Uploaded February 2024 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Trying to understand something in terms of its parts is natural...but when is it justified?
## Links for the Curious
1. The limits of reductionism. in Mind, Language, and Metaphilosophy: Early Philosophical Papers (ed. Rorty, R.) 39–54 (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2014). doi:10.1017/CBO9781139626538.004.
2. Simpson, W. M. R. & Horsley, S. A. R. Toppling the Pyramids: Physics Without Physical State Monism. in Powers, Time and Free Will (eds. Austin, C. J., Marmodoro, A. & Roselli, A.) vol. 451 17–50 (Springer International Publishing, Cham, 2022).
3. Reductionism. in On Philosophy and Philosophers (eds. Małecki, W. P. & Voparil, C.) 80–108 (Cambridge University Press, 2020). doi:10.1017/9781108763967.006.
4. Burt, C. H. Irreducibly Social: Why Biocriminology’s Ontoepistemology is Incompatible with the Social Reality of Crime. Theor Criminol 27, 85–104 (2023).
5. Ogbunugafor, C. B. On reductionism in biology: pillars, leaps, and the naïve behavioral scientist. Yale J Biol Med 77, 101–109 (2004).
6. Pigliucci, M. Between holism and reductionism: a philosophical primer on emergence: Primer on Emergence. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 112, 261–267 (2014).
7. Anderson, P. W. More Is Different. Science 177, 393–396 (1972).
8. Weinberg, S. Newtonianism, reductionism and the art of congressional testimony. Nature 330, 433–437 (1987).
9. Hull, D. L. Reduction in Genetics—Biology or Philosophy? Philos. of Sci. 39, 491–499 (1972).
10. Ross, D. & Spurrett, D. What to say to a skeptical metaphysician: A defense manual for cognitive and behavioral scientists. Behav Brain Sci 27, 603–627 (2004).
11. Full Interview: ‘Godfather of Artificial Intelligence’ Talks Impact and Potential of AI. (2023).
12. Dennett, D. C. (Daniel C. Darwin’s Dangerous Idea : Evolution and the Meanings of Life. (New York : Simon & Schuster, 1995).
13. Depew, D. J. & Weber, B. H. Evolution at a Crossroads : The New Biology and the New Philosophy of Science. (Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press, 1985).
14. For Sociology: Legacies and Prospects. (sociologypress, Durham, 2000).
15. geepytee. How different is the human mind from an LLM? r/singularity reddit.com/r/singularity/comments/1227722/how_different_is_the_human_mind_from_an_llm (2023).
16. Healey, R. & Gomes, H. Holism and Nonseparability in Physics. (1999).
17. Science and Beyond. (Oxford ; New York, N.Y., USA : B. Blackwell in association with the Institute of Contemporary Arts, 1986).
18. Nast, C. Is My Toddler a Stochastic Parrot? The New Yorker newyorker.com/humor/sketchbook/is-my-toddler-a-stochastic-parrot (2023).
19. Rogers, A. Neuralink Is Impressive Tech, Wrapped in Musk Hype. Wired.
20. What Is Reductionism? (2020).
21. Sayer, A. Reductionism in Social Science.
22. Skinner, B. F. Contingencies of Reinforcement.
23. Yirka, B. & Xplore, T. ChatGPT able to pass Theory of Mind Test at 9-year-old human level. techxplore.com/news/2023-02-chatgpt-theory-mind-year-old-human.html.
24. Freesound - stapled.wav by hdrck16. freesound.org/people/hdrck16/sounds/135005/.
Trying to understand something in terms of its parts is natural...but when is it justified?
## Links for the Curious
1. The limits of reductionism. in Mind, Language, and Metaphilosophy: Early Philosophical Papers (ed. Rorty, R.) 39–54 (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2014). doi:10.1017/CBO9781139626538.004.
2. Simpson, W. M. R. & Horsley, S. A. R. Toppling the Pyramids: Physics Without Physical State Monism. in Powers, Time and Free Will (eds. Austin, C. J., Marmodoro, A. & Roselli, A.) vol. 451 17–50 (Springer International Publishing, Cham, 2022).
3. Reductionism. in On Philosophy and Philosophers (eds. Małecki, W. P. & Voparil, C.) 80–108 (Cambridge University Press, 2020). doi:10.1017/9781108763967.006.
4. Burt, C. H. Irreducibly Social: Why Biocriminology’s Ontoepistemology is Incompatible with the Social Reality of Crime. Theor Criminol 27, 85–104 (2023).
5. Ogbunugafor, C. B. On reductionism in biology: pillars, leaps, and the naïve behavioral scientist. Yale J Biol Med 77, 101–109 (2004).
6. Pigliucci, M. Between holism and reductionism: a philosophical primer on emergence: Primer on Emergence. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 112, 261–267 (2014).
7. Anderson, P. W. More Is Different. Science 177, 393–396 (1972).
8. Weinberg, S. Newtonianism, reductionism and the art of congressional testimony. Nature 330, 433–437 (1987).
9. Hull, D. L. Reduction in Genetics—Biology or Philosophy? Philos. of Sci. 39, 491–499 (1972).
10. Ross, D. & Spurrett, D. What to say to a skeptical metaphysician: A defense manual for cognitive and behavioral scientists. Behav Brain Sci 27, 603–627 (2004).
11. Full Interview: ‘Godfather of Artificial Intelligence’ Talks Impact and Potential of AI. (2023).
12. Dennett, D. C. (Daniel C. Darwin’s Dangerous Idea : Evolution and the Meanings of Life. (New York : Simon & Schuster, 1995).
13. Depew, D. J. & Weber, B. H. Evolution at a Crossroads : The New Biology and the New Philosophy of Science. (Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press, 1985).
14. For Sociology: Legacies and Prospects. (sociologypress, Durham, 2000).
15. geepytee. How different is the human mind from an LLM? r/singularity reddit.com/r/singularity/comments/1227722/how_different_is_the_human_mind_from_an_llm (2023).
16. Healey, R. & Gomes, H. Holism and Nonseparability in Physics. (1999).
17. Science and Beyond. (Oxford ; New York, N.Y., USA : B. Blackwell in association with the Institute of Contemporary Arts, 1986).
18. Nast, C. Is My Toddler a Stochastic Parrot? The New Yorker newyorker.com/humor/sketchbook/is-my-toddler-a-stochastic-parrot (2023).
19. Rogers, A. Neuralink Is Impressive Tech, Wrapped in Musk Hype. Wired.
20. What Is Reductionism? (2020).
21. Sayer, A. Reductionism in Social Science.
22. Skinner, B. F. Contingencies of Reinforcement.
23. Yirka, B. & Xplore, T. ChatGPT able to pass Theory of Mind Test at 9-year-old human level. techxplore.com/news/2023-02-chatgpt-theory-mind-year-old-human.html.
24. Freesound - stapled.wav by hdrck16. freesound.org/people/hdrck16/sounds/135005/.
