Modes of Explanation: Affordances for Action and Prediction

Modes of Explanation is the first book in decades to attempt to bring these conflicting approaches together and to offer a compelling narrative to explore how the paradox of 'explanation' can converge.

Table of Contents:
PART I: CONTEXT 1. Introduction; Michael Lissack, Abraham Graber 2. A Place in History; Alicia Juarrero 3. The Context of Our Query; Michael Lissack PART II: CASE STUDY 4. Case Study: Creationism; Zack Kopplin PART III: EXAMINING THE CASE 5. Scientific Realism on Historical Science and Creationism; Abraham Graber 6. A Pragmatic Constructivist Take on the Case; Michael Lissack PART IV: DIALOGUE 7. Robustness and Explanation; William Wimsatt 8. A Mode of 'Epi-Thinking' Leads to the Exploration of Vagueness and Finality; Stanley Salthe 9. Occam's Razor, the Complexity of Truth, and the Simplicity Puzzle; Kevin Kelly, Konstantin Genin 10. Getting a Grip; Nancy Nersessian 11. Modes of Explanation; Sandra Mitchell 12. Narrative as a Mode of Explanation; Rukmini Nair 13. Economic Explanations; Paul Thagard 14. Narratives and Models in Complex Systems; Timothy Allen, Edmond Ramly, Samantha Paulsen, Gregori Kanatzidis, Nathan Miller 15. Evaluating Explanations through their Conceptual Structures; Steven Wallis 16. Investigating the Lay and Scientific Norms for Using "Explanation"; Jonathan Waskan, Ian Harmon, Andrew Higgins, Joseph Spino PART V: CONCLUSION 17. Conclusion; Michael Lissack, Abraham Graber PART VI: AFTERWORD Afterword 1. The Scientific Attitude Toward Explanation; Lee McIntyre Afterword 2. Explanation Revisited; Jan Faye Afterword 3. Is The World Completely Intelligible?; Peter Achinstein Afterword 4. Explanation and Pluralism; Beckett Sterner Reprise; Michael Lissack

About the Author :
Peter Achinstein, Johns Hopkins University, USA Timothy Allen, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA Jan Faye, University of Copenhagen, Denmark Alicia Juarrero, Prince George's Community College, USA Kevin Kelly, Carnegie Mellon University, USA Zachary Kopplin, Rice University, USA Lee McIntyre, Boston University, USA Sandra Mitchell, University of Pittsburgh, USA Rukmini Bhaya Nair, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, India Nancy Nersessian, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA Stanley Salthe, City University of New York, USA Beckett Sterner, University of Michigan, USA Paul Thagard, University of Waterloo, Canada Steven Wallis, Capella University, USA Jonathan Waskan, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA William Wimsatt, University of Chicago, USA Konstantin Genin, Carnegie Mellon University, USA Ian Harmon, Rice University, USA Andrew Higgins, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA Gregori Kanatzidis, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA Nathan Miller, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA Samantha Paulsen, Rice University, USA Joseph Spino, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA Edmond Ramly, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA

Review :
"The explication of explanation is one of the key themes of contemporary philosophy. It has more facets than the Kohinoor diamond and its analysis more claimants than the estate of Howard Hughes. This book endeavors to bring rational order into this complex domain by projecting a 'pragmatic constructivism' able to provide a dialectically harmonizing symbiosis of scientific realism with pragmatic contextualism. Its innovative approach is at once challenging and constructive." - Nicholas Rescher, Distinguished University Professor of Philosophy, University of Pittsburgh, USA