| the maxim that assumptions introduced to explain a thing must not be multiplied beyond necessity. |
Oc·cam's razor  (ŏk'əmz)  n. Variant of Ockham's razor. |
| Ock·ham's razor also Oc·cam's razor (ŏk'əmz) n. A rule in science and philosophy stating that entities should not be multiplied needlessly. This rule is interpreted to mean that the simplest of two or more competing theories is preferable and that an explanation for unknown phenomena should first be attempted in terms of what is already known. Also called law of parsimony. [After William of Ockham.] |
| Occam's razor or Ockham's razor (ŏk'əmz) Pronunciation Key
A rule in science and philosophy stating that entities should not be multiplied needlessly. This rule is interpreted to mean that the simplest of two or more competing theories is preferable and that an explanation for unknown phenomena should first be attempted in terms of what is already known. Occam's razor is named after the deviser of the rule, English philosopher and theologian William of Ockham (1285?-1349?). |
Occam's Razor philosophy
The English philosopher, William of Occam (1300-1349) propounded Occam's Razor:
Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem.
(Latin for "Entities should not be multiplied more than necessary"). That is, the fewer assumptions an explanation of a phenomenon depends on, the better it is.
For example, some claim that God caused himself to exist and also caused the universe to exist - he was the "first cause" - whereas Occam's Razor suggests that if one accepts the possibility of something causing itself then it is better to assume that it was the universe that caused itself rather than God because this explanation involves fewer entities.
The negation of Occam's Razor would suggest that an arbitrarily complex explanation is just as good as the simplest one. (E.g. God and his cat created a robot called Sparky who built the universe from parts bought from a shop in another dimension).
See also KISS Principle.
(1995-11-09)
