The Routledge Companion to Philosophy of Physics

ISBN-13: 9780367769611 / Angielski

Eleanor Knox; Alastair Wilson

Opis

The most thorough volume of its type, covering most major perspectives accross 54 chapters by leading contributors split into 12 part. Parts 1-7 cover key physical theories (e.g. special relativity; quantum gravity). 8-12 cover shared themes (e.g. explanation; symmetries). Suitable for researchers and students.

The Routledge Companion to Philosophy of Physics is a comprehensive and authoritative guide to the state of the art in the philosophy of physics. It comprisess 54 self-contained chapters written by leading philosophers of physics at both senior and junior levels, making it the most thorough and detailed volume of its type on the market – nearly every major perspective in the field is represented.

The Companion’s 54 chapters are organized into 12 parts. The first seven parts cover all of the major physical theories investigated by philosophers of physics today, and the last five explore key themes that unite the study of these theories.

I. Newtonian Mechanics
II. Special Relativity
III. General Relativity
IV. Non-Relativistic Quantum Theory
V. Quantum Field Theory
VI. Quantum Gravity
VII. Statistical Mechanics and Thermodynamics
VIII. Explanation
IX. Intertheoretic Relations
X. Symmetries
XI. Metaphysics
XII. Cosmology

The difficulty level of the chapters has been carefully pitched so as to offer both accessible summaries for those new to philosophy of physics and standard reference points for active researchers on the front lines. An introductory chapter by the editors maps out the field, and each part also begins with a short summary that places the individual chapters in context. The volume will be indispensable to any serious student or scholar of philosophy of physics.

Spis treści

Introduction  I: Newtonian Mechanics  1. Newtonian Mechanics  2. Formulations of Classical Mechanics  3. Classical Spacetime Structure  4. Relationism in Classical Dynamics  II: Special Relativity  5. Relativity and Space-Time Geometry  6. The Dynamical Approach to Spacetime Theories  7. Relativity and the A-Theory  8. Relativistic Constraints on Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics  III: General Relativity  9. The Equivalence Principle(s)  10. The Hole Argument  11. Relativistic Spacetime Structure  IV: Non-Relativistic Quantum Mechanics  12. Bell’s Theorem, Quantum Probabilities, and Superdeterminism  13. Quantum Decoherence  14. The Everett Interpretation: Structure 15. The Everett Interpretation: Probability  16. Collapse Theories  17. Bohmian Mechanics  V: Quantum Field Theory  18. The Quantum Theory of Fields  19. Renormalization Group Methods  20. Locality in (Axiomatic) Quantum Field Theory: A Minority Report  21. Particles in Quantum Field Theory  VI: Quantum Gravity  22. The Development of Quantum Gravity: From Feelings to Phenomena  23. String Theory  24. Quantum Gravity from General Relativity  25. Spacetime "Emergence"  26. The Problem of Time  VII: Statistical Mechanics and Thermodynamics  27. Equilibrium in Boltzmannian Statistical Mechanics  28. Equilibrium in Gibbsian Statistical Mechanics  29. Quantum Foundations of Statistical Mechanics and Thermodynamics  30. Entropy Asymmetry  VIII: Explanation 31. Causal Explanation in Physics  32. Non-Causal Explanations in Physics  33. Mechanistic Explanation in Physics  34. The Explanatory Value of Choosing the Appropriate Scale(s) IX: Intertheoretic Relations  35. Nagelian Reduction in Physics 36. Phase Transitions  37. Universality  38. Chance and Determinism  X: Symmetries  39. Symmetry and Superfluous Structure: A Metaphysical Overview  40. Symmetry and Superfluous Structure: Lessons from History and Tempered Enthusiasm  41. Permutations  42. Gauge Theories  43. Time Reversal  44. Symmetry Breaking  XI: Metaphysics 45. Laws  46. Chance  47. Holism  48. Dimensionality  49. Fundamentality  XII: Cosmology 50. Why Is There Something, Rather Than Nothing?  51. Time in Cosmology  52. The Fine-Tuning of the Universe for Life  53. Dark Matter and Dark Energy  54. Evidence in Astrophysics

O autorze

Eleanor Knox is Reader in Philosophy of Physics at King’s College London. She works in philosophy of physics, particularly the philosophy of spacetime physics, and is also interested in issues of reduction and emergence, and how these two come together in quantum gravity.

Alastair Wilson is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Birmingham and Senior Adjunct Research Fellow at Monash University. He works on philosophy of physics, philosophy of science, metaphysics, and epistemology, with special interests in the philosophy of quantum theory and the metaphysics of dependence. He is the author of The Nature of Contingency: Quantum Physics as Modal Realism (2020).