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1500 questions
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8 answers

Are all facts worth knowing?

It is generally considered beneficial to discover some scientific law or invent an object that is said to further the state of mankind. All inventions and scientific discovery hinges in some way on past knowledge. Since knowledge is so instrumental…
Zach Rattner
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5 answers

What makes a good question?

Most philosophy begins with a question. I'm wondering why certain questions provoke more profound thoughts than others. What characteristics do good questions share with each other? How can we go about finding worthy problems to seek solving? For…
john
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6 answers

What is the Lacanian “Big Other”?

Zizek often draws on Lacan’s term “the Big Other”; what is this and what does it mean? One supposes that there may also then be a “Little Other” - is this right? What would be sensible examples of either kind?
Mozibur Ullah
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11
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8 answers

How do we know if a mathematical proof is valid?

Georg Cantor has showed there are more real numbers than natural numbers in his diagonal argument. Assuming that two sets have the same size if we can make a pair up elements from set A with elements from set B. Now if we make a list of natural…
user107986
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4 answers

If "the limits of my language are the limits of my world", then how can it be that "what can be shown, cannot be said"?

I'm trying to understand Wittgenstein, but two of his most oft quoted statements seem to me to be implying contradicting things. I understand that later Wittgenstein did refute a lot of his earlier ideas, but these statements both come from the…
Dylan
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11
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13 answers

Difference between math and physics in terms of describing the/a universe?

"The difference between math and physics is that physics describes our universe, while math describes any potential universe" This was one of my math professor's arguments in trying to convince me to major in math over physics. I thought it was an…
Cain
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4 answers

Logical consequence and material conditional - Are they the same?

I'm taking basic discrete math course which includes basic intuitive introduction to logic (only things like statements, tautology truth tables, etc.). During the learning, I've wondered what is the difference, if any, between a->b to a |- b?
user1767774
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18 answers

Confusion about reasoning in science

Situation 1: One puts the hypothesis (Call it hypothesis H1) that "there exists a force of attraction between every two masses". One obtains a high degree of belief in this hypothesis by testing it experimentally several times. Even though there…
Amr
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3 answers

How can I effectively apply philosophy to the business world?

In my graduate experiences, especially in the philosophy of technology, I saw that far too much philosophy is designed to be consumed by other philosophers. As a pragmatist, I am always interested in the utility of philosophy. How can I take useful…
Brian Ballsun-Stanton
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3 answers

Does Apology's Socrates contradict Crito's Socrates?

In Plato's Apology Socrates clearly indicates he would continue to philosophize even if the court ordered him not to: if now, when, as I conceive and imagine, God orders me to fulfil the philosopher’s mission of searching into myself and other men,…
Emryss
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7 answers

Is there any difference between Populism and Democracy ?

I'm from India, the world's largest functional democracy. We often hear of political opponents criticizing each other for being 'populist' and for 'forgoing good governance'. And we also hear the term 'vote-bank politics' in which politicians are…
Arjun J Rao
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12 answers

Is materialism essential to scientific progress?

A common argument against any hint of non materialism in science, be it idealism, supernaturalism, substance dualism, etc. is that complete materialism is essential for making scientific progress. I understand the assumption to be that materialism…
yters
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Is there a sheaf-theoretic description of para-consistent logics?

Paraconsistent logics drop the notion of global consistency, instead they have a notion of local consistency. In sheaf-theory, or categorical logic, as in topos theory, there is a notion of local truth. Is it possible to think of paraconsistent…
Mozibur Ullah
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10 answers

How to not fear the supernatural?

I have post-traumatic stress disorder. Like many so afflicted, I interpreted the trauma as a form of punishment. I’m not religious, but my mind spontaneously invented an idiosyncratic deity in the form of a sadistic, vindictive Fate that perpetually…
h_undatus
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Are identical sets distinct objects?

I have two sets, A and B, both containing the elements 1, 2, and 3. Since they are identical, does this mean they are actually the same single set, just represented twice? Thinking of sets as boxes, are A and B separate boxes with the same contents,…
أحمد الدسوقي
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