LTT: Caterina Sisti - Ramsey on conditionals and variable hypotheticals

The Center for Philosophy of Science at the University of Pittsburgh invites you to join us for our Lunch Time Talk. Attend in person at 1117 Cathedral of Learning or visit our live stream on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrRp47ZMXD7NXO3a9Gyh2sg. LTT: Caterina Sisti Tuesday, October 20th @ 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EST Title: Ramsey on conditionals and variable hypotheticals Abstract: The standard view in the contemporary literature on conditionals reads Ramsey as evaluating indicative conditionals by conditional probability, while offering only a few remarks on counterfactuals. This interpretation is associated with the so-called “Ramsey Test”, a procedure for evaluating conditionals developed by later authors from a short footnote in Ramsey’s General Propositions and Causality (1929). Drawing on his broader writings, I argue that the picture is not quite accurate: counterfactuals occupy a much more central place in Ramsey’s account than is usually recognized, and conditional probability is not meant to apply to all indicative conditionals. I present Ramsey’s overall view of conditionals and show how it is connected to his conception of variable hypotheticals — a distinctive form of generalization. This talk will also be available on:YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrRp47ZMXD7NXO3a9Gyh2sg.