According to Aristotle, common sensibles are the properties of the objects we perceive with several senses. Through common sensibles humans are able to apprehend the shape and size of objects, the number of them, whether they are in rest or in motion.
Incidental perception means that one perceives an object and is able to define its properties, but at the same time is not able to correctly identify what an object is. A pale thing one perceives may be the son of Diares, but it may as well not. In this case pale is a quality that can be attributed not only to the son of Diares, thus, it is not unique to him.
People are capable to retain their observations in memory and, thus, build up experience if a certain observation recurs. Observational data that accumulates in human mind can provide explanatory principles for scientific knowledge.
Aristotle’s position that all teaching and intellectual knowledge originate from already existing knowledge is based on his assumption that in order to learn something new we use deductive and inductive reasoning applied to the existing knowledge.
The assumption about theoretical knowledge not yielding any new knowledge is based on the Aristotle’s position described in the previous answer. He states that when we are trying to investigate a certain topic, the more we reason and think about it, the more clear the connections between what we know and our theoretical assumptions become and the more truths become available for us. As such, this knowledge is not emerging our of our thought process, it is out thought process that brings us to understanding.
Sullogizesthai for Aristotle encompasses demonstrative as well as dialectic reasoning.
Scientific reasoning entails inquiry, warrant and explanation. Phainomena is empirical or perceptual data that is to be used in all three stages of scientific reasoning. Scientific inquiry collects phainomena, while warrant and explanation test the results of inquiry against the theoretical assumption.
Syllogism is a form of reasoning in which one makes the conclusion on the basis of the given premises. Demonstration is a syllogism because it too presents a conclusion on the basis of the given premises; however, for the syllogism to count as a demonstration, it has to draw an explanation of why the conclusion is true. Inductive reasoning draws a universal conclusion on the basis of particular statements, whereas deductive reasoning forms a conclusion on the basis of particular premises.
Knowing that entails knowing the perceptible, while knowing why is to be aware of the reason for perceptible being the way it is. Mathematics and astronomy are the so-called mixed sciences which involve observing (to hoti), a well as knowing the reason why (to dioti). For drawing logical mathematical or astronomical conclusions one first has to hoti a phenomenon, and then to dioti it.
