Some biological processes (our examples are DNA expression and a reflex response in the leech) mo... more Some biological processes (our examples are DNA expression and a reflex response in the leech) move from step to step in a way that cannot be completely understood solely in terms of causes and correlations. This paper develops a notion of mechanistic information that can be used to explain the continuities of such processes. We compare them to processes (including the Krebs cycle) that do not involve information. We compare our conception of mechanistic information to some familiar notions including Crick’s idea of genetic information, Shannon-Weaver information, and Millikan’s biosemantic information.
In 1590, or thereabouts, Galileo wrote the manuscript De Motu (Galileo 1590). In this text he att... more In 1590, or thereabouts, Galileo wrote the manuscript De Motu (Galileo 1590). In this text he attempted to demonstrate the errors of Aristotelian natural philosophy and began his lifelong attempt to construct a science of motion. The chief device in De Motu was his wide ranging use of the balance. The balance was a simple machine, familiar to all, that Galileo could describe using principles of equilibrium.
In this paper we suggest an empirical thesis: Galileo understood something important when he used the balance as the basic equilibrium model in order to understand all the phenomena of motion. Galileo used the balance model to make intelligible problems of dynamics as well as kinematics (as we anachronistically call them).
We believe that using the Galilean balance equilibrium model today in physics classes at the secondary and college levels (and probably even at the elementary school level) would provide students with a model of intelligibility that would unify their thinking about motion and, at the same time, provide them with a general procedural schema for solving motion problems.
Galileo changed the very concepts or categories by which natural philosophy could deal with matte... more Galileo changed the very concepts or categories by which natural philosophy could deal with matter and motion. Central to these changes was his introduction of time as a fundamental concept. He worked with the pendulum and with the inclined plane to discover his new concept of motion. Both of these showed him that acceleration and time were important for making motion intelligible.
Galileo changed the very concepts or categoriesby which natural philosophy could deal withmatter ... more Galileo changed the very concepts or categoriesby which natural philosophy could deal withmatter and motion. Central to these changeswas his introduction of time as a fundamentalconcept. He worked with the pendulum and withthe inclined plane to discover ...
In his 1973 essay 'Objectivity, value judgment and theory choice', Thomas Kuhn ... more In his 1973 essay 'Objectivity, value judgment and theory choice', Thomas Kuhn attempts to defend himself against criticisms that he was a relativist. Most strangely, this defense of his objectivity ends by introducing the idea of the ineliminablity of subjective judgement or ...
International Studies in The Philosophy of Science, 2007
Daniela Bailer‐Jones died on 13 November 2006 at the age of 37. She had suffered from cancer for ... more Daniela Bailer‐Jones died on 13 November 2006 at the age of 37. She had suffered from cancer for more than 10 years. Daniela touched and enriched the lives of many people, philosophers included. I met her in the summer of 1994 in the south of France, at a ...
s "Mind, Body, and the Laws of Nature in Descartes and Leibniz," the major claims are right and i... more s "Mind, Body, and the Laws of Nature in Descartes and Leibniz," the major claims are right and important. The problem, as I see it, lies in trying to present a better, more coherent rationale for the difference that Garber notes.
This paper explores three connected claims about the interrelation of psychology and neuroscience... more This paper explores three connected claims about the interrelation of psychology and neuroscience that occur in discussions within theoretical psychology. The first and second claims are that neuroscience cannot offer a complete account of human psychology because it can show only correlations between neural events and cognitive or behavioral events. The third claim is that neuroscience ultimately is incomplete or irrelevant to psychological accounts since it is silent on crucial cultural and historical issues relevant to human knowledge and action. We argue that all of these claims are false, not because neuroscience can replace psychology, but because each discipline should be seen to complement and support the other.
Galileo and the Art of Reasoning: Rhetorical Foundations of Logic and Scientific Method. [Physics... more Galileo and the Art of Reasoning: Rhetorical Foundations of Logic and Scientific Method. [Physics Today 34, 94 (1981)]. MA Finocchiaro, Peter Machamer Reviewer. Keywords. Book reviews. History of science.
Some biological processes (our examples are DNA expression and a reflex response in the leech) mo... more Some biological processes (our examples are DNA expression and a reflex response in the leech) move from step to step in a way that cannot be completely understood solely in terms of causes and correlations. This paper develops a notion of mechanistic information that can be used to explain the continuities of such processes. We compare them to processes (including the Krebs cycle) that do not involve information. We compare our conception of mechanistic information to some familiar notions including Crick’s idea of genetic information, Shannon-Weaver information, and Millikan’s biosemantic information.
In 1590, or thereabouts, Galileo wrote the manuscript De Motu (Galileo 1590). In this text he att... more In 1590, or thereabouts, Galileo wrote the manuscript De Motu (Galileo 1590). In this text he attempted to demonstrate the errors of Aristotelian natural philosophy and began his lifelong attempt to construct a science of motion. The chief device in De Motu was his wide ranging use of the balance. The balance was a simple machine, familiar to all, that Galileo could describe using principles of equilibrium.
In this paper we suggest an empirical thesis: Galileo understood something important when he used the balance as the basic equilibrium model in order to understand all the phenomena of motion. Galileo used the balance model to make intelligible problems of dynamics as well as kinematics (as we anachronistically call them).
We believe that using the Galilean balance equilibrium model today in physics classes at the secondary and college levels (and probably even at the elementary school level) would provide students with a model of intelligibility that would unify their thinking about motion and, at the same time, provide them with a general procedural schema for solving motion problems.
Galileo changed the very concepts or categories by which natural philosophy could deal with matte... more Galileo changed the very concepts or categories by which natural philosophy could deal with matter and motion. Central to these changes was his introduction of time as a fundamental concept. He worked with the pendulum and with the inclined plane to discover his new concept of motion. Both of these showed him that acceleration and time were important for making motion intelligible.
Galileo changed the very concepts or categoriesby which natural philosophy could deal withmatter ... more Galileo changed the very concepts or categoriesby which natural philosophy could deal withmatter and motion. Central to these changeswas his introduction of time as a fundamentalconcept. He worked with the pendulum and withthe inclined plane to discover ...
In his 1973 essay 'Objectivity, value judgment and theory choice', Thomas Kuhn ... more In his 1973 essay 'Objectivity, value judgment and theory choice', Thomas Kuhn attempts to defend himself against criticisms that he was a relativist. Most strangely, this defense of his objectivity ends by introducing the idea of the ineliminablity of subjective judgement or ...
International Studies in The Philosophy of Science, 2007
Daniela Bailer‐Jones died on 13 November 2006 at the age of 37. She had suffered from cancer for ... more Daniela Bailer‐Jones died on 13 November 2006 at the age of 37. She had suffered from cancer for more than 10 years. Daniela touched and enriched the lives of many people, philosophers included. I met her in the summer of 1994 in the south of France, at a ...
s "Mind, Body, and the Laws of Nature in Descartes and Leibniz," the major claims are right and i... more s "Mind, Body, and the Laws of Nature in Descartes and Leibniz," the major claims are right and important. The problem, as I see it, lies in trying to present a better, more coherent rationale for the difference that Garber notes.
This paper explores three connected claims about the interrelation of psychology and neuroscience... more This paper explores three connected claims about the interrelation of psychology and neuroscience that occur in discussions within theoretical psychology. The first and second claims are that neuroscience cannot offer a complete account of human psychology because it can show only correlations between neural events and cognitive or behavioral events. The third claim is that neuroscience ultimately is incomplete or irrelevant to psychological accounts since it is silent on crucial cultural and historical issues relevant to human knowledge and action. We argue that all of these claims are false, not because neuroscience can replace psychology, but because each discipline should be seen to complement and support the other.
Galileo and the Art of Reasoning: Rhetorical Foundations of Logic and Scientific Method. [Physics... more Galileo and the Art of Reasoning: Rhetorical Foundations of Logic and Scientific Method. [Physics Today 34, 94 (1981)]. MA Finocchiaro, Peter Machamer Reviewer. Keywords. Book reviews. History of science.
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Papers by Peter Machamer
In this paper we suggest an empirical thesis: Galileo understood something important when he used the balance as the basic equilibrium model in order to understand all the phenomena of motion. Galileo used the balance model to make intelligible problems of dynamics as well as kinematics (as we anachronistically call them).
We believe that using the Galilean balance equilibrium model today in physics classes at the secondary and college levels (and probably even at the elementary school level) would provide students with a model of intelligibility that would unify their thinking about motion and, at the same time, provide them with a general procedural schema for solving motion problems.
In this paper we suggest an empirical thesis: Galileo understood something important when he used the balance as the basic equilibrium model in order to understand all the phenomena of motion. Galileo used the balance model to make intelligible problems of dynamics as well as kinematics (as we anachronistically call them).
We believe that using the Galilean balance equilibrium model today in physics classes at the secondary and college levels (and probably even at the elementary school level) would provide students with a model of intelligibility that would unify their thinking about motion and, at the same time, provide them with a general procedural schema for solving motion problems.