Abstract
Explanatory theories are more or less efficient ways of recoding data; powerful models are characterized by the dramatic reduction in the number of information units required for data storage which they effect. But, in addition, good explanatory theories are simple (Chapter 5): they impose strong constraints on the possible results of experimentation, according high probability to what was observed and low probability to what was not observed. This chapter explores the conception of explanation as coding, and also the connection between the efficiency and simplicity of a model. I begin with some remarks on the earlier literature.
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© 1977 D. Reidel Publishing Company, Dordrecht, Holland
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Rosenkrantz, R.D. (1977). Explanation. In: Inference, Method and Decision. Synthese Library, vol 115. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-1237-9_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-1237-9_8
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
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