Inductive generalisation

Question 1

Particular instances of things

e.g. you have a short temper, this carrot cake is delicious

Answer 1

Specific claims

Question 2

Entire classes of things

e.g. emus can’t fly, all carrot cake is delicious

Answer 2

Universal claims

Question 3

Making generalisation about universal claims based on specific claims
e.g. Sample 1, 2, 3, 4. general conclusion

Answer 3

Inductive generalisation

Question 4

from general to specific claim

Answer 4

Deductive reasoning

Question 5

from specific to general claim

Answer 5

Inductive reasoning

Question 6

Induction if done badly risks the fallacy…

Answer 6

hasty generalisation

Question 7

Problem with induction

Answer 7

Is in itself an inductive argument (essentially begging the question). If it has happened lots, doesn’t guarantee it will happen again.

Question 8

no number of positive instances of a universal claim can guarantee the truth of a universal claim HOWEVER just one negative instance of a universal claim is sufficient to prove universal claim as false. This is called:

Answer 8

A logical asymmetry

Question 9

checking all instances of a universal claim to ensure that there are no disconfirming examples (often hard to do though)

Answer 9

Complete enumeration

Question 10

3 rules for good induction

Answer 10

1. Sample should be sufficiently numerous and various
2. Should look for both confirming and disconfirming examples
3. Should consider whether a link between two classes is plausible

Question 11

Are inductive arguments valid?

Answer 11

No

Question 12

For good induction a sample should be sufficiently numerous and various because

Answer 12

more variation/numerous = more representative = more certainty

Question 13

General rule for how much variation you should have:

Answer 13

If you want to claims that S’s are P, the sample of S’s should vary in every property (other than being S) that might be responsible for their being P

Question 14

For good induction you should look for both confirming and disconfirming examples because

Answer 14

a single negative instance is enough to disprove a universal claim (and if we can’t find a negative, you can be more certain about the truth of the universal claim)

Question 15

For good induction you should consider whether a link between two classes is plausible based on

Answer 15

based on other information we already know to show that it supports our claim
e.g. sun rises in east (claim), see it rise in east (reason), earth rotation (related class supporting claim)

Question 16

Why is induction a good method of reasoning?

Answer 16

because it helps figure out how things are going to be based on how they have been in the past.