Dear Terry,
Your reply is a demonstration of why I find it unproductive to debate with you.
I put forward a model that fits my definition of a theory. Not all theories work this way, but this does fit the definition.
You use a special definition of theory – a definition that only includes those statements that can be wholly and exactly represented as mathematical functions.
In other words, your are defining theory in a way that the rest of us would consider a tautology. IF 1) a theory is a statement that can be wholly and exactly represented as mathematical functions, AND 2) only those statements that can be wholly and exactly represented as mathematical functions constitute theories, THEN 3) many kinds of models and descriptions that I see as theories don’t count as theories.
At this point, I’d repeat the issues I raised in my earlier post, but I’m not interested in wrangling. This is a contest between beliefs. You have not demonstrated that your belief is correct or valid, and you give me no reason to change my belief. The way to change my views is to demonstrate that your claims are reasonable – so far, you have not published a single example to support your claims.
What you have asked me to do is to provide example of statements in technical language that you can readily turn into statements that “can be wholly and exactly represented as mathematical functions.” I am not interested in doing this.
Nigel Cross (1995:3) states that the normal way to demonstrate reseatch is to publish them, thus “generating and reporting results which are testable and accessible by others.”
That takes place in peer reviewed journals rather than on a discussion list. Nevertheless, some examples would not be out of place here.
IF your claim that “All theories (any discipline) can be wholly and exactly represented as mathematical functions,” THEN it follows that you should have many examples to support your claim.
If you wish to demonstrate your claims, do so.
Best regards,
Ken
Ken Friedman, PhD, DSc (hc), FDRS | University Distinguished Professor | Swinburne University of Technology | Melbourne, Australia | University email [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> | Private email [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> | Mobile +61 404 830 462 | Academia Page http://swinburne.academia.edu/KenFriedman About Me Page http://about.me/ken_friedman
Guest Professor | College of Design and Innovation | Tongji University | Shanghai, China ||| Adjunct Professor | School of Creative Arts | James Cook University | Townsville, Australia
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