1938年約翰·杜威出板《Logic: The Theory of Inquiry》,主張現代科學中的歸納和演繹是用來定義和預測各個「類」的性質,科學理論是在有限情況下成立的條件句,而且也是不斷修正中的假說,其中定義的各種概念只是方便的假想,不是真正存在的自然類。[2]:283–4
杜威以晨露為例。西方自古以來認為露水是從天而降的雨滴,帶有雨水這個自然類的性質。至十九世記初,有些科學家開始研究為什麼沒下雨也會出現露水,最後透過「物質相的變化」這樣的過程來解釋露水如何形成,而不是透過解釋雨水或液態水這些自然類的特性來解釋露水如何形成。[2]:425-432
2016年凱薩琳·肯迪科(Catherine Kendig)編輯了《Natural Kinds and Classification in Scientific Practice》論文集。肯迪科否定根據本質、自然律、同質關係或基本性質進立的亞里斯多德式分類,也否定這樣的分類可以對應到現實世界的本體。由此出發,他放棄傳統認定的那種恆久不變、獨立在人類意識之外的自然類,在論文集中收集對於各領域科學家在實務上如何認定「自然類」的許多研究。[7]:1–3
^Bird, Alexander; Tobin, Emma. Natural Kinds. Zalta, Edward N. (编). The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. [2020-05-12]. (原始内容存档于2020-08-15).
^ 2.02.12.22.3Dewey, John. Logic: The Theory of Inquiry. Holt, Rinehart, and Winston. 1938.
^ 3.03.1Kornblith, Hilary. Inductive Inference and Its Natural Ground. MIT Press. 1993.
^ 4.04.14.24.34.44.54.64.74.8Quine, Willard Van Orman. Natural Kinds. Nicholas Rescher (编). Essays in Honor of Carl G. Hempel. D. Reidel. 1970.
^ 5.05.1Bird, Alexander; Tobin, Emma, Natural Kinds, Zalta, Edward N. (编), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Spring 2018, Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, 2018 [2019-11-23], (原始内容存档于2020-08-15)
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