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    %REDUCTIONISM VS APPROPRIATE HELPFUL CATEGORIES 861201

     Reductionists  seek  to deal with all  situations  in
terms  of  the  categories which are  appropriate  to  the
smallest pieces of reality about which they know anything,
even   if  they  do  not  know  much  about   the   inter-
relationships  and  integrative  connections  between  the
smallest  and the largest portions of reality about  which
they know a bit.   It is more helpful to seek to  identify
the categories which are most helpful within each  context
of human coping.

     In  each approach to reality some categories are more
helpful   than  other  categories.    The  categories  and
concepts  having to do with nuclear physics are of  little
help  in the context of a music concert.   The concepts of
integral  vector  calculus are usually of little  help  in
gardening.   It is foolish to insist on using concepts and
categories  which are inappropriate to a  context.    Each
concept which is ultimately relevant in one context is not
thereby   shown  to  be  ultimately  relevant  in  another
context.    It  is important to keep in mind the range  of
relevance of each concept, and to avoid regarding it as of
great importance outside the range of its relevance.

     The  importance of a concept in a given context is to
be assessed by how helpful the concept is in that concept;
i.e.,   does focusing attention upon the concept help  one
deal  effectively  within the context.    Does  the  Dirac
equation  of  quantum mechanics help the  surgeon  at  the
operating table?   Does the method of solving differential
equations help the concert violinist during a performance?
Academic relevance is not the same as helpful relevance.

                                                                                                                               
                         (c) 2005 by Paul A. Smith in      
                    (On Being Yourself, Whole and Healthy)  
                                                                                                                               
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