Occam's razor

Occam's razor

A maxim that the simplest theory should be applied to a situation or experiment first. This concept is named for its ardent defender, 14th-century philosopher William of Occam. I think our initial hypothesis is too complex. Occam's razor would suggest we consider the simplest possible explanation.
See also: razor
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

Occam's razor

the principle that in explaining something no more assumptions should be made than are necessary.
This principle takes its name from the English philosopher and Franciscan friar William of Occam ( c .1285–1349 ): the image is that of the razor cutting away all extraneous assumptions.
See also: razor
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

Occam's razor

The simplest explanation of something is apt to be the correct one. This principle is named for the English scholar William of Occam (or Ockham), who lived from 1280 to 1349. A Franciscan monk, he so angered Pope John XXII through both his writings on the nature of knowledge and his defense of his order’s vow of poverty that he was excommunicated. William, whom his colleagues called Doctor Singularis et Invincibilis (“singular and invincible doctor”), put his principle in Latin: Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem, “Entities should not be unnecessarily multiplied.” In effect, he held that any unnecessary parts of a subject being analyzed should be eliminated. Obviously, this could simply be called Occam’s Principle, and indeed, the razor did not enter into it until a French philosopher, Etienne Bonnot de Condillac, in 1746 called it Rasoir des Nominaux, “the razor of the nominalists,” that is, cutting through complicated arguments to reach the truth. In 1836 Sir William Hamilton, lecturing on metaphysics and logic, put the two ideas together, saying, “We are therefore entitled to apply Occam’s razor to this theory of causality.” While some may believe that this phrase, with its ancient and rather abstruse origin, is obsolete, novelist Archer Mayor clearly disagreed, for he entitled his 1999 murder mystery Occam’s Razor.
See also: razor
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • audi alteram partem
  • early money is like yeast(, because it helps to raise the dough)
  • argue against
  • can’t find one’s butt with both hands in broad daylight
  • can't find (one's) butt with both hands in broad daylight
  • a woman's place is in the home
  • Godwin's law
  • pub
  • raffle
  • couldn't organise a chook raffle at a poultry farm
References in periodicals archive
Occam's Razor in this case suggests that these parts were simply played on natural trumpets.
The Stadtpfeifer: Gottfried Reiche and Bach's Leipzig horn parts
There's a scientific principle called Occam's Razor that states that the simplest explanation is likely to De the correct one.
Alone across Antarctica: at the end of last year, Felicity Aston set out on the Kaspersky ONE Transantarctic Expedition to become the first woman to cross the Antarctic landmass alone, eventually skiing more than 1,700 kilometres over a period of 59 days. Here she describes the kit that kept her going
Using Occam's Razor, all these phenomena can be simply explained: People hurt others because they don't like them.
3 stories
That's when it hit me; if I applied Occam's Razor, like in that Simpsons episode, I'd come to a logical conclusion: The RAND Corporation, in conjunction with the saucer people, under the supervision of the reverse vampires, are forcing exhibitors to go without publicity in a fiendish plot to eliminate business magazines!
The secret show: shaving cut with Occam's Razor
Using the Occam's Razor approach, the simplest answer is all around you: the folks who work with you in your practice.
Cherish the young(er)
(This is the vexed question known in the philosophy of mind as "supervenience") Is this sort of dependency a problem too or, as with the Occam's razor discussion, am I indulging in sophistry again?
Rejoinder to response by Marie-Laure Ryan
Well versed in the literature on Bollywood (which she effortless weaves into her account), Nayar applies a kind of cinema scholar's Occam's Razor to this genre.
Nayar, Sheila J. Cinematically Speaking: The Orality-Literacy Paradigm for Visual Narrative
Many are familiar with the Occam's Razor theory which implies, in a nutshell, that the simplest answer is most often the correct answer.
Occam's Ranger: SOG's Northwest Ranger makes a case for simple perfection
Whip Occam's razor out of your washbag and start slicing.
Sleuthing our way to the Grand National w inner
This is also true of accidentals and musica ficta, which is applied judiciously and seemingly with Occam's razor in mind.
Johannes Martini and Johannes Brebis
The penultimate chapter on clinical reasoning introduces several key topics in inferential/analytical statistics such as the null hypothesis and levels of probability, as well as a collection of clinical aphorisms, including Sutton's law and Occam's razor.
Sapira's Art and Science of Bedside Diagnosis
The Occam's razor principle examines another aspect of a theory and prefers a theory that relies on a minimal number of assumptions.
On the significance of the upcoming large Hadron Collider proton-proton cross section data
For Aaronovitch the scalpel most useful in excising the cancer of conspiracy theory is Occam's Razor. Occam's Razor, pluralitas non est ponenda sine necessitate, is translated as "plurality should not be posited without necessity." In other words, the simplest explanation is usually the best one.
No, Sir, that ain't History: Voodoo Histories, the David Aaronovitch book that attempts to falsify all Modern-day instances of Conspiracy, falls short Because, ironically, it ignores History
And the basis for this conclusion - William of Occam's razor. A quick Google and you find that it's a scientific idea that the simplest explanation for most things is usually the right one.
RAZOR RULE APPLIES
The Gale/Montanaro thesis is interesting, but fails the Occam's razor test.
What's So Important About the Abdulmutallab Affair?