Abstract
Although mind-brain identity remains controversial, many other identities of ordinary things with scientific ones are well established. For example, air is a mixture of gases, water is H2O, and fire is rapid oxidation. This paper examines the history of 15 important identifications: air, blood, cloud, earth, electricity, fire, gold, heat, light, lightning, magnetism, salt, star, thunder, and water. This examination yields surprising conclusions about the nature of justification, explanation, and conceptual change.
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Acknowledgments
Thanks to Chris Eliasmith, Doreen Fraser and anonymous referees for comments on an earlier draft. This research was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
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Thagard, P. Explanatory Identities and Conceptual Change. Sci & Educ 23, 1531–1548 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-014-9682-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-014-9682-1