Workshop on the Origins of Logical Empiricism, to be Held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, October 21-24, 1993

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9311296 Giere Contemporary philosophy of science with its current view of the nature of science and scientific theory developed out of an explicit reaction against the Logical Empiricist school of philosophy that dominated our view of science for nearly a quarter of a century after World War II. To understand our current views, it is extremely important to understand the positions against which we have reacted. Logical Empiricism grew out of the long empiricist tradition in Anglo-American philosophy which includes Locke, Hume, Mill, and Bertrand Russell. But the new mathematical logic, developed by Russell and Whitehead in the first decade of this century, played an equally important role. It provided a language in which empiricist claims could be formulated, techniques for developing empiricist analyses of scientific hypotheses and methods, and, above all, a standard for rational reference. The objective of this workshop is to promote research on the origins of Logical Empiricism by bringing together a number of active researchers for three days of discussion on previously circulated papers. This group of researchers will then produce a comprehensive and unified volume that will help legitimate the study of this history both within the philosophy of science and within the broader discipline of philosophy as part of the history of twentieth century philosophy. Interest in the history of Logical Empiricism has recently been promoted by a number of conferences celebrating the births, in 1891, of the two major founders of Logical Empiricism, Rudolf Carnap and Hans Reichenbach. The concerns of this workshop is by no means to continue the celebration, but to capitalize on the interest these celebrations generated to promote the study of the origins of Logical Empiricism as part of both the philosophy of science and the history of philosophy. The organizers hope thereby to provide encouragement for younger scholars who have taken up this important study. ** *