2009-12-09
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Metaphysics
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Raul SaucedoUniversity of Colorado, Boulder
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Some interesting differences between metaphysicians vs general philosophers of science and philosophers of physics (restricted to faculty/PhDs):
- Laws of nature: There are significantly more Humeans among general philosophers of science and among philosophers of physics than among metaphysicians (41% and 34% vs 23%). - Science: There are significantly more scientific realists among metaphysicians than among general philosophers of science and philosophers of physics (83% vs 54% and 66%). - Time: There are significantly more A-theorists among metaphysicians than among general philosophers of science and philosophers of physics (25% vs 10% and 16%). On the other hand, there are more B-theorists among philosophers of physics than among metaphysicians (44% vs 38%), but there are more B-theorists among metaphysicians than among general philosophers of science (38% vs 30%). Also, some interesting differences between metaphysics faculty/PhDs, grad students, and undergrads:
- Abstract objects: There are more Platonists among faculty than among grad students (50% vs 43%); there are pretty much as many Platonists among undergrads as there are among faculty (52%). - God: There are significantly more atheists among faculty than among grad students (70% vs 54%); the proportion of atheists among undergrads in pretty much the same as among grad students (56%). - Laws of nature: There are more Humeans among grad students than among faculty (32% vs 23%); undergrads line up again with grad students here (34%). - Science: There are significantly more scientific realists among faculty than among grad students (83% vs 66%); undergrads yet again line up with grad students here (63%). - Names: There are more Millians among faculty than among grad students (42% vs 34%); in a lesser but still noticeable proportion, there are more Millians among grad students than among undergrads (34% vs 28%).
Differences between these three groups of metaphysicians on other salient issues (personal identity, physicalism, time, etc.) are less stark.
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