Notes for 1/14/2026

1/14/2026
Could two things exist that are EXACTLY alike?
 
When asked what soft skills they most need in employees, the three most mentioned usually include: Critical Thinking, Communication, and Ethical Judgment.

Philosophy excels in teaching 2/3 of these … or maybe 2.5/3 … because philosophy teaches clear and precise expression in language.


 
Thinking of Law School?
 
 
Business school?
 

Oh yeah? Well, what about Medical School?
 
(Why 1998? Because that was the last year before philosophy got lumped in with other Humanities majors)
  

Other grad school?
 

(By GRE section):
 

 
 


 
 
 
 

Philosophy majors outperform other humanities majors in earnings

 
Studying philosophy integrated with technical disciplines (especially data sciences), tends to result in outperforming studying only the technical disciplines.

(Philosophy major + subject minor > Subject major + philosophy minor)
Why? 
Because of the difference between durable and fugacious skills. 
 
Could two things be exactly alike?

Leibniz proposed:
Identity of indiscernibles: If x and y are exactly alike, then x=y.

Indiscernibility of identicals: If x = y, then x and y are exactly alike.

Leibniz’s Law: x = y if and only if x and y have all the same properties.

“All electrons are exactly alike.”


What makes 2 things 2 things of the same type?

Socrates
Plato


What makes 2 llamas alike?

1.    These two things have something in common.
2.    Therefore, these two things have some one thing in common. (Plato calls this a FORM.)
Forms are abstract objects that exist apart from us and our minds.

There is a Form of Llamas.
There is a Form of Alpacas.
 

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