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Zusatztext Highly readable, informative and ... valuable ... a useful addition to a very good series, the Dimensions of Philosophy Series ... The main value of this volume is that it will provide an excellent introductory and intermediate textbook, which covers all of the key issues with which students must become familiar. The level of discussion of physical theory is ... clear and accurate throughout so that it will provide a stimulus for those students of physics who would like to know much more about the conceptual foundations of major branches of physical theory ... a superb teaching aid. Sklar has the merit of writing clearly, vigorously and with some wit, and this makes the volume very readable. Klappentext This broad overview of contemporary philosophy of physics provides a clear and accurate guide to the key topics: the nature of space and time; the problems of probability and irreversibility in statistical mechanics; and! of course! the many notorious problems raised by quantum mechanics. Zusammenfassung This broad overview of contemporary philosophy of physics provides a clear and accurate guide to the key topics: the nature of space and time; the problems of probability and irreversibility in statistical mechanics; and, of course, the many notorious problems raised by quantum mechanics. Inhaltsverzeichnis Introduction Philosophy and the Physical Sciences 1: The relation of science to philosophy 2: Modern physics and philosophy 3: Philosophy of physics and general philosophy 4: The aim and structure of this book Space, Time, and Motion 5: Traditional philosophical problems of space and time 6: The debate between Newton and Leibniz 7: From space and time to spacetime 8: How do we know the true geometry of the world 9: What kind of being does spacetime have? The Introduction of Probability into Physics 10: Philosophers on probability and statistical explanation 11: From thermodynamnics to statistical mechanics 12: The problems of irreversibility and attempts to solve it 13: The problem of `The Direction of Time' The Quantum Picture of the World 14: The experimental basis of quantum theory 15: Early attempts to interpret the theory: The uncertainty principle 16: What is measurement in quantum theory? 17: The problem of hidden variables and determinism 18: The inseparability of systems Reflections on the Interdependence of Philosophy and Science ...
