 Bertrand Russell Quotes 366 |
But the word "verifiables" is capable of meaning something wider than "things that human beings experience," and does mean something wider in the ordinary usage of science. Science, when it believes itself to have established a causal law, allows itself to believe in things which cannot be observed, and so does common sense. We conclude without hesitation that so-and-so is angry when he behaves in a certain way, although we cannot observe his anger. In a sense, an entity may be said to be "verifiable" when it has been inferred in accordance with the recognized canons of scientific method.
Source: Reply to Criticisms, 1944.
In: The Philosophy of Bertrand Russell, 1944
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