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The Philosophy Behind Physics

  • Book
  • © 1993

Overview

Authors:
  1. Thomas A. Brody
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    You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Editors:
  1. Luis Peña

    1. Instituto de Física, Universidad Autónoma de México, México DF, México

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    You can also search for this editor in PubMed   Google Scholar

  2. Peter E. Hodgson

    1. Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, Great Britain

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Table of contents (26 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages I-XII
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  2. Introduction

    1. Introduction

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 1-4

  3. The Philosophy of Physics

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 5-5
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    2. The Active Epistemology

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 7-17

    3. Higher-Level Epistemic Cycles

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 18-24

    4. Systems and Experiments

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 25-39

    5. The Structure of Theories

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 40-59

    6. Induction and the Scope of Theories

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 60-79

    7. The Incommensurability of Theories

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 80-83

    8. A Minimal Ontology for Scientific Research

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 84-94

    9. The Determinisms of Physics

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 95-104

  4. The Theory of Probability

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 105-105
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    2. The Nature of Probability

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 107-121

    3. The Ensemble Interpretation of Probability

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 122-135

    4. The Philosophy of Ensemble Probability

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 136-138

    5. On Errors and Approximations

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 139-156

  5. The Philosophy of Quantum Mechanics

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 157-157
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    2. Problems and Promises of the Ensemble Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 159-184

    3. Probability and the Way Out of the Great Quantum Muddle

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 185-196

    4. Are Hidden Variables Possible?

      • Thomas A. Brody
      Pages 197-204
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Keywords

About this book

Thomas Brody had one of the most powerful and wide-ranging intellects of his generation. Although primarily a physicist who worked on statistical prob­ lems in nuclear physics, on probability theory and on computational physics he had an extensive knowledge of the philosophy of science and of philosophy, and was fluent in many languages. He is well-known among physicists for the Brody-Moshinsky transformation but his extensive work on probability and on the philosophy of science remained almost unknown. This was because the originality of his ideas entailed many lengthy battles with uncomprehending referees, and he frequently published in Mexican journals of limited circula­ tion. In addition, his strongly critical spirit inhibited his willingness to publish his ideas. He was always most concerned by the very unsatisfactory situation in the philosophy of physics, that is largely due to the generally poor knowledge that physicists and philosophers have of each other's disciplines. Philosophers of science write at length about physics without any detailed first-hand knowl­ edge of how research is actually carried out. Physicists, for their part, often implicitly assume naive or erroneous philosophical ideas, and this often hinders their scientific work, besides spreading further confusion if they try to give an account of what they are doing.

Editors and Affiliations

  • Instituto de Física, Universidad Autónoma de México, México DF, México

    Luis Peña

  • Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, Great Britain

    Peter E. Hodgson

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: The Philosophy Behind Physics

  • Authors: Thomas A. Brody

  • Editors: Luis Peña, Peter E. Hodgson

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-78978-6

  • Publisher: Springer Berlin, Heidelberg

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

  • Copyright Information: Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 1993

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-540-57952-6Published: 27 May 1994

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-642-78978-6Published: 06 December 2012

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XII, 355

  • Topics: Physics, general, Popular Science, general, Philosophy, general

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