Objective description in physics

In Tomas Marvan, Hanne Andersen, Hasok Chang, Benedikt Löwe & Ivo Pezlar (eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Congress of Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science and Technology. London: College Publications (2022)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

I argue against the claim -- advocated by Albert Einstein, Bernard Williams, and Ted Sider, among others -- that a description is objective only if it says how the world is in itself. Instead, I argue for the claim -- inspired by comments of Niels Bohr -- that a family of descriptions is objective only if they co-vary with their respective descriptive contexts. Moreover, I claim that "there is a shared objective reality" simply means that it is possible to satisfy this kind of covariance requirement.

Links

PhilArchive

External links

  • This entry has no external links. Add one.
Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Quantum Physics and Reality.Bernard D’Espagnat - 2011 - Foundations of Physics 41 (11):1703-1716.
Emergent Chance.Christian List & Marcus Pivato - 2015 - Philosophical Review 124 (1):119-152.
Les Concepts de la Physique.Michel Paty - 2001 - Principia: An International Journal of Epistemology 5 (1-2):209–240.
Time, structure, and objectivity in quantum theory.F. David Peat - 1988 - Foundations of Physics 18 (12):1213-1231.
An Investigation on the Descriptive Origin of Paradox.Tianen Wang - 2018 - Proceedings of the XXIII World Congress of Philosophy 75:249-255.
The Density Matrix in the de Broglie--Bohm Approach.O. J. E. Maroney - 2005 - Foundations of Physics 35 (3):493-510.
Albert Einstein: Revolutionär oder “Bewahrer des Alten”?Tobias Jung - 2008 - Berichte Zur Wissenschaftsgeschichte 31 (3):264-281.
Contemporary Physics and Lenin's Conception of Objective Truth.V. Ia Pakhomov - 1970 - Russian Studies in Philosophy 9 (1):60-80.

Analytics

Added to PP
2022-04-25

Downloads
380 (#50,032)

6 months
142 (#21,402)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Hans Halvorson
Princeton University

Citations of this work

No citations found.

Add more citations

References found in this work

Demonstratives: An Essay on the Semantics, Logic, Metaphysics and Epistemology of Demonstratives and other Indexicals.David Kaplan - 1989 - In Joseph Almog, John Perry & Howard Wettstein (eds.), Themes From Kaplan. Oxford University Press. pp. 481-563.
The Tools of Metaphysics and the Metaphysics of Science.Theodore Sider - 2020 - Oxford, England and New York, NY, USA: Oxford University Press.
Descartes: The Project of Pure Enquiry.Bernard Williams (ed.) - 1978 - Hassocks [Eng.]: Routledge.
Mental Acts: Their Content And Their Objects.Peter Thomas Geach - 1957 - London, England: Humanities Press.

View all 16 references / Add more references