Reading Questions for Kitcher’s “Believing Where We Cannot Prove”

Due Date: 9/22

1. What is the false dichotomy Kitcher discusses in the first two sections of his article? How do both creationists (always?) and scientists (often?) fall uncritically into acceptance of this dichotomy? Why is it dangerous to do so?

2. On page 85, Kitcher discusses Morris’ claim that “the data must be explained by the evolutionist, but they are predicted by the creationist”—what does Morris mean by this and how is it supposed to undermine evolutionary theory? Explain and evaluate the response Kitcher gives to Morris’ claim.

Examine the table (from Morris’ book) reprinted on page 86. What, according to Morris, is this table supposed to illustrate? What is your impression of the rigor, clarity, and “scientificness” of this table? What, if anything, does it reveal about the nature and epistemic merit of creationism?

3. What is the problem with naive falsificationism which allows creationists to use it to argue that evolutionary theory is not a science? What is the problem with naive falsificationism which allows any claim to be part of a falsifiable theory?

Kitcher gives a brief description of Duhem’s epistemological holism—the thesis that “Hypotheses are tested in bundles”. One consequence of this view is that we cannot test small groups of hypotheses (laws) in isolation, but only together with bundles of auxiliary hypotheses. If our predictions fail we are logically compelled to reject at least one of the hypotheses in the total bundle, though nothing dictates which one; thus, we could protect cherished laws by making sufficient revisions elsewhere in the bundle. Kitcher, like others, takes this to show that no theory is falsifiable. Explain why, if we construe ‘theory’ broadly enough, the exact opposite conclusion follows (i.e., that the theory is falsifiable).

4. What three properties of successful science does Kitcher identify? Briefly explain each and how it is illustrated by the example of Newtonian mechanics and the discovery of Neptune.

5. Explain what a Darwinian history is, and discuss how they exhibit the properties of successful science.