Title: Abstraction and the acquisition of complex ideas
Abstract: The relation between generality and specificity in cognition is poorly understood. The history of science and mathematics shows that generality is not achieved by extracting similarities from particulars. To make a fresh start, we propose that objects and events are seen as similar to the extent that they fit the same abstraction and that abstractions are constructed by assembling available ideas into new structures. The function of abstraction is not to provide generality but to facilitate the assembly process and to provide a different categorization of the world than the one suggested by perceptual similarities. This view is exemplified with respect to central ideas in science, mathematics and other disciplines.
Publication Year: 1997
Publication Date: 1997-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['crossref']
Access and Citation
Cited By Count: 77
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