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Putnam thought that when you look at an observational thought you need to look at the things you can observe and the things you cannot observe in order to follow observational statements. You have to look at the theoretical side in order to support the observational side and in order to support the theoretical side you have to look at the observational side. Reference
Tim. "Hilary Putnam Philosophy Summary." Philosophy & Philosophers. 01 Apr. 2017. Web. 10 Jan. 2021. -
The Brain in a vat is a confusing theory and it takes a bit of time to truly understand. So the example that is given is when you see an image of a brain it is due to not necessarily knowing you're thinking that it is a brain but correlating the brain image into an actual image. The goal of brain in a vat was to show how thoughts occur in the brain. References
Tim. "Hilary Putnam Philosophy Summary." Philosophy & Philosophers. 01 Apr. 2017. Web. 10 Jan. 2021. -
Putnam pioneered that belief that your mental state correlates with the responding behaviors and thoughts of that specific mental state. This is known as functionalism. In functions of the brain or structures, they do not correspond all the same. It is different. While he may have pioneered this idea he did not stick to the idea for long. Reference
"Philosophy of the Mind." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Web. 10 Jan. 2021. -
Metaphysics is a fancy word for examining things realistically. How Putnam viewed the world was through commonsense realism. The goal of this was to confirm or deny objective truths. While maintaining this type of realism you can avoid objectivism. In another twist Putnam's view on metaphysics could be subject to skepticism. Reference
"Varieties of Realism." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Web. 10 Jan. 2021. -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNsMP-Jj5Pw
Reference
Americanphilosopher. "Putnam on Pragmatism and Positivism." YouTube. YouTube, 30 Oct. 2013. Web. 10 Jan. 2021.