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    Alcmaeon's own method of inference from signs cannot dist... — Carmelics
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    Challenges→Humans cannot attain clear knowledge of imperceptible things, but can make reasonable judgments about them from perceptual signs.

    Alcmaeon's own method of inference from signs cannot distinguish itself from sophisticated guesswork without a criterion he has not supplied.

    ?Rate how convincing each reason is below to see the overall strength.
    1 reason for
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    Reasons For

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    Reason for
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    • 1.Alcmaeon infers internal bodily processes from external observable signs without explaining why those signs reliably track reality.
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    • 2.Distinguishing systematic inference from lucky guessing requires explicit criteria for when signs warrant conclusions—criteria Alcmaeon lacks.
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    • 3.Without justifying why certain signs count as evidence, any inference method becomes indistinguishable from arbitrary pattern-matching.
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    Reasons Against

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    Reason against
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    • 1.Practical success in medical predictions demonstrates that Alcmaeon's method produces reliable results, not mere guesswork.
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    • 2.Explicit articulation of criteria is not required for a method to be genuinely inferential rather than guesswork—tacit expertise exists.
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    • 3.The distinction between guessing and inference depends on actual causal connections, not on the reasoner's ability to state formal justifications.
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    Related

    Alcmaeon infers internal bodily processes from external observable signs without...Distinguishing systematic inference from lucky guessing requires explicit criter...Explicit articulation of criteria is not required for a method to be genuinely i...Humans cannot attain clear knowledge of imperceptible things, but can make reaso...
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    Practical success in medical predictions demonstrates that Alcmaeon's method pro...The distinction between guessing and inference depends on actual causal connecti...Without justifying why certain signs count as evidence, any inference method bec...

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