibles.”A. There is widespread belief that, as difficult as the ontological questions are, we at least possess a methodby which to test ontological claims when they are made. The method, of course, is science itself. Whatreally exists, presumably, is what is predicted and explained by and obedient to the laws of science.B. Even more basic than the ontological question of what really exists is the question of why anything exists,why there is something rather than nothing.Recommended Reading:Aristotle, Metaphysics. W. D. Ross, trans. (downloadable).Loux, Michael. Metaphysics: A Contemporary Introduction. Routledge, 2002.Questions to Consider:1. Identify in what senses an apple (a) really exists, (b) is a figure of speech, (c) is a “natural kind,” and (d) isessentially a fruit.2. If Rorty’s sense of truth is taken seriously, how is the project of philosophy altered?©2004 The Teaching Company Limited Partnership 9