Explanation

Question 1

Langer, Blank, & Chanowitz (1978)

Answer 1

• Approached people photocopying
• Said “Can I cut in front of you?” Understandably, few said yes.
• However, when they said “Can I cut in front of you BECAUSE…” many more said yes.
• This happened even when the reason was “because I need to make copies”.

Question 2

Nomological Deductive Model

Answer 2

• Developed by Carl Gustav Hempel
• It states: “An explanation is a type of deductive argument with sentences expressing laws of nature and sentences describing antecedent conditions as the premises and the phenomenon to be explained as a conclusion.”
• Argument has antecedent conditions:
  “Condition 1, 2, 3, etc.”
• General Laws
  “Law 1, 2, 3 etc.”
• Use logical deduction: the simple rules to transform true statements into additional necessary true sentences if the antecedents are true.

Question 3

Explanans

Answer 3

what premises DO the explaining

Question 4

Explanandum

Answer 4

what premises NEED explaning

Question 5

N-D Arguments Must:

Answer 5

• Be valid and logical (deductive)
• Contain @ least one general law of nature (nomological)
• Have empirical content (be falsifiable)
• All premises must be true

Question 6

Causality according to Hume consists of…

Answer 6

• Contiguity (time/space)
• Priority (cause before effect)
• Constant conjunction (always happens the same way)

Question 7

Problems with N-D Model

Answer 7

• We cannot observe causality directly
• What counts as a law?
• Asymmetry between law explanation & prediction should always be the same, but they’re not
• Irrelevance
• Explaining low-probability outcomes

Question 8

The Causal View

Answer 8

• Proposed by Wesley Salmon (1925-2001)
• Definition: “explanation is a description of the various causes of the phenomenon such that to explain a phenomenon is to give information about the causal history that led to the phenomenon.”

Question 9

Problems with Causal View

Answer 9

• Often times it’s nearly impossible to identify the precise cause of something; can only draw correlations.
• Infinitely many previous events that could be identified as potential causes

Question 10

Pragmatic Explanation

Answer 10

• Comes from Linguistics: the context of a conversation will constrain its meaning.
• Need to understand the CONTEXT.
• Definition: “explanation is a body of information that implies that the phenomenon being explained is more likely than an alternative. Explanations are contextual, because the social situation, the conversation, etc. determine hat alternatives are being considered when an explanation is requested and what information is relevant.”
• Explanations are answers to “why” questions.

Question 11

Marr’s Three Levels of Analysis

Answer 11

• Marr was studying perception
  1. Computational (Ecological) Level:
• What is the GOAL of computation?
• Why is it appropriate?
• Useful in terms of evolution and economic questions.

2. Representation & Algorithm:
   - Computer metaphor
   - R&A = software
   - Input/Output representation within the brain
3. Hardware Implementation:
   - Computer analogy
   - HI = hardware like computer chips
   - The brain itself
   - What is the physical representation in the brain @ the neuronal level

Question 12

Functional Analysis

Answer 12

• Goal is to take overall phenomena & break it down into such simple capacities that it lends itself to an extremely simple “no-duh” explanation.