Arguments which depend on sense experience: think of ‘posterior’ – behind/after sense experience. For example, we can only know that oak trees grow from accords by sense experience, and not by logic.
brute fact
A fact that has no explanation.
cosmos
This space-time universe.
fallacy
A failure in reasoning which makes an argument invalid.
fallacy of composition
Arguing that what is true of a part of something is true of the whole.
inductive
Arguments which use reasoning in which the premises seek to supply strong evidence for (but not absolute proof of) the conclusion. Inductive arguments are probabilistic
infinite regress
An indefinite sequence of causes or beings which does not have a first member of the series.
metaphysical necessity
A form of necessity that derives from the nature of essence of things. Aquinas’ third way in effect holds that God has metaphysical necessity.
occam's razor
The theory with the fewest assumptions, that postulates the existence of the fewest entities, and which is the simplest, is the best
principle of sufficient reason
The doctrine that everything must have a reason or cause: every contingent fact about the universe must have an explanation.
