Explaining the cosmos: the Ionian tradition of scientific philospohy

Explaining The Cosmos Is A Major Reinterpretation Of Greek Scientific Thought Before Socrates. Focusing On The Scientific Tradition Of Philosophy, Daniel Graham Argues That Presocratic Philosophy Is Not A Mere Patchwork Of Different Schools And Styles Of Thought. Rather, There Is A Discernible And Unified Ionian Tradition That Dominates Presocratic Debates. Graham Rejects The Common Interpretation Of The Early Ionians As Material Monists And Also The View Of The Later Ionians As Desperately Trying To Save Scientific Philosophy From Parmenides' Criticisms. In Graham's View, Parmenides Plays A Constructive Role In Shaping The Scientific Debates Of The Fifth Century Bc. Accordingly, The History Of Presocratic Philosophy Can Be Seen Not As A Series Of Dialectical Failures, But Rather As A Series Of Theoretical Advances That Led To Empirical Discoveries. Indeed, The Ionian Tradition Can Be Seen As The Origin Of The Scientific Conception Of The World That We Still Hold Today.--jacket. 1. The Ionian Program -- 2. Anaximander's Principles -- 3. Anaximenes' Theory Of Change -- 4. The Generating Substance Theory As An Explanatory Hypothesis -- 5. Heraclitus's Criticism Of Ionian Philosophy -- 6. Parmenides' Criticism Of Ionian Philosophy -- 7. Anaxagoras And Empedocles: Eleatic Pluralists -- 8. The Elemental Substance Theory As An Explanatory Hypothesis -- 9. The Atomist Reform -- 10. Diogenes Of Apollonia And Material Monism -- 11. The Ionian Legacy. Daniel W. Graham. Includes Bibliography (p. [309]-325) And Indexes. Cover 1 CONTENTS 8 PREFACE 12 ABBREVIATIONS AND BRIEF REFERENCES 16 1 The Ionian Program 20 1.1 Anaximander’s Project 23 1.2 Anaximander’s Project as a Scientific Program 33 1.3 Toward an Understanding of the Ionian Tradition 37 2 Anaximander’s Principles 47 2.1 Out of the Boundless 47 2.2 Powers in Conflict 53 2.3 Elements and Powers 58 3 Anaximenes’ Theory of Change 64 3.1 The Theory of Change 64 3.2 Material Monism 67 3.3 Problems with Material Monism 69 3.4 Anaximenes and the Generating Substance Theory 86 3.5 Anaximenes’ Achievement 101 4 The Generating Substance Theory as an Explanatory Hypothesis 104 4.1 GST Formalized 104 4.2 A Compromise View? 107 4.3 GST as a Paradigm of Explanation 110 4.4 Advantages of GST 117 4.5 Disadvantages of GST 125 5 Heraclitus’s Criticism of Ionian Philosophy 132 5.1 Extreme Interpretations 132 5.2 Barnes’s Argument for Heraclitus-F 137 5.3 The Unity of Opposites 141 5.4 The Flux Thesis 148 5.5 Heraclitus and GST 156 6 Parmenides’ Criticism of Ionian Philosophy 167 6.1 Parmenides’ Response to Heraclitus 167 6.2 Parmenides’ Criticism 174 6.3 Properties of What-Is 181 6.4 Deceptive Cosmology 188 6.5 Parmenides’ Scientific Discovery 198 6.6 Parmenides’ Response to GST 201 7 Anaxagoras and Empedocles: Eleatic Pluralists 205 7.1 The Standard Interpretation 205 7.2 Questions about the Standard Intepretation 207 7.3 The Elemental Substance Theory 214 7.4 Parmenides and Origins of the Elemental Substance Theory 220 7.5 Two Theories of Elements 227 7.6 Empirical Advances 239 8 The Elemental Substance Theory as an Explanatory Hypothesis 243 8.1 EST Formalized 243 8.2 EST and Eleatic Theory 246 8.3 EST with and without Emergence 248 8.4 Advantages of EST 252 8.5 Disadvantages of EST 260 9 The Atomist Reform 269 9.1 The Challenge 269 9.2 Foundational Arguments 275 9.3 Atomism and EST 288 9.4 Birth of the Cosmos 290 10 Diogenes of Apollonia and Material Monism 296 10.1 Diogenes in Modern Accounts 296 10.2 Diogenes in a New Light 298 10.3 Diogenes in Historical Context 303 10.4 A New Theory of Matter 309 11 The Ionian Legacy 313 11.1 Paradigms of Explanation 313 11.2 Explanatory Progress 317 11.3 The Primacy of Ionian Research 321 REFERENCES 328 INDEX LOCORUM 346 GENERAL INDEX 356 A 356 B 356 C 357 D 358 E 358 F 358 G 359 H 359 I 359 J 359 K 359 L 359 M 360 N 360 O 361 P 361 R 361 S 361 T 362 U 362 V 362 W 362 X 363 Z 363