David Hume · Philosophy

The Problem of Induction

Hume asks what justifies our reasoning from past to future, from observed to unobserved. His answer is unsettling: nothing in reason can justify it. Inductive inference rests on an assumption that cannot be proved.

What you'll be able to recall

You learned that Hume showed inductive reasoning (from past to future, observed to unobserved) cannot be justified by reason, since it rests on the unprovable assumption that nature is uniform. Explain the problem and why it is so troubling.

Leads to Bertrand Russell.

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