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Affordances as Abductive Anchors

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Model-Based Reasoning in Science and Technology

Part of the book series: Studies in Computational Intelligence ((SCI,volume 314))

Abstract

In this paper we aim to explain how the notion of abduction may be relevant in describing some crucial aspects related to the notion of affordance, which was originally introduced by the ecological psychologist James J. Gibson. The thesis we develop in this paper is that an affordance can be considered an abductive anchor. Hopefully, the notion of abduction will clear up some ambiguities and misconceptions still present in current debate. Going beyond a merely sentential conception, we will argue that the role played by abduction is two fold. First of all, it is decisive in leading us to a better definition of affordance. Secondly, abduction turns out to be a valuable candidate in clarifying the various issues related to affordance detection.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Computational Philosophy Laboratory and Department of Philosophy, University of Pavia, Italy

    Emanuele Bardone

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  1. Emanuele Bardone
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Università di Pavia, Pavia, Italy

    Lorenzo Magnani

  2. CLE State University of Campinas, Campinas, Brazil

    Walter Carnielli

  3. Università di Siena, Siena, Italy

    Claudio Pizzi

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Bardone, E. (2010). Affordances as Abductive Anchors. In: Magnani, L., Carnielli, W., Pizzi, C. (eds) Model-Based Reasoning in Science and Technology. Studies in Computational Intelligence, vol 314. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-15223-8_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-15223-8_7

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-15222-1

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