Complexity, Ockham’s Razor, and Truth

Kevin T. Kelly and Konstantin Genin

Chapter Chapter 9 in Modes of Explanation, 2014, pp 121-131 from Palgrave Macmillan

Abstract: Abstract Ockham’s razor says: “Choose the simplest theory compatible with the data.” Without Ockham’s razor, theoretical science cannot get very far, since there are always ever more complicated explanations compatible with current evidence. Scientific lore pretends that reality is simple—but gravitation works by a quadratic, rather than a linear, law; and what about the shocking failure of parity conservation in particle physics? Ockham speaks so strongly in its favor that demonstrating its falsity resulted in a Nobel Prize in physics (Lee and Yang 1957). So why trust Ockham?

Keywords: Belief State; Winning Strategy; Cycle Efficiency; Simplicity Order; Open Rectangle (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pal:palchp:978-1-137-40386-5_9

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DOI: 10.1057/9781137403865_9

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