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A Study of the Conflict between Scientific Realism and Anti-Realism from the Perspective of Evolutionary Epistemology or Evolutionary empiricism

Jorkesh Rizi, Behzad | 2020

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  1. Type of Document: M.Sc. Thesis
  2. Language: Farsi
  3. Document No: 53530 (42)
  4. University: Sharif University of Technology
  5. Department: Philosophy of Science
  6. Advisor(s): Akbari, Javad
  7. Abstract:
  8. We know that Science has been one of the most influential cultural revolutions in recent centuries, and that, due to its remarkable successes and achievements, it has rapidly spread across many societies and cultures. Scientific theories have attracted the attention of many thinkers, but among these theories, Darwin's theory of evolution has attracted more attention in that it also claims to explain the origin of humans. One outcome of this theory is that man, and consequently all his attributes, including his cognitive powers, language, and culture (which are unique among the attributes of other species), came into being through a process of evolution and natural selection. But can the theory of evolution explain the origin of these distinct human characteristics? This dissertation defends a positive answer to the question, and tries to provide a model of evolution of beliefs and cultures, by borrowing some explanations offered for the evolution of human cognitive powers and language. To this end, first, using Hume's empirical model and Quine's web of beliefs, I define culture as a public network of beliefs; and then, while comparing the development of culture with the evolution of organisms, I show the similarities between them. Thus an evolutionary model of culture is formed. Finally, by considering science as an emerging and successful cultural species, I will defend “scientific realism” and the “no miracle argument”, which advocate the truth of successful theories, against the two anti-realist arguments, “the argument from underdetermination” and “the argument from the pessimistic meta-induction”, which question the connection between success and the truth of theories
  9. Keywords:
  10. Empiricism ; Evolutionary Epistemology ; Scientific Realism ; Cultural Evolution ; Beliefs Evolution

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