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William Whewell, Inspired Collegiate, Seeks Inductive Reform
As an academic at Trinity College, William Whewell's goal was to reform inductive philosophy, and by extension all areas of knowledge. The endgame was to "provide groundwork for the reshaping of more than natural science; morality, politics, and economics would also be transformed." (Snyder) Inspired by Francis Bacon, Whewell began by first re-defining induction, then advertising both it and the importance of nature to the masses. -
Whewell Reviews Herschel's 'Preliminary Discourse on the Study of Natural Philosophy'
Strong connection to Bacon drew Whewell to inductive views of epistemology, though he also held a deep appreciation to deductive forms of reasoning because of his interest in mathematics. From experience he gained in Minerology, Whewell learned the need to combine the two forms of reasoning, and it is in this review he summarized them as "purely rational elements of science." (Snyder) -
Whewell Concludes an Inclusive Concept
After letters with Richard Jones, Whewell begins to see induction as an act that includes both observation and reason and suggested that the two combined were required in order to discover new truths. -
Whewell Publishes 'Remarks on the Logic of Induction'
With the publication of this essay, Whewell was able to describe en masse that "induction required both ideas provided by the mind as and facts provided by the world." (Snyder) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0OVCgruWDo