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Quantum theory explains a hugely diverse array of phenomena in the history of science. But how can the world be the way quantum theory says it is? Fifteen expert scholars consider what the world is like according to quantum physics in this volume and offer illuminating new perspectives on fundamental debates that span physics and philosophy.
List of contents
- 1: Steven French and Juha Saatsi: Introduction
- Part I: Rethinking Scientific Realism
- 2: Carl Hoefer: Scientific Realism Without the Quantum
- 3: Juha Saatsi: Truth vs. Progress Realism about Spin
- Part II: Underdetermination and Interpretation
- 4: Craig Callender: Can We Quarantine the Quantum Blight?
- 5: David Wallace: On the Plurality of Quantum Theories: Quantum theory as a framework and its implications for the quantum measurement problem
- 6: J. E. Wolff: Naturalism and the Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics
- Part III: Pragmatism about Quantum Theory
- 7: Richard Healey: Pragmatist Quantum Realism
- 8: Lina Jansson: Can Pragmatism About Quantum Theory Handle Objectivity About Explanations?
- 9: Peter J. Lewis: Quantum Mechanics and its (Dis)Contents
- Part IV: Wavefunction and Quantum State Realism
- 10: Alisa Bokulich: Losing Sight of the Forest for the Psi: Beyond the Wavefunction Hegemony
- 11: Valia Allori: Scientific Realism without the Wave Function
- 12: Wayne C. Myrvold: On the Status of Quantum State Realism
- Part V: Scientific Realism and Quantum Field Theory
- 13: Doreen Fraser: The Non-Miraculous Success of Formal Analogies in Quantum Theories
- 14: James D. Fraser: Towards a Realist View of Quantum Field Theory
- 15: Laura Ruetsche: Perturbing Realism
About the author
Steven French gained his PhD at the University of London under the supervision of Michael Redhead. After working in Brazil and the USA he moved to Leeds in 1993, where he is Professor of Philosophy of Science. He has published numerous articles and books in the philosophy of physics and the philosophy of science more generally, covering issues from the metaphysics of quantum theory to scientific modelling and structural realism. He is Co-Editor-in-Chief of The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science.
Juha Saatsi is Associate Professor of Philosophy at University of Leeds. He works on various topics in philosophy of science, and he has particular interests in the philosophy explanation and the scientific realism debate. He is co-editor of The Bloomsbury Companion to the Philosophy of Science (2014), The Structural Foundations of Quantum Gravity (Oxford 2006), and Explanation Beyond Causation (Oxford 2018).
Summary
Quantum theory explains a hugely diverse array of phenomena in the history of science. But how can the world be the way quantum theory says it is? Fifteen expert scholars consider what the world is like according to quantum physics in this volume and offer illuminating new perspectives on fundamental debates that span physics and philosophy.
Additional text
...thought-provoking collection...
