Logic Of Reliable Inquiry, The

Description:
This book considers the question of the reliability of scientific methods. One method of inquiry can be said to be more reliable than another if it eventually arrives at the truth in more possible circumstances than the other method can. Kelly begins with a discussion of the philosophical significance of reliability, examines the reliability of computable methods, provides a general, topological perspective on reliable inference by 'ideal' agents, and investigates the possibility of reliable enquiry in the face of theory-laden evidence and incommensurability. The text is extensively and amusingly illustrated and assumes only introductory knowledge of basic logic and computability theory.

Table of Contents:
Introduction; 1. Reliable Inquiry; 2. The Demons of Passive Observation; 3. Topology and Ideal Hypothesis Assessment; 4. Continuity, Reducibility, and the Game of Science; 5. The Demons of Computability; 6. Computers in Search of Truth; 7. So Much Time, Such Little Brains; 8. The Logic of Ideal Discovery; 9. Computerized Discobvery; 10. Prediction; 11. The Assessment and Discovery of First-order Theories; 12. Probability and Reliability; 13. Experiment and Causal Inference; 14. Relativism and Reliability