by Lucius Trae

Created on: December 27, 2010

Philosophical questions are often resolved by scientific means. "If a tree falls in the woods and there is no one there to hear it, does it make a sound?" Well, modern science examines sound in terms of mechanical waves, oscillations, frequencies, vibrations, and other non-subjective terms. In this case, non-subjective means that anyone can observe these occurrences using scientific tools. There are ways to measure sound that allow deaf individuals to recognize that sounds are present. Beethoven continued to compose and play music after he became fully deaf, in part because the perception of vibrations is possible even in deaf individuals. Think of a concert that is so loud the floor vibrates.

What does this tell us? The scientist can enter a room an resolve a philosophical dispute and leave the room to the sounds of clapping? Not so fast, scientist. Science provides invaluable contributes that inform philosophical thought, no doubt, but the answer given above is a scientific answer. It's actually "completely missing the point" of the discussion. People don't always think highly of philosophers, but the questions they ask are typically more complex than people think.

William James, a pragmatist philosopher, was one of many to recognize the importance language plays in determining truth. He was once asked a question regarding a squirrel, a man, and a tree. The squirrel is running around the tree and being chased by a man, who is further away from the tree than the squirrel. If you picture rings, the tree is in the center, and the squirrel is running around the innermost ring, followed by the man on the outermost ring? Does the man go around the squirrel?

Most of his fellow philosophers had no trouble accepting that both man and squirrel go around the tree, but since the man never catches up to the squirrel, there was significant debate over whether or not "the man went around the squirrel." James famously responded: "If by 'going around' you mean 'going east, south, west, north, east, etc.,' then the man certainly goes around the squirrel. But if by 'going around' you mean 'going from side to back to side to belly to side, etc.' then the man does not go around the squirrel."

What does this example have to do with a tree falling in the woods? Everything. The answer to the question is found in how the terms are defined. Modern science defines sound in a mechanical way, but that doesn't solve the debate. When words are developed, there is usually a purpose in mind.

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