How the Laws of Physics can be confronted with Experience
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/ths.1992.004Keywords
physics laws, experience, phenomenological lawsAbstract
Nancy Cartwright’s arguments in favour of the phenomenological laws and against the fundamental ones are discussed. I support and strengthen her criticism of the standard covering-law account but I am sceptical in respect to her radical conclusions that the laws of physics lie. Arguments in favour of the opposite standpoint are based on V. Stjopin’s analysis of scientific-theory structure. A theory-change model presented here demonstrates how the fundamental laws of physics can be confronted with experience. Its case studies include the Lo¬rentz—Einstein—Bohr transition and modern General Relativity and Quantum Field Theory unification.References
Birrell, N. D., Davies, P. C. W. (1982), Quantum Fields in Curved in Space, CUP.
Cartwright, N. (1983), How the Laws of Physics Lie, Oxford, Clarendon Press.
Chyba, C., Kaluza-Klein, F., Unified Field Theory and Apparent Four-dimensional space-time, American Journal of Physics, vol. 53(9), pp. 863—872.
De Witt, B. S. (1975), Quantum-Field Theory in Curved Spacetimes, Physics Reports, C. 19, pp. 297—357.
De Witt, B. S. (1980), Quantum Gravity: the New Synthesis, [in:] Quantum Gravity 2, Oxford, pp. 680—745.
Dirac, P. A. M. (1973), Development of the Physicist's Conception of Nature, [in:] Mehra J. (ed.), The Physicist's Conception of Nature, D. Reidel, pp. 1—14.
Einstein, A. (1949), Autobiographical Notes, [in:] Albert Einstein: Philosopher-Scientist (ed. by P. A. Schlipp), Evanston, Illinois, pp. 3—95.
Fulling, S. A. (1973), Nonuniqueness of Canonical Field Quantization in Riemannian Space-Time, The Physical Review, vol. 7, pp. 2850—2861.
Kuhn, T. S. (1957), The Copernican Revolution: Planetary Astronomy in the Development of Western Thought, Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Kuhn, T. S. (1958), Newton's Optical Papers, [in:] Isaac Newton's Papers and Letters on Natural Philosophy, ed. by I. B. Cohen, Cambridge, MA, pp. 27—45.
Kuhn, T. S. (1977), Objectivity, Value Judgement and Theory Choice, [in:] The Essential Tension, University of Chicago Press, pp. 320—329.
Kuhn, T. S. (1977), A Function for Thought Experiments, [in:] The Essential Tension, University of Chicago Press, pp. 240—265.
Kuhn, T. S. (1978), Black-Body Theory and the Quantum Discontinuity, 1894—1912, Oxford and New York.
Kuhn, T. S. (1980), 77ie Halt and the Blind: Philosophy and History of Science, The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, vol. 31, pp. 181—192.
Nugayev, R. M. (1987), The Genesis and Structure of Models in the Modern Theory of Gravity, International Studies in the Philosophy of Science, vol. 2, n° 1, pp. 84—104.
Pais, A. (1980), Einstein on Particles, Fields, and the Quantum Theory, [in:] Some Strangeness in the Proportion, N. Y., pp. 197—251.
Podgoretzky, M. I., Smorodinsky, J. A. (1980), On the Axiomatic Structure of Physical Theories, [in:] The Physical Theory, Moscow, Nauka, pp. 53—61 (in Russian).
Stjopin, V. S. (1976), The Formation of a Scientific Theory, Minsk, Belorussian University Press (in Russian).
Unruh, W. G. (1980), Comment on Hawking’s Paper, [in:] Some Strangeness in the Proportion, N. Y., pp. 153—155
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Stats
Number of views and downloads: 304
Number of citations: 0
