The Problem of Induction: From Hume to Modern Statistics
How do we justify generalizations from limited observations? Tracing David Hume's skeptical challenge through to contemporary Bayesian approaches in scientific reasoning.
Karl Popper & Falsificationism: Demarcating Science from Pseudoscience
Why scientific theories must be testable and potentially falsifiable. An exploration of Popper's legacy and modern critiques of strict falsification.
Paradigm Shifts: Thomas Kuhn's Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Normal science, crises, and revolutions. How Kuhn transformed our understanding of scientific progress as non-linear and socially embedded.
Scientific Realism vs. Anti-Realism: Do Unobservables Exist?
The no-miracles argument, pessimistic meta-induction, and structural realism. What does successful science tell us about reality?
Theory Underdetermination: When Data Fails to Decide
Duhem-Quine thesis and the problem of multiple empirically equivalent theories. How scientists navigate theoretical choice.
Instrumentalism: Models as Tools, Not Truths
Focusing on predictive utility over ontological commitment. How computational and mathematical models function in modern research.