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History and Philosophy of Physics papers — page 55

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Bohr meets Rovelli: a dispositionalist account of the quantum limits of knowledge
I begin by examining the question of the quantum limits of knowledge by briefly presenting the constraints of the theory that derive from its mathematical structure (in particular the no-go theorems…
Mauro DoratoJan 13, 2020
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The Theories of Relativity and Bergson's Philosophy of Duration and Simultaneity During and After Einstein's 1922 Visit to Paris
In 1922, Albert Einstein visited Paris and interacted extensively with an illustrious section of the French academia. In overfilled sessions at the Coll\'ege de France and the Sorbonne, Einstein…
C. S. UnnikrishnanJan 13, 2020
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On Some Geometrical Aspects of Space-Time Description and Relativity
In order to ask for future concepts of relativity, one has to build upon the original concepts instead of the nowadays common formalism only, and as such recall and reconsider some of its roots in…
Rolf DahmJan 12, 2020
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Translation: About a Method of Obtaining Volumetric Images by Means of X-ray Radiation
The translation of an early (1957), Russian article on the development of x-ray computed tomography is provided. The article demonstrates a principle possibility of determining the local attenuation…
Alex GustschinJan 11, 2020
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Are there really many worlds in the "Many-worlds interpretation" of Quantum Mechanics?
Since the 1970s, the Everett-Wheeler many-worlds interpretation (MWI) of Quantum Mechanics (1955) has been much in the news. One wonders about the worlds in question, their branches, their…
Daniel ParrochiaJan 11, 2020
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In Leon's company, it seemed that anything might be possible
Memorial sessions celebrated Leon Lederman, Helen Edwards, and Burton Richter at the April 2019 Meeting of the American Physical Society in Denver. In the session entitled Honoring Leon Lederman,…
Chris QuiggJan 7, 2020
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The Great Debate
A hundred years ago (1920) in the auditorium of the Smithsonian Institution's U.S. National Museum there were two lectures under the auspices of the George Ellery Hale Lecture series, what has come…
I. HorvathJan 1, 2020
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Musings on the Current Status of HEP
I briefly summarize my personal opinions on the current status of HEP theory and comment on the so-called "non-empiric confirmation."
M. ShifmanDec 31, 2019
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La orientaci\'on de las iglesias andinas de la regi\'on de Arica y Parinacota, Chile: una aproximaci\'on arqueoastron\'omica
The heritage Andean churches of Arica and Parinacota are representative of the majority of Christian churches in the region. Judging by their architecture, materiality and decoration, they have many…
Alejandro Gangui, Angel Guillen, Magdalena PereiraDec 30, 2019
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Felix Klein's "\"Uber die Differentialgesetze f\"ur die Erhaltung von Impuls und Energie in der Einsteinschen Gravitationstheorie": an English translation
We present an English translation of a second 1918 paper by Felix Klein which follows up on his earlier work.
Chiang-Mei Chen, James M. Nester, Walter VogelDec 27, 2019
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Felix Klein's "Zu Hilberts erster Note \"uber die Grundlagen der Physik": an English translation
We present an English translation of a 1918 paper by Felix Klein.
Chiang-Mei Chen, James M. Nester, Walter VogelDec 27, 2019
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As Below, So Before: `Synchronic' and `Diachronic' Conceptions of Spacetime Emergence
Typically, a less fundamental theory, or structure, emerging from a more fundamental one is an example of synchronic emergence. A model (and the physical state it describes) emerging from a prior…
Karen CrowtherDec 27, 2019
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Mixing, tunnelling and the direction of time in the context of Reichenbach's principles
This work reviews the understanding of the direction of time introduced by Hans Reichenbach, including the fundamental relation of the perceived flow of time to the second law of thermodynamics (i.e.…
A. Y. KlimenkoDec 27, 2019
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Jacob Bekenstein's Universes: From Black Holes to Modified Theories of Gravity
Jacob Bekenstein's pioneering contributions to the foundations of Gravity cover a broad range of scales, from Black Holes to the entire Universe. He is well known as the father of Black Hole…
Ofer LahavDec 23, 2019
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A Sharper Image: The Quest of Science and Recursive Production of Objective Realities
This article explores the metaphor of Science as provider of sharp images of our environment, using the epistemological framework of Objective Cognitive Constructivism. These sharp images are…
Julio Michael SternDec 23, 2019
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Single-particle entanglement and three forms of ambiguity
This paper discusses experiments with single-particle systems, some of whose states appear to be entangled. It shows that the interpretation of the experiments in terms of entanglement is…
Robert ShawDec 22, 2019
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Tony Skyrme and the Origins of Skyrmions
I first discuss the main motivations for Tony Skyrme's highly original program (1958-62) of making fermionic nucleons out of bosonic pion fields, as described in his Cosener's House talk in 1984.…
Ian J. R. AitchisonDec 18, 2019
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Einstein and Eddington and the eclipse in Principe: Celebration and science 100 years after
On May 29, 1919, at Roca Sundy, Principe island, Eddington confirms Einstein's general relativity theory for the first time by photographing stars behind the obscured Sun during a total eclipse.…
José P. S. Lemos, Carlos A. R. Herdeiro, Vitor CardosoDec 18, 2019
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The Legacy of Einstein's Eclipse, Gravitational Lensing
A hundred years ago, two British expeditions measured the deflection of starlight by the sun's gravitational field, confirming the prediction made by Einstein's General theory of Relativity. One…
Jorge L. Cervantes-Cota, Salvador Galindo-Uribarri, George F. SmootDec 16, 2019
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Why Are We Obsessed with "Understanding" Quantum Mechanics?
Richard Feynman famously declared, "I think that I can safely say that nobody really understands quantum mechanics." Sean Carroll lamented the persistence of this sentiment in a recent opinion piece…
Stephen BoughnDec 16, 2019
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Everett's Multiverse and the World as Wavefunction
Everett suggested that there is no such thing as wavefunction collapse. He hypothesized that for an idealized spin measurement the apparatus evolves into a superposition on the pointer basis of two…
Paul TappendenDec 14, 2019
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J. C. Poggendorff: Comment on the Paper by Prof. Kirchhoff (translated and edited by A. K. T. Assis)
Editor's Note: An English translation of J. C. Poggendorff's 1857 paper "Bemerkung zu dem Aufsatz des Herrn Prof. Kirchhoff", [Pog57]. This paper is related to Kirchhoff's 1857 paper "On the motion…
A. K. T. AssisDec 12, 2019
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Science Under Attack
Some attack scientific rationality, others defend it, but both miss the point. What both parties take to be scientific rationality is actually a species of irrationality masquerading as scientific…
Nicholas MaxwellDec 12, 2019
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Shadow of the Moon and general relativity: Einstein, Dyson, Eddington and the 1919 light deflection
The eclipse of the Sun of 1919 was fundamental in the development of physics and earns a high place in the history of science. Several players took part in this adventure. The most important are…
José P. S. LemosDec 11, 2019
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Disarming the Ultimate Historical Challenge to Scientific Realism
Probably the most dramatic historical challenge to scientific realism concerns Arnold Sommerfeld's 1916 derivation of the fine structure energy levels of hydrogen. Not only were his predictions good,…
Peter VickersDec 10, 2019
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