Download or read book Rational Reconstructions of Modern Physics written by Peter Mittelstaedt and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-05-13 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Newton’s classical physics and its underlying ontology are loaded with several metaphysical hypotheses that cannot be justified by rational reasoning nor by experimental evidence. Furthermore, it is well known that some of these hypotheses are not contained in the great theories of Modern Physics, such as the theory of Special Relativity and Quantum Mechanics. This book shows that, on the basis of Newton’s classical physics and by rational reconstruction, the theory of Special Relativity as well as Quantum Mechanics can be obtained by partly eliminating or attenuating the metaphysical hypotheses. Moreover, it is shown that these reconstructions do not require additional hypotheses or new experimental results. In the second edition the rational reconstructions are completed with respect to General Relativity and Cosmology. In addition, the statistics of quantum objects is elaborated in more detail with respect to the rational reconstruction of quantum mechanics. The new material completes the approach of the book as much as it is possible at the present state of knowledge. Presumably, the most important contribution that is added to the second edition refers to the problem of interpretation of the three great theories of Modern Physics. It is shown in detail that in the light of rational reconstructions even realistic interpretations of the three theories of Modern Physics are possible and can easily be achieved.
Download or read book Rational Reconstructions of Modern Physics written by Peter Mittelstaedt and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2010-11-05 with total page 136 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Newton’s classical physics and its underlying ontology are loaded with several metaphysical hypotheses that cannot be justified by rational reasoning nor by experimental evidence. Furthermore, it is well known that some of these hypotheses are not contained in the great theories of modern physics, such as the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics. This book shows that, on the basis of Newton’s classical physics and by rational reconstruction, the theory of relativity as well as quantum mechanics can be obtained by partly eliminating or attenuating the metaphysical hypotheses. Moreover, it is shown that these reconstructions do not require additional hypotheses or new experimental results.
Download or read book Modern Physics and its Philosophy written by M. Strauss and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In selecting the papers for this volume I have excluded all physics papers proper. I have further omitted all book rev.iews. Instead, I have included two papers not published previously; they are marked by an asterisk (*) in the table of contents. Since many of the papers were occasioned by Symposia or similar gatherings their chronological order is rather accidental. Hence I have tried to group the papers thematically into four parts. Within each part the order of sequence is from the more general to the more special, or from a more popular to a more technical treatment. The same principle has been applied to the sequential order of the parts. The foundational papers on quantum mechanics have been arranged in a somewhat dif ferent manner. Chapters XVI-XIX are concerned with the logic of complementarity while in Chapters XX-XXII a more radical recon ceptualization is carried out. Two of the older papers (Chapters VI and VIII) have been revised to bring them more into line with present terminology. Other papers have been corrected by additions and omissions. Additions are marked by square brackets [ ], while double square brackets [[ II signify omis sions or parts to be omitted. Hence [[A]] [B] means that 'A' should be replaced by 'B'. The heading of one paper (Chapter XX) has been changed to make it more descriptive.
Download or read book Classical Mechanics and Quantum Mechanics An Historic Axiomatic Approach written by Peter Enders and published by Bentham Science Publishers. This book was released on 2019-09-05 with total page 380 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This unique textbook presents a novel, axiomatic pedagogical path from classical to quantum physics. Readers are introduced to the description of classical mechanics, which rests on Euler’s and Helmholtz’s rather than Newton’s or Hamilton’s representations. Special attention is given to the common attributes rather than to the differences between classical and quantum mechanics. Readers will also learn about Schrödinger’s forgotten demands on quantization, his equation, Einstein’s idea of ‘quantization as selection problem’. The Schrödinger equation is derived without any assumptions about the nature of quantum systems, such as interference and superposition, or the existence of a quantum of action, h. The use of the classical expressions for the potential and kinetic energies within quantum physics is justified. Key features: · Presents extensive reference to original texts. · Includes many details that do not enter contemporary representations of classical mechanics, although these details are essential for understanding quantum physics. · Contains a simple level of mathematics which is seldom higher than that of the common (Riemannian) integral. · Brings information about important scientists · Carefully introduces basic equations, notations and quantities in simple steps This book addresses the needs of physics students, teachers and historians with its simple easy to understand presentation and comprehensive approach to both classical and quantum mechanics..
Download or read book Decision Making and Modelling in Cognitive Science written by Sisir Roy and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-10-26 with total page 174 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book discusses the paradigm of quantum ontology as an appropriate model for measuring cognitive processes. It clearly shows the inadequacy of the application of classical probability theory in modelling the human cognitive domain. The chapters investigate the context dependence and neuronal basis of cognition in a coherent manner. According to this framework, epistemological issues related to decision making and state of mind are seen to be similar to issues related to equanimity and neutral mind, as discussed in Buddhist perspective. The author states that quantum ontology as a modelling tool will help scientists create new methodologies of modelling in other streams of science as well.
Download or read book Physics and Necessity written by Olivier Darrigol and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2014-05-22 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Can we prove the necessity of our best physical theories by rational means, without appeal to experience? This book recounts a few ingenious attempts to derive physical theories by reason only, beginning with Descartes' geometric construction of the world, and finishing with recent derivations of quantum mechanics from natural axioms. Deductions based on theological, metaphysical, or transcendental arguments are worth remembering for the ways they motivated and structured physical theory, even though we would now criticize their excessive confidence in the power of the mind. Other deductions more modestly relied on criteria for the comprehensibility of nature, including forms of measurability, causality, homogeneity, and correspondence. The central thesis of this book is that such criteria, when properly applied to idealized systems, effectively determine some of our most important theories as well as the mathematical character of the laws of physics. The relevant arguments are not purely rational, because only experience can tell us to which extent nature is comprehensible in a given way. Nor do they block the possibility of ever more varied forms of comprehensibility. They nonetheless suggest the inevitability of much of our theoretical physics.
Download or read book Quantum Reality and Theory of nya written by Siddheshwar Rameshwar Bhatt and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-03-30 with total page 397 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book deals with expounding the nature of Reality as it is understood in contemporary times in Quantum Physics. It also explains the classical Indian theory of Śūnya in its diverse facets. Thereafter it undertakes comparison between the two which is an area of great topical interest. It is a cross-disciplinary study by erudite Indian and western scholars between traditional Indian knowledge system and contemporary researches in Physical sciences. It points out how the theory of ‘Śūnyatā has many seminal ideas and theories in common with contemporary Quantum Physics. The learned authors have tried to dissolve the “mysteries” of Quantum Physics and resolved its “weird paradoxes” with the help of theory of Śūnyatā. The issue of non-separability or entanglement has been approached with the help of the Buddhist theory of Pratītyasamutpāda. The paradoxical situation of “wave-particle duality” has been explained with the help of Upaniṣadic theory of complementarity of the two opposites. The measurement problem represented by “Schrodinger’s cat” has been dealt with by resorting to two forms of the calculation of probabilities. Some writers have argued for Śūnyatā-like non-essentialist position to understand quantum reality. To make sense of quantum theory some papers provide a happy symbiosis of technical understanding and personal meditative experience by drawing multifarious parallels. This book will be of interest to philosophically inclined physicists and philosophers with interest in quantum mechanics.
Download or read book Theory Construction and Selection in Modern Physics written by James T. Cushing and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1990 with total page 436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Analyses what criteria should determine how scientific theories are selected and justified.
Download or read book The Oxford Handbook of the History of Quantum Interpretations written by Olival Freire Jr and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2022-03-07 with total page 1311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Crucial to most research in physics, as well as leading to the development of inventions such as the transistor and the laser, quantum mechanics approaches its centenary with an impressive record. However, the field has also long been the subject of ongoing debates about the foundations and interpretation of the theory, referred to as the quantum controversy. This Oxford Handbook offers a historical overview of the contrasts which have been at the heart of quantum physics for the last 100 years. Drawing on the wide-ranging expertise of several contributors working across physics, history, and philosophy, the handbook outlines the main theories and interpretations of quantum physics. It goes on to tackle the key controversies surrounding the field, touching on issues such as determinism, realism, locality, classicality, information, measurements, mathematical foundations, and the links between quantum theory and gravity. This engaging introduction is an essential guide for all those interested in the history of scientific controversies and history of quantum physics. It also provides a fascinating examination of the potential of quantum physics to influence new discoveries and advances in fields such quantum information and computing.
Download or read book Quantum Computation and Logic written by Maria Luisa Dalla Chiara and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-12-10 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a general survey of the main concepts, questions and results that have been developed in the recent interactions between quantum information, quantum computation and logic. Divided into 10 chapters, the books starts with an introduction of the main concepts of the quantum-theoretic formalism used in quantum information. It then gives a synthetic presentation of the main “mathematical characters” of the quantum computational game: qubits, quregisters, mixtures of quregisters, quantum logical gates. Next, the book investigates the puzzling entanglement-phenomena and logically analyses the Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen paradox and introduces the reader to quantum computational logics, and new forms of quantum logic. The middle chapters investigate the possibility of a quantum computational semantics for a language that can express sentences like “Alice knows that everybody knows that she is pretty”, explore the mathematical concept of quantum Turing machine, and illustrate some characteristic examples that arise in the framework of musical languages. The book concludes with an analysis of recent discussions, and contains a Mathematical Appendix which is a survey of the definitions of all main mathematical concepts used in the book.
Download or read book Christian Belief in a Postmodern World written by Diogenes Allen and published by Westminster John Knox Press. This book was released on 1989-01-01 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a philosophical argument for the reasonableness of Christian faith in today's world. Diogenes Allen shows how Christian belief is now being supported by scientific and philosophical principles--perhaps for the first time in 300 years.
Download or read book Critical Scientific Realism written by Ilkka Niiniluoto and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 1999-12-09 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ilkka Niiniluoto comes to the rescue of scientific realism, showing that reports of its death have been greatly exaggerated. Philosophical realism holds that the aim of a particular discourse is to make true statements about its subject-matter. Niiniluoto surveys the different varieties of realism in ontology, semantics, epistemology, theory construction, and methodology. He then sets out his own original version, and defends it against competing theories in the philosophy of science. Niiniluoto's critical scientific realism is founded upon the notion of truth as correspondence between language and reality, and characterizes scientific progress in terms of increasing truthlikeness. This makes it possible not only to take seriously, but also to make precise, the troublesome idea that scientific theories typically are false but nevertheless close to the truth.
Download or read book A History of Modern Planetary Physics written by Stephen G. Brush and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1996-04-26 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nebulous Earth follows the development of the nineteenth-century's most popular explanation for the origin of the solar system, Laplace's Nebular Hypothesis.
Download or read book Protophysics of Time written by P. Janich and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 319 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For protophysics, the fascinating and impressive constructive re-establish ment of the foundations of science by Professor Paul Lorenzen, working with his colleagues and students of the Erlangen School, no task is more central than to.furmulate a theoretical understanding of the practical art of measurement of time. We are pleased, therefore, to have a new third edition of Peter Janich's masterful monograph on the protophysics of time, available in this English translation within the Boston Studies. We also look forward to the Boston University Symposium on protophysics in april of this year within which the full program of protophysics will be critically examined by German and American physicists and philosophers, supporters and critics. We are also grateful to Paul Lorenzen for contributing his powerful instructive essay on the 'axiomatic and constructive method' which intro duces this book. March 1985 ROBERT S. COHEN Center for the Philosophy and History of Science Boston University MARX W. WARTOFSKY Department of Philosophy Barnch College City University of New York vii PAUL LORENZEN CONSTRUCTIVE AND AXIOM A TIC METHOD Mathematics is like a big building with many apartments. We have at least Arithmetic and Analysis, Algebra and Topology - and we have Geometry and Probability-Theory. Very often the tenants of these different apartments seem not to understand each other. The Bourbaki movement promised a new unity of Mathematics by admit ting only the axiomatic method of Hilbert as genuine mathematical.
Download or read book Reduction in Science written by W. Balzer and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 445 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The papers in this volume were presented at the colloquium "Reduktion in der Wissenschaft: Struktur, Beispiele, philos ophische PrObleme", held in Bielefeld, West Germany, July 18- 21, 1983. Altogether eighteen talks were delivered at the symposium, and all appear here with the exception of Professor Ehlers' address. In addition, we are pleased to be able to include three papers by invited participants (Kamiah, Ludwig, Scheibe) who were unable to attend the meeting. The meeting itself brought together a sizeable group of logicians, philosophers and working scientists to discuss and debate the theme of reduction, one that occupies a central place in contemporary philosophy of science. The participants and contributors succeeded in opening up new directions in reduction studies and presenting fresh case studies of re duction from many different areas of scientific practice. Their efforts will greatly enhance our understanding of reduction and, consequently, our grasp of the complex process of scien tific change and the unity and growth of scientific knowledge
Download or read book Schr dinger s Philosophy of Quantum Mechanics written by Michel Bitbol and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 1996-10-31 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is the final outcome of two projects. My first project was to publish a set of texts written by Schrodinger at the beginning of the 1950's for his seminars and lectures at the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. These almost completely forgotten texts contained important insights into the interpretation of quantum mechanics, and they provided several ideas which were missing or elusively expressed in SchrOdinger's published papers and books of the same period. However, they were likely to be misinterpreted out of their context. The problem was that current scholarship could not help very much the reader of these writings to figure out their significance. The few available studies about SchrOdinger's interpretation of quantum mechanics are generally excellent, but almost entirely restricted to the initial period 1925-1927. Very little work has been done on Schrodinger's late views on the theory he contributed to create and develop. The generally accepted view is that he never really recovered from his interpretative failure of 1926-1927, and that his late reflections (during the 1950's) are little more than an expression of his rising nostalgia for the lost ideal of picturing the world, not to say for some favourite traditional picture. But the content and style of Schrodinger's texts of the 1950's do not agree at all with this melancholic appraisal; they rather set the stage for a thorough renewal of accepted representations. In order to elucidate this paradox, I adopted several strategies.
Download or read book The Role of Laboratory Work in Improving Physics Teaching and Learning written by Dagmara Sokołowska and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-11-03 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores in detail the role of laboratory work in physics teaching and learning. Compelling recent research work is presented on the value of experimentation in the learning process, with description of important research-based proposals on how to achieve improvements in both teaching and learning. The book comprises a rigorously chosen selection of papers from a conference organized by the International Research Group on Physics Teaching (GIREP), an organization that promotes enhancement of the quality of physics teaching and learning at all educational levels and in all contexts. The topics covered are wide ranging. Examples include the roles of open inquiry experiments and advanced lab experiments, the value of computer modeling in physics teaching, the use of web-based interactive video activities and smartphones in the lab, the effectiveness of low-cost experiments, and assessment for learning through experimentation. The presented research-based proposals will be of interest to all who seek to improve physics teaching and learning.
