Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2019 April 13

= April 13 =

here's the definition what's the word
There's a Wikipedia article whose name I can't remember but it's about a concept in philosophy, that refers to answering a concrete question by generalizing it to an abstract principle and then applying the principle. The article (iirc) describes various virtues and hazards of this approach, and mentions that it's sometimes used in theology, if I remember right. It's a not-too-fancy-sounding word (i.e. not a goofy latin expression) that probably ends in -ism or -ization. I did some searches and scrolled through List of philosophies and Glossary of philosophy and still didn't see it, but might have missed it. Any idea? Thanks. 173.228.123.166 (talk) 01:25, 13 April 2019 (UTC)


 * The Categorical Imperative is similar (maybe not exactly what you're asking about). AnonMoos (talk) 04:08, 13 April 2019 (UTC)


 * No, not that, but thanks. I'm pretty sure the one I'm looking for is a single word, and it's descriptive rather than prescriptive. 173.228.123.166 (talk) 04:56, 13 April 2019 (UTC)


 * There's "reification", though that's Latin... AnonMoos (talk) 08:08, 13 April 2019 (UTC)


 * That's kind of close but that's not it either. I actually spent a while looking at outgoing links from that article.  The word probably does have a latin root.  I just meant it's not one of those phrases that sounds like a Harry Potter spell.  Thanks and I'll keep thinking about it too. 173.228.123.166 (talk) 08:49, 13 April 2019 (UTC)


 * Found it! I was looking for Casuistry.  Thanks for the help (which was in fact helpful since it got me looking in more places).  173.228.123.166 (talk) 08:51, 13 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Congratulations! You've found the Refdesk Secret-Word-of-the-Day!  —2606:A000:1126:28D:F935:C7E2:FE1:E49 (talk) 20:13, 13 April 2019 (UTC)

Agattu Island
Agattu is an island between Alsaka and Russia. The article says that it is uninhabited, but doesn't say if it is part of Russia or the US. Any one know? Shouldn't this sort of political info be in the article for each island in this chain? -- SGBailey (talk) 19:03, 13 April 2019 (UTC)
 * The article states it is part of the Near Islands, which states they are part of Alaska. Also, note the Alaskan categories and the first entry in the Further reading (moved) External links section. I've made an edit to cite the state in the first sentence. Clarityfiend (talk) 19:37, 13 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Well done User:Clarityfiend for clarifying the lead of that article. Clarity now abounds. Alansplodge (talk) 22:17, 13 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Yes, it is fiendishly clear now. 173.228.123.166 (talk) 23:10, 13 April 2019 (UTC)