ABSTRACT
The work of the philosopher is in some respects like that of the scientist. Each uses rational methods in dealing with his problems, each looks beneath surface appearance to explain the workings of what he is studying and each tries to link up his different areas of investigation into a consistent overall picture. The problems of philosophy arise from many sources—from scientific theories, from religious speculations and doctrines, from legal and political notions and also from concepts which are familiar to us all in everyday life. In particular, the problems of the theory of knowledge, though they are sharpened by the discoveries of physics, physiology and psychology, arise in the first place from perfectly familiar notions. In some ways, indeed, the natural scientist has the advantage in that the bits and pieces of the scientific jigsaw can be searched for one by one provided only that, when discovered, they fit together to make a comprehensible picture.
