An Architectonic for Science: The Structuralist Program (Synthese Library)

This book has grown out of eight years of close collaboration among its authors. From the very beginning we decided that its content should come out as the result of a truly common effort. That is, we did not "distribute" parts of the text planned to each one of us. On the contrary, we made a point that each single paragraph be the product of a common reflection. Genuine team-work is not as usual in philosophy as it is in other academic disciplines. We think, however, that this is more due to the idiosyncrasy of philosophers than to the nature of their subject. Close collaboration with positive results is as rewarding as anything can be, but it may also prove to be quite difficult to implement. In our case, part of the difficulties came from purely geographic separation. This caused unsuspected delays in coordinating the work. But more than this, as time passed, the accumulation of particular results and ideas outran our ability to fit them into an organic unity. Different styles of exposition, different ways of formalization, different levels of complexity were simultaneously present in a voluminous manuscript that had become completely unmanageable. In particular, a portion of the text had been conceived in the language of category theory and employed ideas of a rather abstract nature, while another part was expounded in the more conventional set-theoretic style, stressing intui­ tivity and concreteness.

I: Models and Structures.- I.0 Introduction.- I.1 Models and Potential Models.- I.2 Types and Structure Species.- I.3 Set-Theoretic Predicates and Lawlikeness.- I.4 Plausible Interpretations.- I.5 Example: Decision Theory.- I.6 Example: Collision Mechanics.- I.7 Example: Classical Particle Mechanics.- II: Theory-Elements.- II.0 Introduction.- II.1 Cores and Intended Applications.- II.2 Constraints.- II.2.1 Extensivity of Energy in EquilibriumThermodynamics.- II.2.2 Equality Constraint in Classical Mechanics.- II.2.3 The General Notion of a Constraint.- II.3 Theoreticity, Partial Potential Models, and Links.- II.3.1 An Intuitive Idea of Theoretical Concepts.- II.3.2 Intertheoretical Links Determining Non-Theoretical Terms.- II.3.3 An Informal Criterion of Theoreticity.- II.3.3.1 Spring Balance Determination of Weight inCPM.- II.3.3.2 Collision Determination of Mass inCCM.- II.3.4 A Formal Criterion of Theoreticity.- II.4 Theory-Cores Expanded.- II.5 Application Operators.- II.6 Intended Applications.- II.7 Idealized Theory-Elements and Empirical Claims.- III: Some Basic Theory-Elements.- III.0 Introduction.- III.1 Classical Collision Mechanics.- III.1.1 Potential and Actual Models ofCCM.- III.1.2 Partial Potential Models ofCCM.- III.1.3 Constraints forCCM.- III.1.4 The Theory-Element ofCCM.- III.2 Relativistic Collision Mechanics.- III.2.1 Potential and Actual Models ofRCM.- III.2.2 Partial Potential Models ofRCM.- III.2.3 Constraints forRCM.- III.2.4 The Theory-Element ofRCM.- III.3 Classical Particle Mechanics.- III.3.1 The Potential and Actual Models ofCPM.- III.3.1.1 The Logical Status of Force inCPM.- III.3.2 The Partial Potential Models ofCPM.- III.3.3 Constraints forCPM.- III.3.4 The Theory-Element ofCPM.- III.4 Daltonian Stoichiometry.- III.4.1 The Potential Models ofDSTOI.- III.4.2 The Models ofDSTOI.- III.4.3 The Partial Potential Models ofDSTOI.- III.4.4 Constraints forDSTOI.- III.4.5 Links forDSTOI.- III.4.6 The Theory-Element ofDSTOIand Its Claim.- III.5 Simple Equilibrium Thermodynamics.- III.5.1 The Potential Models ofSETH.- III.5.2 The Actual Models ofSETH.- III.5.3 The Partial Potential Models ofSETH.- III.5.4 Constraints forSETH.- III.5.5 Links forSETH.- III.6 Lagrangian Mechanics.- III.6.1 The Potential and Actual Models ofLAG.- III.6.2 The Partial Potential Models ofLAG.- III.6.3 Constraints and Links forLAG.- III.6.4 The Theory-Element ofLAG.- III.7 Pure Exchange Economics.- III.7.1 The Potential and Actual Models ofPEE.- III.7.2 The Partial Potential Models ofPEE.- III.7.3 The Theory-Element ofPEE.- IV: Theory-Nets.- IV.0 Introduction.- IV.1 Specializations.- IV.2 Theory-Nets.- IV.3 Theory-Net Content and Empirical Claim.- IV.4 The Theory-Net of Classical Particle Mechanics.- IV.5 The Theory-Net of Simple Equilibrium Thermodynamics.- V. The Diachronic Structure of Theories.- V.0 Introduction.- V.1 Pragmatic Primitive Concepts.- V.1.1 Historical Periods.- V.1.2 Historical Precedence.- V.1.3 Scientists.- V.1.4 Scientific Communities and Scientific Generations.- V.1.5 Scientific Propositional Attitudes.- V.2 Theory-Evolutions.- V.3 The Evolution of CPM.- V.4 The Evolution of SETH.- VI: Intertheoretical Relations.- VI.0 Introduction.- VI.1 Global Intertheoretical Relations.- VI.2 Specialization and Theoretization.- VI.3 Types of Reduction.- VI.3.1 The Reduction of Collision Mechanics to Classical Particle Mechanics.- VT.3.2 The Reduction of Rigid Body Mechanics to Classical Particle Mechanics.- VI.4 A General Concept of Reduction.- VI.5 Empirical Equivalence.- VI.5.1 The Empirical Equivalence of Lagrangian and Classical Mechanics.- VI.6 Equivalence.- VI.7 Reduction, Language, and Incommensurability.- VII: Approximation.- VII.0 Introduction.- VII.1 Types of Approximation.- VII.2 Intratheoretical Approximation.- VII.2.1 Blurs on Two Levels.- VII.2.2 Admissible Approximations.- VII.2.3 The Approximative Version of an Empirical Claim.- VII.2.4 Approximations in Theory-Nets and Theory-Evolutions.- VII.3 Intertheoretical Approximation.- VII.3.1 Approximative Reduction.- VII.3.1.1 The Case of the Kepler-Newton Relationship.- VIII: The Global Structure of Science.- VIII.0 Introduction.- VIII.1 Theory-Holons.- VIII.2 Theoreticity Reconsidered.- VIII.3 Graphs and Paths.- VIII.4 Local Empirical Claims in Global Theory-Holons.- VIII.5 Intended Applications Reconsidered.- VIII.6 Foundationalism Versus Coherentism.- Name Index.