What is meant by the term "Occam's Razor", often invoked by Indo-Europeanists?
Dear Andrew,
The razor basically means that the simple solution is generally the correct one. Complexity is to be eschewed.
http://pespmc1.vub.ac.be/OCCAMRAZ.html
Occam's razor is a logical principle attributed to the mediaeval philosopher
William of Occam (or Ockham). The principle states that one should not make more assumptions than the minimum needed. This principle is often called the principle of parsimony. It underlies all scientific modelling and theory building. It admonishes us to choose from a set of otherwise equivalent models of a given phenomenon the simplest one. In any given model, Occam's razor helps us to "shave off" those concepts, variables or constructs that are not really needed to explain the phenomenon. By doing that, developing the model will become much easier, and there is less chance of introducing inconsistencies, ambiguities and redundancies. Best regards, John Piscopo