principle of parsimony Quick reference
A Dictionary of Biology (8 ed.)
...principle of parsimony The principle that the most acceptable explanation of an occurrence, phenomenon, or event is the simplest, involving the fewest entities, assumptions, or changes. In phylogenetics, for example, the preferred tree showing evolutionary relationships between species, molecules, or other entities is the one that requires the least amount of evolutionary change, that is, maximum parsimony...
Ockham's razor, or the principle of parsimony Reference library
Marilyn McCord Adams
The Oxford Companion to Philosophy (2 ed.)
...razor, or the principle of parsimony . A methodological principle dictating a bias towards simplicity in theory construction, where the parameters of simplicity vary from kinds of entity to the number of presupposed axioms to characteristics of curves drawn between data points. Although found in Aristotle , it became associated with William Ockham because it captures the spirit of his philosophical conclusions. Prof. Marilyn McCord Adams Marilyn McCord Adams , William Ockham (Notre Dame, Ind., 1987), ch. 5, pp....
principle of parsimony
parsimony principle
law of parsimony
maximum parsimony
parsimony
evolutionary clock
particularization
proportionality principle
Occam's razor
Allan Charles Wilson
mitochondrial-DNA
parsimony, law of Quick reference
A Dictionary of Philosophy (3 ed.)
..., law of Another name for Ockham’s razor , or more generally for any methodological principle that counsels us to expect nature to use the simplest possible means to any given...
particularization Quick reference
A Dictionary of Public Health (2 ed.)
...particularization In logic, the method of reasoning in which a general rule is applied to a specific set of facts and circumstances, minimizing assumptions and axioms (the principle of scientific parsimony, or Occam's razor ) and making the most logical conclusion. ...
parsimony Quick reference
A Dictionary of Sociology (4 ed.)
... ( parsimonious ) The principle that the best statistical model among all satisfactory models is that with the fewest parameters. Hence, more generally, the principle asserting that if it is possible to explain a phenomenon equally adequately in a number of different ways, then the simplest of explanations (in terms of the number of variables or propositions) should be...
Occam's razor Quick reference
A Dictionary of Public Health (2 ed.)
...Occam's razor ( principle of scientific parsimony ) An important principle in logic and scientific reasoning, enunciated by the 14th-century philosopher William of Occam. In his words, Essentia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem ; i.e., the number of axioms or assumptions required to establish a truth or explain a phenomenon should be kept to the minimum possible. ...
evolutionary clock n. Quick reference
A Dictionary of Psychology (4 ed.)
...clock n. The accumulation of changes in non-genetic stretches or introns of (especially) mitochondrial DNA that occur at a fairly constant rate and can be calibrated with real time to enable estimates to be made of how long ago present-day organisms diverged from their common ancestors. See also Eve , maternal inheritance , parsimony principle . Compare glottochronology , lexicostatistics...
Occam’s razor Quick reference
A Dictionary of Genetics (8 ed.)
...Occam’s razor a rule attributed to the medieval philosopher William of Occam. In modern times, the rule states that when there are several possible explanations of a phenomenon, one selects as most probable the explanation that is the simplest and most consistent with the data at hand. Also called the parsimony principle...
Ockham's razor Quick reference
A Dictionary of Statistics (3 ed.)
...razor Essentially the principle of parsimony which states that if one is provided with a variety of explanations (e.g. a variety of statistical models) one should prefer the simplest. William of Ockham ( c . 1285–1349 ) was an English philosopher who held that a complicated explanation should not be accepted without good reason, and wrote ‘ Frustra fit per plura, quod fieri potest per pauciora ’. (‘It is vain to do with more what can be done with...
