The Physicist and the Philosopher

Author: Jimena Canales
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400865778
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 488

Book Description
The explosive debate that transformed our views about time and scientific truth On April 6, 1922, in Paris, Albert Einstein and Henri Bergson publicly debated the nature of time. Einstein considered Bergson's theory of time to be a soft, psychological notion, irreconcilable with the quantitative realities of physics. Bergson, who gained fame as a philosopher by arguing that time should not be understood exclusively through the lens of science, criticized Einstein's theory of time for being a metaphysics grafted on to science, one that ignored the intuitive aspects of time. The Physicist and the Philosopher tells the remarkable story of how this explosive debate transformed our understanding of time and drove a rift between science and the humanities that persists today. Jimena Canales introduces readers to the revolutionary ideas of Einstein and Bergson, describes how they dramatically collided in Paris, and traces how this clash of worldviews reverberated across the twentieth century. She shows how it provoked responses from figures such as Bertrand Russell and Martin Heidegger, and carried repercussions for American pragmatism, logical positivism, phenomenology, and quantum mechanics. Canales explains how the new technologies of the period—such as wristwatches, radio, and film—helped to shape people’s conceptions of time and further polarized the public debate. She also discusses how Bergson and Einstein, toward the end of their lives, each reflected on his rival’s legacy—Bergson during the Nazi occupation of Paris and Einstein in the context of the first hydrogen bomb explosion. The Physicist and the Philosopher is a magisterial and revealing account that shows how scientific truth was placed on trial in a divided century marked by a new sense of time.

Physics and Philosophy

Author: Werner Heisenberg
Publisher: Penguin Books, Limited (UK)
ISBN: 9780141182155
Category : Physics
Languages : en
Pages : 143

Book Description
Heisenberg explains the central ideas of the quantum revolution, and his uncertainty principle. He reveals how words can lose their meaning in the world of relativity and quantum physics, with philosophical implications for the nature of reality.

Philosophy of Physics

Author: David Wallace
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0198814321
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 169

Book Description
Philosophy of physics is concerned with the deepest theories of modern physics - quantum theory, our theories of space, time and symmetry, and thermal physics - and their strange, even bizarre conceptual implications. This book explores the core topics in philosophy of physics, and discusses their relevance for both scientists and philosophers.

The Physicist and the Philosopher

Author: Jimena Canales
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691173176
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 487

Philosophy of Physics

Author: Tim Maudlin
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691165718
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 199

Book Description
Philosophical foundations of the physics of space-time This concise book introduces nonphysicists to the core philosophical issues surrounding the nature and structure of space and time, and is also an ideal resource for physicists interested in the conceptual foundations of space-time theory. Tim Maudlin's broad historical overview examines Aristotelian and Newtonian accounts of space and time, and traces how Galileo's conceptions of relativity and space-time led to Einstein's special and general theories of relativity. Maudlin explains special relativity with enough detail to solve concrete physical problems while presenting general relativity in more qualitative terms. Additional topics include the Twins Paradox, the physical aspects of the Lorentz-FitzGerald contraction, the constancy of the speed of light, time travel, the direction of time, and more. Introduces nonphysicists to the philosophical foundations of space-time theory Provides a broad historical overview, from Aristotle to Einstein Explains special relativity geometrically, emphasizing the intrinsic structure of space-time Covers the Twins Paradox, Galilean relativity, time travel, and more Requires only basic algebra and no formal knowledge of physics

Grete Hermann - Between Physics and Philosophy

Author: Elise Crull
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 940240970X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 285

Book Description
Grete Hermann (1901-1984) was a pupil of mathematical physicist Emmy Noether, follower and co-worker of neo-Kantian philosopher Leonard Nelson, and an important intellectual figure in post-war German social democracy. She is best known for her work on the philosophy of modern physics in the 1930s, some of which emerged from intense discussions with Heisenberg and Weizsäcker in Leipzig. Hermann’s aim was to counter the threat to the Kantian notion of causality coming from quantum mechanics. She also discussed in depth the question of ‘hidden variables’ (including the first critique of von Neumann’s alleged impossibility proof) and provided an extensive analysis of Bohr’s notion of complementarity. This volume includes translations of Hermann’s two most important essays on this topic: one hitherto unpublished and one translated here into English for the first time. It also brings together recent scholarly contributions by historians and philosophers of science, physicists, and philosophers and educators following in Hermann’s steps. Hermann's work places her in the first rank among philosophers who wrote about modern physics in the first half of the last century. Those interested in the many fields to which she contributed will find here a comprehensive discussion of her philosophy of physics that places it in the context of her wider work.

Philosophy of Physics

Author: Tim Maudlin
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 069118352X
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 249

Book Description
A sophisticated and original introduction to the philosophy of quantum mechanics from one of the world’s leading philosophers of physics In this book, Tim Maudlin, one of the world’s leading philosophers of physics, offers a sophisticated, original introduction to the philosophy of quantum mechanics. The briefest, clearest, and most refined account of his influential approach to the subject, the book will be invaluable to all students of philosophy and physics. Quantum mechanics holds a unique place in the history of physics. It has produced the most accurate predictions of any scientific theory, but, more astonishing, there has never been any agreement about what the theory implies about physical reality. Maudlin argues that the very term “quantum theory” is a misnomer. A proper physical theory should clearly describe what is there and what it does—yet standard textbooks present quantum mechanics as a predictive recipe in search of a physical theory. In contrast, Maudlin explores three proper theories that recover the quantum predictions: the indeterministic wavefunction collapse theory of Ghirardi, Rimini, and Weber; the deterministic particle theory of deBroglie and Bohm; and the conceptually challenging Many Worlds theory of Everett. Each offers a radically different proposal for the nature of physical reality, but Maudlin shows that none of them are what they are generally taken to be.

The Philosophy Behind Physics

Author: Thomas A. Brody
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3642789781
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 361

Book Description
Thomas Brody had one of the most powerful and wide-ranging intellects of his generation. Although primarily a physicist who worked on statistical prob lems in nuclear physics, on probability theory and on computational physics he had an extensive knowledge of the philosophy of science and of philosophy, and was fluent in many languages. He is well-known among physicists for the Brody-Moshinsky transformation but his extensive work on probability and on the philosophy of science remained almost unknown. This was because the originality of his ideas entailed many lengthy battles with uncomprehending referees, and he frequently published in Mexican journals of limited circula tion. In addition, his strongly critical spirit inhibited his willingness to publish his ideas. He was always most concerned by the very unsatisfactory situation in the philosophy of physics, that is largely due to the generally poor knowledge that physicists and philosophers have of each other's disciplines. Philosophers of science write at length about physics without any detailed first-hand knowl edge of how research is actually carried out. Physicists, for their part, often implicitly assume naive or erroneous philosophical ideas, and this often hinders their scientific work, besides spreading further confusion if they try to give an account of what they are doing.

Ernst Mach: Physicist and Philosopher

Author: Robert S. Cohen
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 9027700168
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 298

Book Description
At the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C., 27 December 1966, a symposium was held to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Ernst Mach, the physicist who was vitally concerned about philosophical foundations. It was arranged by Section B on Physics, and co-sponsored by Section L on the History and Philosophy of Science, as well as by the History of Science Society. Dr. Allen W. Astin, Vice-President of the Association and Director of the National Bureau of Standards, presided. Representing the Austrian ambassador, Dr. Ernst Lemberger, a few opening remarks on his behalf were made by Dr. Walter Hietsch. Also present was Dr. Ernest A. Lederer, a grandson of Ernst Mach. The contributors, to the symposium, mostly physicists, represented different backgrounds and differing points of view; they presented their review of Mach's work primarily in the light of subsequent developments. They all, however, share a common interest in the life and works of Ernst Mach. Two of them, Otto BlUh and Peter G. Bergmann, received their doctoral degrees in theoretical physics from the University of Prague. Karl Menger received his doctoral degree in mathematics from the University of Vienna (he is responsible for the latest edition [1960] of Mach's celebrated The Science of Mechanics: A Critical and Historical Account of its Development, for which he prepared a new Introduction).

Philosophy of Physics

Author: Jeremy Butterfield
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 0444515607
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 1481

Book Description
The ambition of this volume is twofold: to provide a comprehensive overview of the field and to serve as an indispensable reference work for anyone who wants to work in it. For example, any philosopher who hopes to make a contribution to the topic of the classical-quantum correspondence will have to begin by consulting Klaas Landsman's chapter. The organization of this volume, as well as the choice of topics, is based on the conviction that the important problems in the philosophy of physics arise from studying the foundations of the fundamental theories of physics. It follows that there is no sharp line to be drawn between philosophy of physics and physics itself. Some of the best work in the philosophy of physics is being done by physicists, as witnessed by the fact that several of the contributors to the volume are theoretical physicists: viz., Ellis, Emch, Harvey, Landsman, Rovelli, 't Hooft, the last of whom is a Nobel laureate. Key features - Definitive discussions of the philosophical implications of modern physics - Masterly expositions of the fundamental theories of modern physics - Covers all three main pillars of modern physics: relativity theory, quantum theory, and thermal physics - Covers the new sciences grown from these theories: for example, cosmology from relativity theory; and quantum information and quantum computing, from quantum theory - Contains special Chapters that address crucial topics that arise in several different theories, such as symmetry and determinism - Written by very distinguished theoretical physicists, including a Nobel Laureate, as well as by philosophers - Definitive discussions of the philosophical implications of modern physics - Masterly expositions of the fundamental theories of modern physics - Covers all three main pillars of modern physics: relativity theory, quantum theory, and thermal physics - Covers the new sciences that have grown from these theories: for example, cosmology from relativity theory; and quantum information and quantum computing, from quantum theory - Contains special Chapters that address crucial topics that arise in several different theories, such as symmetry and determinism - Written by very distinguished theoretical physicists, including a Nobel Laureate, as well as by philosophers