Discovery and Classification in Astronomy: Scientific and Philosophical Challenges and the Importance of a Comprehensive and Consistent Classification System

IF 3.8 Q2 ASTRONOMY & ASTROPHYSICS
Steven J. Dick
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Throughout history, the definition of “class” and the construction of astronomical classification systems has been a deep scientific and philosophical problem: scientific because facts such as physical composition ideally need to be known for proper classification but often are not, philosophical because astronomers need to understand the philosophical assumptions behind their attempts at classification, and because different philosophical ideas such as “natural kinds” often guide classification, even if unconsciously. The primary lesson of history is that the most useful classifications of celestial objects are optimally based on their physical nature. The second lesson is that because discovery is an extended process consisting of detection, interpretation, and understanding, initial classifications may be phenomenological, based on characteristics that may be useful in early “detection” stages of extended discovery. By contrast, final classifications of “the thing itself,” is achieved only after the “understanding” stage of discovery and must have a physical basis. A third lesson is that class status is best determined within a comprehensive classification system in order to determine taxon level, e.g., class, type, subtype. Such a system, encompassing all astronomical objects, illustrates the problems of class and classification, problems that may be applied to exoplanet discoveries.
天文学的发现与分类:天文学的发现与分类:科学与哲学的挑战以及全面一致的分类系统的重要性
纵观历史,"类 "的定义和天文分类系统的构建一直是一个深奥的科学和哲学问题:科学性是因为理想情况下需要知道物理成分等事实才能进行正确的分类,但事实往往并非如此;哲学性是因为天文学家需要理解其分类尝试背后的哲学假设,还因为 "自然种类 "等不同的哲学观点往往指导着分类,即使是无意识的。历史的主要教训是,最有用的天体分类最好是基于天体的物理本质。第二个教训是,由于发现是一个由探测、解释和理解组成的扩展过程,最初的分类可能是现象学的,基于在扩展发现的早期 "探测 "阶段可能有用的特征。相比之下,"事物本身 "的最终分类只有在发现的 "理解 "阶段之后才能实现,而且必须有物理基础。第三个经验是,最好在一个全面的分类系统中确定类别地位,以确定分类群的级别,如类、型、亚型。这样一个涵盖所有天文物体的系统说明了类和分类的问题,这些问题可能适用于系外行星的发现。
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来源期刊
The Planetary Science Journal
The Planetary Science Journal Earth and Planetary Sciences-Geophysics
CiteScore
5.20
自引率
0.00%
发文量
249
审稿时长
15 weeks
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