Models
The Blueprints for Laws
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10703176 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Nancy Cartwright (0000-0002-0873-6966, London School of Economics and Political Science, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1997 |
| Volume | 64 |
| Issue | S4 |
| Pages | S292-S303 |
| Publication date | 1997-01-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Philosophy of Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0031-8248 • E-ISSN: 1539-767X |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1086/392608 |
| OpenAlex | W2031796614 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 5 |
| References cited | 11 |
In this paper the claim that laws of nature are to be understood as claims about what necessarily or reliably happens is disputed. Laws can characterize what happens in a reliable way, but they do not do this easily. We do not have laws for everything occurring in the world, but only for those situations where what happens in nature is represented by a model: models are blueprints for nomological machines, which in turn give rise to laws. An example from economics shows, in particular, how we use—and how we need to use—models to get probabilistic laws
Blueprint · Economics · Epistemology · Law and economics · Mathematical economics · Natural law · Physical law · Political science · Probabilistic logic · Scientific law · Artificial Intelligence · Complex Systems and Decision Making · Computer Science · Economic Theory and Institutions · Engineering · Law · Mathematics · Philosophy · Philosophy and History of Science
| Citations per year | 0.2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2001 - 2026 (26) |
| Highly cited | No |