Dr Roman Frigg

Optional on MSc Philosophy of Science. May be taken as an option by other MSc students with the express permission of their tutor.

The course introduces students to philosophical and conceptual problems that arise in connection with modern physics. The course starts with classical mechanics, which lays the foundation for the discussion of chaos theory, relativity theory (special and general), quantum mechanics, and thermo-statistical physics.

First Term: The term is split into three parts. The first part (5 weeks) is about classical mechanics: determinism and indeterminism, absolute versus relative space and time, chaos, stability and instability, the limits to predictability, and randomness in deterministic theories. The second part (two weeks) covers the philosophy of special relativity: Minkowski space-time, the meaning of the relativity principle, and the verifiability principle. The third part (three weeks) is dedicated to conceptual problems in general relativity theory: the rise and fall of Euclidean geometry, conventionality, substantivalism, and the hole argument.

Second Term: The term is split in two parts of five weeks each. The first part is dedicated to conceptual problems in quantum mechanics: the measurement problem, non-locality, the EPR experiement, Bell's inequalities, and hidden variables. The second part deals with the foundations of thermo-statistical physics: the second law of thermodynamics, probabilities in deterministic theories, inter-theoretic reduction, the reversibility objection, and the recurrence objection.

Lectures PH409.1 20 x one hour (MT, LT); Seminars PH409.2 20 x one hour (MT, LT). There is also an optional research seminar in philosophy of natural science (PH551).

Students will be expected to write at least two essays per term and to give a class presentation.

Norton, John: "Introduction to the Philosophy of Space and Time, " in Introduction to the Philosophy of Science. Prentice-Hall 1999. Reprinted in J. Butterfield, M. Hogarth and G. Belot, Spacetime: The International Research Library of Philosophy, 17. Aldershot: Dartmouth, 1996, pp. 3-56.

Peter Smith: Explaining Chaos. Cambridge University Press 1998.

David Albert: Quantum Mechanics and Experience. Harvard University Press 1992.
Roman Frigg: 'What is Statistical Mechanics?', forthcoming, available at http://www.romanfrigg.org/writings.htm

A three-hour written examination in the ST.