Absence of Eka-Elements Samples: Towards a Hybrid Theory of Reference of Chemical Kind Terms

Abstract

In this article, I argue for a hybrid theory of reference of chemical kind terms as a desideratum for making sense of our complex relationship with chemical species that emerges from the analysis of real scientific practices. The work flow is as follows. I introduce the subject by presenting the virtues and problems of causal and descriptivist theories. I then present Putnam's division of linguistic labor as an example of a satisfactory causal explanation of reference borrowing. Next, I offer a personal account of the paradigmatic case of grounding of natural kind terms by experts through the example of a chemistry apprentice. Finally, I consider the problem of the absence of samples by analyzing an episode in the history of science involving chemical species terms. These were introduced by Mendeleev to name chemical elements theoretically predicted by him with the help of the periodic law. It is widely accepted that these elements were later isolated and characterized experimentally by other natural scientists. My conclusion is that if we proceed from our pre-theoretical judgments that the terms for eka-elements and the terms for the later discovered elements are co-referential, then the only possible way to make sense of Mendeleev's significantly correct predictions is to admit that at least a few chemical kind terms can be introduced descriptively without direct contact with samples.