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Reviewed by John M. Doris, Washington University in St. Louis and Jesse J. Prinz, City University of New York Graduate Center
How new is experimental philosophy?1 Wasn't Descartes, whose "mechanical philosophy" aimed to overturn Aristotelianism, really an experimental philosopher? After all, much of his attention was devoted to geometry and optics, and for a period he was revered among scholars as, principally, a sort of mathematical physicist. (That's why the one reference to him educated people mostly know is in talk of the "Cartesian" coordinates he helped invent.) He also spent much time and energy dissecting cows and other animals. Only later was he repositioned as, centrally, a theorist of mind and knowledge, whose primary concern had to do with the justification of belief.
Philosophers used to combine conceptual reflections with practical experiment. The trendiest new branch of the discipline, known as x-phi, wants to return to those days. Some philosophers don’t like it
Next month, the American Philosophical Association will convene a panel to confront its critics in the new movement known as "experimental philosophy," or "x-phi." Its practitioners are threatening to make a favorite method of traditional philosophers—asking yourself what everyone thinks—seem hopelessly outdated. - By Jon Lackman - Slate Magazine
Experimental philosophers emerge from the shadows, but skeptics still ask: Is this philosophy? - ChronicleReview.com
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