Ockham’s razor
"Entities should not be multiplied beyond necessity." Ockham urged choosing the simplest of equally good explanations; the razor shaved away scholastic realities and became a creed of modern science.
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William of Ockham
Peak of nominalism; "Ockham’s razor"
Those Who Ground an Idea Into a Whole System · Disciples & School-Builders
NominalismParsimonyExperience
Who they are
William of Ockham (c. 1287–1347), the English Franciscan and summit of nominalism, held that universals are only names and that only particulars truly exist. He is famous for the razor — "do not multiply entities beyond necessity" — a methodological principle still basic to science and philosophy.
Primary sourcesOckham, Summa LogicaeCommentary on the Sentences
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Echoes today
Below are how modern works borrow or reinterpret this name or story — not the original material. The two differ, so keep them apart.
Ockham’s razor"Do not multiply entities without necessity" is a universal principle of modern science and engineering.