Editing Thought experiment (section)

==Uses==

"Thought experiments are basically devices of the imagination. They are employed for various purposes such an entertainment, education, conceptual analysis, exploration, hypothesizing, theory selection, theory implementation, etc. Some applications are more controversial than others"{{R|B&F}}

Examples of thought experiments include [[Schrödinger's cat]], that was meant to attack the [[Copenhagen interpretation|Copenhagen Interpretation]] of quantum mechanics by showing that its assumptions could lead to the seemingly absurd condition of a cat being simultaneously alive and dead, and [[Maxwell's demon]], which attempts to demonstrate the ability of a hypothetical finite being to violate the [[second law of thermodynamics|2nd law of thermodynamics]].

It is a common element of [[science-fiction]] stories.<ref>{{Cite web|title=SFE: Thought Experiment|url=https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/thought_experiment|access-date=2022-12-03|website=sf-encyclopedia.com}}</ref>

Thought experiments, which are well-structured, well-defined hypothetical questions that employ [[subjunctive]] reasoning ([[irrealis moods]]) – "What might happen (or, what might have happened) if . . . " – have been used to pose questions in philosophy at least since Greek antiquity, some pre-dating [[Socrates]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Rescher |first=N. |title=Thought Experiments in Science and philosophy |pages=31–41 |year=1991 |postscript=. |editor-last=Horowitz |editor-first=T. |chapter=Thought Experiment in Pre-Socratic Philosophy |chapter-url=http://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/archive/00003190/ |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield, (Savage) |author-link=Nicholas Rescher |editor2-last=Massey |editor2-first=G.J.}}</ref> In physics and other sciences many thought experiments date from the 19th and especially the 20th Century, but examples can be found at least as early as [[Galileo]].

In thought experiments, we gain new information by rearranging or reorganizing already known empirical data in a new way and drawing new (a priori) inferences from them, or by looking at these data from a different and unusual perspective. In Galileo's thought experiment, for example, the rearrangement of empirical experience consists of the original idea of combining bodies of different weights.<ref>Brendal, Elke, "Intuition Pumps and the Proper Use of Thought Experiments". Dialectica. V.58, Issue 1, pp. 89–108, March 2004</ref>

Thought experiments have been used in philosophy (especially ethics), [[physics]], and other fields (such as [[cognitive psychology]], history, [[political science]], economics, [[social psychology]], law, [[organizational studies]], marketing, and [[epidemiology]]).  In law, the synonym "hypothetical" is frequently used for such experiments.

Regardless of their intended goal, all thought experiments display a patterned way of thinking that is designed to allow us to explain, predict, and control events in a better and more productive way.

===Theoretical consequences===
In terms of their theoretical consequences, thought experiments generally:

* challenge (or even refute) a prevailing theory, often involving the device known as [[reductio ad absurdum]], (as in Galileo's original argument, a [[proof by contradiction]]),
* confirm a prevailing theory,
* establish a new theory, or
* simultaneously refute a prevailing theory and establish a new theory through a process of [[Mutual exclusivity|mutual exclusion]]

===Practical applications===
Thought experiments can produce some very important and different outlooks on previously unknown or unaccepted theories. However, they may make those theories themselves irrelevant, and could possibly create new problems that are just as difficult, or possibly more difficult to resolve.

In terms of their practical application, thought experiments are generally created to:

* challenge the prevailing status quo (which includes activities such as correcting [[misinformation]] (or misapprehension), identify flaws in the argument(s) presented, to preserve (for the long-term) objectively established fact, and to refute specific assertions that some particular thing is permissible, forbidden, known, believed, possible, or necessary);
* [[extrapolate]] beyond (or [[interpolate]] within) the boundaries of already established fact;
* [[predict]] and [[forecasting|forecast]] the (otherwise) indefinite and unknowable future;
* explain the past;
* the [[retrodiction]], [[postdiction]] and [[hindcast]]ing of the (otherwise) indefinite and unknowable past;
* facilitate decision making, choice, and strategy selection;
* solve problems, and generate ideas;
* move current (often insoluble) problems into another, more helpful, and more productive problem space (e.g.: [[functional fixedness]]);
* attribute causation, preventability, blame, and responsibility for specific outcomes;
* assess [[culpability]] and [[compensatory damages]] in social and legal contexts;
* ensure the repeat of past success; or
* examine the extent to which past events might have occurred differently.
* ensure the (future) avoidance of past failures