Philosophy Concordance - online philosophical quotations

Suppose that for all you know, our world might be one in which 'coumarone' refers to an extinct flightless bird.

But isn't it also true that if we were to learn that the word 'coumarone' referred to an extinct flightless bird, we would conclude that coumarones -- as we would put it -- are extinct flightless birds?) This seems to be armchair reasoning, reflection that does not include any obvious reference to real experiments, so it is tempting to conclude that this reflection just unfolds our concepts in a totally a priori way. But what this conclusion misses is that our reasoning about the proper epistemic response in various counterfactual situations is informed not only by our concepts, but by implicit and explicit theories and general methodological principles that we have absorbed through our scientific culture -- by everything that the "we" who are performing these thought experiments believe.

On the affinities of extinct species to each other and to living species.

On the nature of extinct intermediate varieties; on their number.

Modern idealism professes to be by no means confined to the present thought or the present thinker in regard to its knowledge; indeed, it contends that the world is so organic, so dove-tailed, that from any one portion the whole can be inferred, as the complete skeleton of an extinct animal can be inferred from one bone.

Because it will be manifest that motion from east to west is perfectly cosmical, and by consent of the universe, being most rapid in the highest parts of the heavens, and gradually falling off, and finally stopping and becoming extinct in the immovable — that is, the earth.

I am fully convinced that species are not immutable; but that those belonging to what are called the same genera are lineal descendants of some other and generally extinct species, in the same manner as the acknowledged varieties of any one species are the descendants of that species.

Hence the supposed aboriginal stocks must either still exist in the countries where they were originally domesticated, and yet be unknown to ornithologists; and this, considering their size, habits, and remarkable characters, seems very improbable; or they must have become extinct in the wild state.

Hence it must be assumed not only that half-civilized man succeeded in thoroughly domesticating several species, but that he intentionally or by chance picked out extraordinarily abnormal species; and further, that these very species have since all become extinct or unknown.

They may whilst in this incipient state become extinct, or they may endure as varieties for very long periods, as has been shown to be the case by Mr.