Mathematical instrumentalism meets the conjunction objection

Journal of Philosophical Logic 25 (4):363-397 (1996)
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Abstract

Scientific realists often appeal to some version of the conjunction objection to argue that scientific instrumentalism fails to do justice to the full empirical import of scientific theories. Whereas the conjunction objection provides a powerful critique of scientific instrumentalism, I will show that mathematical instnrunentalism escapes the conjunction objection unscathed

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10.1007/bf00249665

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James Hawthorne
University of Oklahoma

Citations of this work

Scientific Realism: Between Platonism and Nominalism.Stathis Psillos - 2010 - Philosophy of Science 77 (5):947-958.
Survey article. Listening to fictions: A study of fieldian nominalism.Fraser MacBride - 1999 - British Journal for the Philosophy of Science 50 (3):431-455.
On the possibility of science without numbers.Chris Mortensen - 1998 - Australasian Journal of Philosophy 76 (2):182 – 197.

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References found in this work

Realism, Mathematics & Modality.Hartry H. Field - 1989 - New York, NY, USA: Blackwell.
Mathematical truth.Paul Benacerraf - 1973 - Journal of Philosophy 70 (19):661-679.
Computability and Logic.George Boolos, John Burgess, Richard P. & C. Jeffrey - 1980 - New York: Cambridge University Press. Edited by John P. Burgess & Richard C. Jeffrey.

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