Does Ernest Nagel’s Model of Reduction Permit Ontological Reduction?

What is it about?

The logical empiricist Ernest Nagel introduced the classical model of reduction in the philosophy of science literature in 1961, yet it remains poorly understood even after more than six decades. Subsequent scholars have misunderstood Nagel's model due to prevailing misconceptions about both scientific reductions and the nature of science itself. In brief, science cannot ascertain any fundamental, ultimate, or absolute reality, and neither can any scientific reduction. Utilizing a novel yet fundamentally more adequate interpretation of Nagel's model, this article demonstrates that the distinction between ontology and epistemology is one such misconception. Moreover, Nagel's model does not inherently presuppose this distinction, contrary to the uncritical assumptions of many subsequent scholars.

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