Skip to content

History and Philosophy of Physics papers — page 34

physics.hist-phBrowse archive

European historical evidence of the supernova of AD 1054 coins of Constantine IX and SN 1054
We investigate a possible depiction of the famous SN 1054 event in specially minted coins produced in the Eastern Roman Empire in 1054 A.D. On these coins, we investigate if the head of the Emperor,…
Miroslav D. Filipović, Jeffrey L. Payne, Thomas Jarret et al.Jun 1, 2022
Learn
Absorbing the Arrow of Electromagnetic Radiation
We argue that the asymmetry between diverging and converging electromagnetic waves is just one of many asymmetries in observed phenomena that can be explained by a past hypothesis and statistical…
Mario Hubert, Charles T. SebensMay 27, 2022
Learn
Point-Dimension Theory (Part I): The Point-Extended Box Dimension
This article is an introductory work to a larger research project devoted to pure, applied and philosophical aspects of dimension theory. It concerns a novel approach toward an alternate dimension…
Nadir Maaroufi, El Hassan ZeroualiMay 27, 2022
Learn
The Anthropic Principle Is Testable And Appears Weak
The Anthropic Principle has been with us since the 1970s. This Principle is advanced to account for the "fine tuning" of the 25 constants of the Standard Model of Particle Physics. Were these…
Stuart KauffmanMay 25, 2022
Learn
A Role for the Fauxrizon in the Semiclassical Limit of a Fuzzball
Recent work on the status of astrophysical modeling in the wake of quantum gravity indicates that a 'fauxrizon' (portmanteau of 'faux horizon'), such as is relevant to understanding astrophysical…
Mike D. SchneiderMay 23, 2022
Learn
Trans-Planckian Philosophy of Cosmology
I provide some philosophical groundwork for the recently proposed 'trans-Planckian censorship' conjecture in theoretical physics. In particular, I argue that structure formation in early universe…
Mike D. SchneiderMay 23, 2022
Learn
The open past in an indeterministic physics
Discussions on indeterminism in physics focus on the possibility of an open future, i.e. the possibility of having potential alternative future events, the realisation of one of which is not fully…
Flavio Del Santo, Nicolas GisinMay 23, 2022
Learn
Are Physical Theories Incommensurable?
This paper examines the incommensurability thesis - one of the most important and controversial ideas to emerge from the simultaneous work of Kuhn and Feyerabend. In the first half, I discuss three…
Kharanshu SolankiMay 21, 2022
Learn
Is There a 4th Law for Non-Ergodic Systems That Do Work To Construct Their Expanding Phase Space?
Substantial grounds exist to doubt the universal validity of the Newtonian Paradigm that requires a pre-stated, fixed phase space. Therefore, the Second Law of Thermodynamics, stated only for fixed…
Stuart KauffmanMay 19, 2022
Learn
The Pragmatic QFT Measurement Problem and the need for a Heisenberg-like Cut in QFT
Despite quantum theory's remarkable success, many philosophers worry that it nonetheless lacks some crucial connection between theory and experiment. One under-discussed aspect of the Quantum…
Daniel GrimmerMay 19, 2022
Learn
Randomness in Relational Quantum Mechanics
The relational interpretation of quantum mechanics (RQM), introduced in its present form by Carlo Rovelli in 1996, involves a number of significant departures from other QM interpretations widely…
Gary GordonMay 17, 2022
Learn
The logic of planetary combination in Vettius Valens
The Anthologies of the second-century astrologer Vettius Valens (120-c.175 CE) is the most extensive surviving practical astrological text from the period. Despite this, the theoretical underpinnings…
Claire Hall, Liam P. ShawMay 16, 2022
Learn
The Duality of Whittaker Potential Theory: Fundamental Representations of Electromagnetism and Gravity, and Their Orthogonality
E. T. Whittaker produced two papers in 1903 and 1904 that, although sometimes considered mere mathematical statements (Barrett, 1993), held important implications for physical theory. The Whittaker…
Mark TitlemanMay 13, 2022
Learn
Holography, Application, and String Theory's Changing Nature
Based on string theory's framework, the gauge/gravity duality, also known as holography, has the ability to solve practical problems in low energy physical systems like metals and fluids. Holographic…
Lauren GreenspanMay 10, 2022
Learn
Is there a universal concept of mass in fundamental physics?
The concept of mass was introduced as a mathematical abstraction and unifying principle in physics by Newton in the 17th century, and calibrated on a Solar System scale by Cavendish at the end of the…
Robert A. WilsonMay 10, 2022
Learn
How and When Did Locality Become 'Local Realism'? A Historical and Critical Analysis (1963-1978)
The history of the debates on the foundational implications of the Bell non-locality theorem displayed very soon a tendency to put the theorem in a perspective that was not entirely motivated by its…
Federico LaudisaMay 9, 2022
Learn
Einstein's Oxford Blackboard: A Unique Historical Artefact
Einstein's blackboard is a well-known exhibit at the History of Science Museum at Oxford University. However, it is much less well known that the writing on the board provides a neat summary of a…
Cormac O'RaifeartaighMay 5, 2022
Learn
Introduction \`a l'oeuvre de S. Kichenassamy en Physique Th\'eorique
The work of S. Kichenassamy (1926-2015) in Theoretical and Mathematical Physics covers the spectrum of Relativistic Physics: from the clarification of the postulational basis of the two theories of…
Satyanad KichenassamyMay 4, 2022
Learn
Penrose's 1965 singularity theorem: From geodesic incompleteness to cosmic censorship
Supplementing earlier literature by e.g. Tipler, Clarke, & Ellis (1980), Israel (1987), Thorne, (1994), Earman (1999), Senovilla & Garfinkle (2015), Curiel (2019ab), and Landsman (2021ab), I provide…
Klaas LandsmanMay 3, 2022
Learn
The orientation of Jesuit churches in the Chiquitos missions of eastern Bolivia
The Jesuit missions in South America were an important and unique advance in Christian evangelisation on the continent until the expulsion of the Order in 1767. Although the history and cultural…
Alejandro GanguiMay 1, 2022
Learn
On Automorphism Criteria for Comparing Amounts of Mathematical Structure
Wilhelm (2021) has recently defended a criterion for comparing structure of mathematical objects, which he calls Subgroup. He argues that Subgroup is better than SYM * , another widely adopted…
Thomas William Barrett, JB Manchak, James Owen WeatherallApr 25, 2022
Learn
Sometimes size does not matter
Cosmological fine-tuning has traditionally been associated with the narrowness of the intervals in which the parameters of the physical models must be located to make life possible. A more thorough…
Daniel Andrés Díaz-Pachón, Ola Hössjer, Robert J. MarksApr 25, 2022
Learn
How Friedmann Shod Einstein
Exactly one hundred years ago, in May 1922, Alexander Friedmann discovered that General Relativity (GR) predicts non-stationary Universe. His equation describing the evolution of the Universe is now…
Vladimir O. SolovievApr 22, 2022
Learn
On alleged discovery of satellites of Jupiter by Simon Mayr (Marius)
In 1614, the German astronomer Simon Mayr published his claim to have discovered the satellites of Jupiter. Writing in the treatise Mundus Jovialis, Mayr made his assertion in a convoluted but…
Gabriele VaninApr 21, 2022
Learn
Biocosmology: Biology from a cosmological perspective
The Universe contains everything that exists, including life. And all that exists, including life, obeys universal physical laws. Do those laws then give adequate foundations for a complete…
Marina Cortês, Stuart A. Kauffman, Andrew R. Liddle et al.Apr 20, 2022
Learn
← PreviousPage 34Next →