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History and Philosophy of Physics papers — page 89

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On Einstein Algebras and Relativistic Spacetimes
In this paper, we examine the relationship between general relativity and the theory of Einstein algebras. We show that according to a formal criterion for theoretical equivalence recently proposed…
Sarita Rosenstock, Thomas William Barrett, James Owen WeatherallMay 30, 2015
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Communicating the Heisenberg uncertainty relations: Niels Bohr, Complementarity and the Einstein-Rupp experiments
The Einstein-Rupp experiments have been unduly neglected in the history of quantum mechanics. While this is to be explained by the fact that Emil Rupp was later exposed as a fraud and had fabricated…
Jeroen van DongenMay 29, 2015
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Connections: the relationships between Neolithic and Bronze Age Megalithic Astronomy in Britain
It has already been empirically verified that for many Bronze Age monuments erected in Scotland between 1400-900 BC, there was a concerted effort on behalf of the builders to align their monuments to…
Gail Higginbottom, Roger ClayMay 27, 2015
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Categories and the Foundations of Classical Field Theories
I review some recent work on applications of category theory to questions concerning theoretical structure and theoretical equivalence of classical field theories, including Newtonian gravitation,…
James Owen WeatherallMay 26, 2015
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Ted Geballe: A Lifetime of Contributions To Superconductivity
The editors have dedicated this special issue on superconducting materials "to Ted Geballe in honor of his numerous seminal contributions to the field of superconducting materials over more than…
G. R. StewartMay 25, 2015
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The Fine-Tuning Argument
Our laws of nature and our cosmos appear to be delicately fine-tuned for life to emerge, in a way that seems hard to attribute to chance. In view of this, some have taken the opportunity to revive…
Klaas LandsmanMay 20, 2015
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An historical prolegomenon to the occurrence of the resonance dual models: the Watson-Sommerfeld transform
We would like to discuss, within the inherent historical context, upon one of the main works of fundamental physics which has led to the formulation of the early resonance dual models prior to string…
Giuseppe IuratoMay 10, 2015
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Understanding Gauge
I consider two usages of the expression "gauge theory". On one, a gauge theory is a theory with excess structure; on the other, a gauge theory is any theory appropriately related to classical…
James Owen WeatherallMay 9, 2015
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Fenomenologia da Supercondutividade e Supercondutores Mesoscópicos Phenomenology of the superconductivity and mesoscopic superconductors
Em geral, quando a teoria fenomenológica de Ginzburg-Landau para supercondutores é trabalhada, pouco se esclarece aos alunos sobre a origem da mesma. Esta tem como base conceitos termodinâmicos como…
Rafael Zadorosny, Alice Presotto, Elwis C. S. Duarte et al.May 5, 2015
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Is Time's Arrow Perspectival?
We observe entropy decrease towards the past. Does this imply that in the past the world was in a non-generic microstate? I point out an alternative. The subsystem to which we belong interacts with…
Carlo RovelliMay 4, 2015
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Causa Efficiens versus Causa Formalis: origens da discuss\~ao moderna sobre a dimensionalidade do espaco
Metascientific criteria used for explaining or constraining physical space dimensionality and their historical relationship to prevailing causal systems are discussed. The important contributions by…
Francisco Caruso, Roberto Moreira XavierMay 4, 2015
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The Descent of Math
A perplexing problem in understanding physical reality is why the universe seems comprehensible, and correspondingly why there should exist physical systems capable of comprehending it. In this essay…
Sara Imari WalkerMay 2, 2015
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Absence of Observed Unspeakably Large Black Holes Tells Us the Curvature of Space
Using black-hole arguments with widely accepted premises, we show that it is extremely improbable that space is Euclidean, and that it is unspeakably improbable that space is hyperbolic.…
David JohnsonApr 30, 2015
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Editing Cavendish: Maxwell and The Electrical Researches of Henry Cavendish
During the last five years of his life, 1874-79, James Clerk Maxwell was absorbed in editing the electrical researches of Henry Cavendish, performed 100 years earlier. This endeavour is often assumed…
Isobel FalconerApr 28, 2015
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James Clerk Maxwell's class of 1856/57
James Clerk Maxwell is known for his outstanding contributions to fundamental physics. These include providing the equations that govern electric and magnetic fields, establishing the basis of modern…
John S. ReidApr 25, 2015
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Quaternions: a history of complex noncommutative rotation groups in theoretical physics
This dissertation is about The history of quaternions and their associated rotation groups as it relates to theoretical physics.
Johannes C. FamiltonApr 19, 2015
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Einstein's Uniformly Rotating Disk and the Hole Argument
Einstein's first mention of the uniformly rotating disk in print was in 1912, in his paper dealing with the static gravitational fields. After the 1912 paper, the rotating disk problem occurred…
Galina WeinsteinApr 15, 2015
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The water clock of the Bronze Age (Northern Black Sea Coast)
In the article presents the results of the multidisciplinary study conducted with the help of archaeological, physical and astronomical methods. The aim of the study was to analyze and interpret…
Larisa N. Vodolazhskaya, Anatoliy N. Usachuk, Mikhail Yu. NevskyApr 14, 2015
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Milestones of general relativity: Hubble's law (1929) and the expansion of the universe
Hubble's announcement of the magnitude-redshift relation Hub29 brought about a major change in our understanding of the Universe. After tracing the pre-history of Hubble's work, and…
M. A. H. MacCallumApr 14, 2015
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A new perspective on Einstein's philosophy of cosmology
The recent discovery that Einstein once attempted - and quickly abandoned - a steady-state model of the expanding universe sheds new light on his philosophical journey from static to dynamic…
Cormac O'RaifeartaighApr 11, 2015
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Operationalization of Basic Observables in Mechanics
This novel approach to the foundation of the physical theory begins with Hermann von Helmholtz fundamental analysis of basic measurements. We explain the mathematical formalism from the…
Bruno HartmannApr 10, 2015
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Is the Shroud of Turin in Relation to the Old Jerusalem Historical Earthquake?
Phillips and Hedges suggested, in the scientific magazine Nature (1989), that neutron radiation could be liable of a wrong radiocarbon dating, while proton radiation could be responsible of the…
Alberto Carpinteri, Giuseppe Lacidogna, Oscar BorlaApr 10, 2015
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Fire in the sky: The southern lights in Indigenous oral traditions
Parts of Australia have been privileged to see dazzling lights in the night sky as the Aurora Australis (known as the southern lights) puts on a show this year. Aurorae are significant in Australian…
Duane W. HamacherApr 8, 2015
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The contribution of Giordano Bruno to the principle of relativity
The trial and condemnation of Giordano Bruno was mainly based on arguments of philosophical and theological nature, and therefore different from Galilei's. Such elements contribute to unfairly…
Alesandro De Angelis, Catarina Espirito SantoApr 7, 2015
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Identifying seasonal stars in Kaurna astronomical traditions
Early ethnographers and missionaries recorded Aboriginal languages and oral traditions across Australia. Their general lack of astronomical training resulted in misidentifications, transcription…
Duane W. HamacherApr 7, 2015
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