Inductive logic on conceptual spaces

This thesis investigates the question of how conceptual frameworks influence inductive reasoning. A conceptual framework is a collection of concepts used for a particular purpose; we can think of it as a semantic environment in which observations, or evidence, are recorded, and beliefs are formed and expressed. How a conceptual framework is structured, will influence the kinds of beliefs that can be formed within it. Moreover, the structure of the conceptual framework can be seen as a constraint on what beliefs it is rational to form. In this thesis I study such framework-based rationality constraints on beliefs, in particular beliefs about future observations. I show how conceptual spaces can be successfully used in providing constraints on rational degrees of belief in inductive reasoning.

Dissertation: http://hdl.handle.net/11370/87be1075-70c4-407c-903b-917bf8c889b3