Mathematical Physics and String Theory
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Foundations of Physics and Philosophy of Science

At a more conceptual level, then, quantum gravity inevitably raises a large number of profound issues, having to do with the very foundations of physics as well as with philosophy. Revising our understanding of space and time themselves means questioning the very basic infrastructure of our understanding of the physical world, with both metaphysical and epistemological implications. The use of quantum mechanics in such exotic context cannot proceed without reconsidering the already thorny issues related to its interpretation. These issues, together with the necessity to question the nature of spacetime itself, and with other peculiarities of quantum gravity research, like the paucity of observational constraints or the very abstract nature of the candidate fundamental constituents of the world, lead to reconsider from a new perspective many aspects of the foundations of physics and, beyond, of philosophy of science. They include for example the role of observers and agents in physics, the nature of physical laws themselves, the role of abstraction in scientific thinking, the issue of theory assessment and theory change, the most appropriate form of scientific realism. Our research tackles also these more conceptual challenges.

Publications in this research direction:

  • Ali Barzegar, Daniele Oriti, Epistemic-Pragmatist Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics: A Comparative Assessment, arXiv:2210.13620