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Reductionism for Dummies

noun

pronunciation: ri'dəkʃə,nɪzəm

What does Reductionism really mean?

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Hey there! So, "reductionism" is a big word, but we can break it down. Have you ever taken something big and complicated and tried to make it simpler and easier to understand? That's kind of like what reductionism does - it takes a complex idea and breaks it down into smaller parts to make it easier to study and understand. It's like taking a huge jigsaw puzzle and working on each piece individually to figure out the whole picture.

There are a couple different meanings for reductionism, too. In science, reductionism is when scientists try to understand complex systems by breaking them down into smaller, more manageable parts. It's kind of like if you were trying to understand how a clock works, so you took it apart and studied each little gear and spring to see how they all work together to make the clock tick.

But reductionism can also be used in a more general way, like in philosophy or even in everyday life. It's when people try to explain really complicated things by just focusing on one small aspect of them. It's like if you were trying to explain why a car moves by only talking about the engine, without considering the wheels, the fuel, or the driver.

So, reductionism is all about simplifying things to make them easier to understand. It's like when you're trying to learn a new concept in school and you start by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable pieces. It's a helpful way of looking at big, complicated things and making sense of them. I hope that helps you understand what reductionism means!

Revised and Fact checked by Sophia Wilson on 2023-11-09 18:21:57

Reductionism In a sentece

Learn how to use Reductionism inside a sentece

  • When someone tries to explain a complex problem by breaking it down into simple parts, they are using reductionism.
  • In science, reductionism is the idea that complex systems can be understood by studying their individual components.
  • A psychologist using reductionism might believe that complex human behavior can be broken down into simple psychological processes.
  • Reductionism can also be seen in art, when an artist uses basic shapes and colors to represent more complex ideas or emotions.
  • In medicine, reductionism is the idea that diseases and illnesses can be understood by studying the biological and chemical processes within the body.

Reductionism Hypernyms

Words that are more generic than the original word.