inductive inference
inferences where the supposed truth of the premises fails to guarantee the truth of the conclusion
What are the types of inferences?
- deductive
- inductive
- abductive (if narrowly construed)
What are the advantages of induction?
facilitate the production of new content (ampliative, content-increasing, non-demonstrative)
What are the disadvantages of induction?
- risky
- absence of truth-preservation
Why is induction non-monotonic?
inductively strong argument may cease to have this quality once premises are added to it
multiple instantiation in inductive reasoning
token inductive inference may contain one or more types of induction
abduction (aka inference to the best explanation)
- Form of induction
- Explanatory factors guide inference
- Prefers hypothesis that gives best explanation for available evidence
What are the properties of abduction?
- has Various strengths like induction
- Content-increasing
- Risky (but less risky than induction)
- Non-monotonic
What are the properties of the best explanation?
- increased Simplicity
- increased Unification
- increased Understanding
- decreased Ad hoc-ness
‘the best of a bad lot’ argument
no guarantee that the best available explanation is true
