reductionism
3
8.7
- noun
- /rɪˈdʌkʃənɪzəm/
- Formal
- The theory of reductionism simplifies complex phenomena by breaking them down into their basic components.
- biological reductionism
- phenomenological reductionism
- the danger of reductionism
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Watch on YouTubeThat that sort of sort of reductionism is boring.
- That that sort of sort of reductionism is boring.
- It is possible that this is correct, but then you have to explain just where reductionism breaks down and why, which no one has done.
- There's no observation that we have ever made that contradicts this idea of reductionism.
- And, and by the way, reductionism and space-time have been spectacularly successful assumptions of science for centuries.
- So you, you literally reductionism literally blows up in your face in physics.
- There's a dialectic going on that's very, very far to your point from radical materialism or biological reductionism.
- You want to make these the the beginnings, you know, it's reductionism, but to counterfactuals, not to particles and and and trajectories.
Examples
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Both contingency and emergence would limit the effectiveness of reductionism; therefore, they seem to undermine Wilson's model.
Academic text (2011) -
In this, combined with his views on genetic reductionism, he comes a little too close.
Blog text (13) -
Is classical reductionism good for anything?
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There's something wrong with this primary focus on reductionism in science.
Academic text (2001) -
Even without a commitment to materialistic reductionism, the theory would be in bad shape.
Blog text (30) -
It is possible that this is correct, but then you have to explain just where reductionism breaks down and why, which no one has done.
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Fanon warns against reductionism when he writes, "Reality, for once, requires a total understanding."
Academic text (1994) -
Participants in cross-disciplinary collaborations may have different levels of experience with and appreciation for reductionism or holism.
Academic text (2007) -
Scientists differ in their attitudes toward the effectiveness and suitability of reductionism versus holism in science.
Academic text (2007) -
Yet, to his credit, Stanislawski cautiously avoided the lure of reductionism when it came to ultimate causation.
Academic text (2008)
Synonyms
∞
3.4
Careful study of something by breaking it into parts to understand
12
7.6
A way of studying something by breaking it into parts
3
3.5
Making something simpler to understand
1
7.4
Splitting a math object into simpler parts to study it
1
5.0
A careful study of something in detail to understand it
1
6.1
To break something into clear parts to make it easier to study
1
9.3
A study that breaks something into parts to show how it works
Antonyms
How Reductionist
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Reductionism comes from reduce, which means 'bring back' or 'make smaller', plus the ending -ism, which means 'a belief or practice'. So, reductionism is the idea or practice of explaining complex things by bringing them back to their simpler parts.