After this course, students will be able to
- Discern how physics connects to broader developments in science and culture, particularly in terms of philosophical and metaphysical themes and issues.
- Make explicit which implicit philosophical and metaphysical questions, concepts, and assumptions undergird the discipline of physics.
- Reflect on the philosophical concerns toward which contemporary physics is oriented.
- Understand how issues regarding the normative power of science in general are closely related to the ongoing interplay of physics and metaphysics.
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Physics as a discipline has had, and still has, a profound impact on how we understand the world. While technological applications of physics have changed the world, physics has also transformed our thinking and our view of the world to a considerable degree. Conversely, however, physics itself has been influenced by philosophical views and ideas. In short, contrary to what some people believe, physics and philosophy are strongly intertwined.
This course focuses on the interplay of the scientific discipline of physics on the one hand, and philosophical worldviews on the other. After an historical introduction to the development of physics, centering around the Scientific Revolution and the associated transition to a mechanistic worldview, each class will focus on a specific philosophical theme or question related to modern physics. Among these are the debate between reductionism and holism, the relation between theory and experiment, and the question of whether quantum theory can provide understanding of the world. Moreover, we will discuss issues related to the philosophy of string theory, , the relation between mathematics and nature, as well as normative implications of science. |
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| Bachelor in Science. No philosophical background required. |
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| Group paper (100%). Guidelines and assessment criteria for papers will be distributed via Brightspace. |
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