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History and Philosophy of Physics papers — page 106

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The logical foundations of Gibbs' paradox in classical thermodynamics
The analysis of the arguments within the limits of the classical thermodynamics that lead to the Gibbs paradox was made. Features of preconditions used in the derivation of the entropy of mixing of…
V. IhnatovychMay 1, 2013
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The explanation of eclipses in Greco-Roman antiquity
The search of a rational explanation of eclipses pervades the beginnings of philosophical and scientific thought. Within this intellectual frame, the knowledge of the "saros cycle" (a cycle…
Roberto Casazza, Alejandro GanguiApr 26, 2013
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An Acataleptic Universe
John Wheeler advocated the principle that information is the foundation of physics and asked us to reformulate physics in terms of bits. The goal is to consider what we know already and work out a…
Philip GibbsApr 24, 2013
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A palace for astronomy in Buenos Aires
In no other epoch of Western history like in the Middle Ages, cosmology was so key an element of culture and, one way or another, the motion of the heavens ended up impregnating the literature of…
Alejandro GanguiApr 23, 2013
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International scientific cooperation during the 1930s. Bruno Rossi and the development of the status of cosmic rays into a branch of physics
During the 1920s and 1930s, Italian physicists established strong relationships with scientists from other European countries and the United States. The career of Bruno Rossi, a leading personality…
Luisa BonolisApr 20, 2013
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Keepers of the Double Stars
Astronomers have long tracked double stars in efforts to find those that are gravitationally-bound binaries and then to determine their orbits. Early catalogues by the Herschels, Struves, and others…
Joseph S. TennApr 19, 2013
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The Early History of the Aharonov-Bohm Effect
This paper traces the early history of the Aharonov-Bohm effect. It appears to have been `discovered' at least three times to my knowledge before the defining paper of Aharonov and Bohm appeared…
B. J HileyApr 17, 2013
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Giovanni de la Fontana, engineer and magician
Giovanni de la Fontana was a man of the Italian Renaissance of the early fifteenth-century. Besides becoming a doctor of medicine, he was an engineer who used his skills to mimic the magicians,…
Amelia Carolina SparavignaApr 16, 2013
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Boscovich and the Brera Observatory
In the mid 18th century both theoretical and practical astronomy were cultivated in Milan by Barnabites and Jesuits. In 1763 R.G. Boscovich was appointed to the chair of mathematics of the University…
E. AntonelloApr 15, 2013
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The rise and fall of cosmical physics: notes for a history, ca. 1850-1920
In the period from about 1890 to 1915 an interdisciplinary and unifying research programme known as "cosmical physics" attracted much scientific and public attention. It typically included…
Helge KraghApr 14, 2013
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Cosmology and Time
Time has always played a crucial role in cosmology. I review some of the aspects of the present cosmological model which are more directly related to time, such as: the definition of a cosmic time;…
A. BalbiApr 13, 2013
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The Discovery of Quasars and its Aftermath
Although the extragalactic nature of quasars was discussed as early as 1960, it was rejected largely because of preconceived ideas about what appeared to be an unrealistically high radio and optical…
K. I. KellermannApr 10, 2013
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Anomalous Observers in the Subjectively Identical Reference Class
Anthropic reasoning is a critical tool to understand probabilities, especially in a large universe or multiverse. According to anthropic reasoning, we should consider ourselves typical among members…
Mike D. Schneider, Ken D. OlumApr 9, 2013
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Interview with Warren Wiscombe on scientific programing and his contributions to atmospheric science tool making
On March 11, 2013 I talked with Warren Wiscombe about his contributions to scientific computer programming, atmospheric science and radiative transfer. Our conversation is divided into three parts…
Piotr J. FlatauApr 4, 2013
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The strange (hi)story of particles and waves
This is a non-technical presentation (in historical context) of the quantum theory that is strictly based on global unitarity. While the first part was written for a general readership, Sect. 5 may…
H. Dieter ZehApr 3, 2013
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On the Physical Explanation for Quantum Computational Speedup
The aim of this dissertation is to clarify the debate over the explanation of quantum speedup and to submit a tentative resolution to it. In particular, I argue that the physical explanation for…
Michael E. CuffaroMar 31, 2013
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Fritz Hasenohrl and E = mc2
In 1904, the year before Einstein's seminal papers on special relativity, Austrian physicist Fritz Hasenohrl examined the properties of blackbody radiation in a moving cavity. He calculated the…
Stephen BoughnMar 28, 2013
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Dr. Harold Whichello: medicine and astronomy in Cheshire
Dr. Harold Whichello (1870-1945) was a Cheshire General Practitioner and an enthusiastic amateur astronomer. He joined the British Astronomical Association in 1898 and undertook observations for its…
Jeremy Shears, Theresa HullMar 28, 2013
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Religion in the cosmological ideas in Ukraine (from XI to XVII century)
Cosmology, whose object is the Universe, is in contact with the religion closer than any other science. We will try to trace the historical change of views on the universe in Ukraine from XI to XVII…
O. Yu KoltachykhinaMar 26, 2013
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On the Possibility of Quantum Informational Structural Realism
In The Philosophy of Information (2011 book), Luciano Floridi presents an ontological theory of Being qua Being, which he calls "Informational Structural Realism", a theory which applies, he…
Terrell Ward BynumMar 25, 2013
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Beyond Reductionism Twice: No Laws Entail Biosphere Evolution, Formal Cause Laws Beyond Efficient Cause Laws
Newton set the stage for our view of how science should be done. We remain in what I will call the `Newtonian Paradigm' in all of physics, including Newton, Einstein, and Schrodinger. As I will…
Stuart KauffmanMar 22, 2013
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Revisiting Riccioli's free fall calculations
In 1651 Giovanni Riccioli reported the earliest accurate measurements the acceleration due to gravity, g, from pendulum-timed free fall experiments. The use of Huygens' pendulum formula…
Patrick B. WarrenMar 22, 2013
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Inconsistency of Carnot's theorem's proof by William Thomson
William Thomson proved Carnot's theorem basing on postulate: "It is impossible, by means of inanimate material agency, to derive mechanical effect from any portion of matter by cooling it…
V. IhnatovychMar 17, 2013
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A Critical Look at the Standard Cosmological Picture
The discovery that the Universe is accelerating in its expansion has brought the basic concept of cosmic expansion into question. An analysis of the evolution of this concept suggests that the…
Daryl JanzenMar 8, 2013
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Inconsistency of Carnot's theorem's proof by R. Clausius
R. Clausius proved Carnot's theorem basing on postulate "Heat cannot, of itself, pass from a colder to a hotter body". Alexander Gukhman demonstrated that Carnot's theorem can be…
V. IhnatovychMar 8, 2013
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