♥ Eight of Hearts
the teleological family
The Argument from the Adjustment of Magnitudes and Laws
William Whewell
Astronomy and General Physics Considered with Reference to Natural Theology (Astronomy and General Physics)
EvidentialConcludes that a feature of the world is better explained by one hypothesis than by a named rival.
- Argument form
- Inference to the best explanation (independent quantities expected under an author, not under chance)
- Concludes to
- Better explanation (adjustment of quantities and laws; explanans is an intelligent author intending life)
- Premise ground
- Epistemic (correspondence among independent things is expected under an author, not under chance)
- Modal strength
- None (comparative explanation)
- What it licenses
- Period
- Nineteenth Century (1833)
- Tradition
- Natural theology (Bridgewater)
Further reading
- Source text, public domain
Astronomy and General Physics Considered with Reference to Natural Theologyhttps://archive.org/details/astronogenphysics00whewuoft - A scholarly account
Read an exposition of the argument - A principal objection
Read the objection in full
This formulation is ours, composed from the primary source and compressed to fit the card; the argument admits of other statements. Objections have been made to every argument in the deck; where one is linked above, it is chosen by us, not written by us.
ergocards.com/adjustment
© 2026 Athens & Jerusalem. All rights reserved.