John F. Kennison wrote: > I have been trying to figure out what my position on reductionism > might be, but I am running into problems. Does reductionism mean a > belief that the best strategy is always to analyze complex things in > terms of simpler components (with, I presume, a small number of > irreducible parts)? Or is it a belief that everything in nature is > nothing more than a sum of simple components?
Well, I'll jump in. I can't say what "reductionism" actually means. But I can say what I mean when I say it and how I interpret it when I hear it. When I say it, I mean that reductionism is a _fetish_ for or zealous commitment to reduction/analysis, beyond the practical. When I _hear_ the word, though, I tend to make a less extreme inference. Reductionism and reductionist seem to be used to refer to the very analytic processes we revere and reward in all our most successful humans. And although it's often slung as an epithet, I tend to think it's a compliment, albeit a back-handed one. It seems to have become a term we use for careful thinkers. You only get called "reductionist" if you keep nit-picking until everyone's mad at you. [grin] Up until that point, reduction is always considered a pretty good method. When people are happy with it, they call it "parsimony" or "elegance" or some other nice word. Then when you piss them off, they call it "reductionism". That's why I usually end up saying something like "a little bit reductionist", which is a silly phrase if you put too much emphasis on the denotation... kinda like being a little bit pregnant. Stick to reduction for a little too long, and you're "a little bit reductionist". Commit your entire existence to it and you're a zealot. As usual, people tend to draw stark and false dichotomies. Nobody's actually a reductionist and nobody's actually a holist. We just like to pidgeon-hole people and their statements because it makes our lives easier. -- glen e. p. ropella, 971-219-3846, http://tempusdictum.com ============================================================ FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
