Re: Axiomatic ontology. Was: D1. Separate computer science ontology from philosophical ontology
Avril,
We have such a name:
AS> First we got to agree that we have a common name
> for the totality of all things that exist...
It is "the universe".
What I was objecting to is the assumption that absolute certainty
is, should be, or even could be the goal of science or philosophy.
In the 16th century, the writings of Sextus Empiricus, a famous
skeptic at the end of the second century AD, were published in
a Latin edition. Michel de Montaigne read it and popularized
the skeptical views in his widely read essays. For more info
about Sextus, see
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/skepticism-ancient/
Ancient Skepticism (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
Descartes reacted to the skeptical movement by going to the opposite
extreme of searching for absolute certainty. That was an unfortunate
move, which led to "a 300 year wild goose chase", as Whitehead said.
Absolute certainty is humanly impossible. There may be certain
points that are unassailable, such as the fact that something exists.
I have no doubt that is true. But Descartes's method was a fraud
because he tried to doubt something that is beyond doubt. And he
made the claim that he could use that point as a basis for proving
something else with absolute certainty. But he failed.
The quest for absolute certainty poisoned, vitiated, or at least
distorted the philosophies of many very intelligent people. Besides
Descartes, there are Hume, Kant, Frege, Carnap, and many others.
Those people made positive contributions to knowledge, but none of
them have discovered a single additional empirical statement that
could be considered absolutely certain.
I strongly recommend that you not poison your mind with that
same disease.
John