Term Paper Information
You are to write a critical essay of about 2500-4000
words (~12 pages, but go by word count) on some aspect of the interpretation of physical
theories. The topic should reflect your interests and make use of your
background. You should develop your topic into a coherent presentation
of ideas for which you argue clearly and convincingly. We do not expect
you to do groundbreaking work on the foundations of science, but you must
not merely summarize or restate some other author's views. Graduate
students in this course will be expected to choose a weightier topic
and write a longer paper (5000-6000 words [~15-18 pages, but go by word count]).
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It is an unfortunate historical
fact that people tend to put off their term paper work until too late in
the term to do a good job. To encourage you to meet the deadlines, late
outlines and drafts will be penalized 5% per day (each). The final paper
will not be accepted after the final exam (unless you have a written medical
excuse).
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Finding a topic that interests you, that is reasonably
accessible, and is of an appropriate scope is the most important step in
writing the term paper. See the Notes on Papers
for suggestions. One good approach is to write an in-depth critical response
to one or several recent works on the interpretation of physics. It's a
good idea to make a trip to the library or a bookstore soon to find some
work you're interested in. You can then read it and plan out your paper
in parallel with the rest of the course. It's not very practical to wait
until the course has dealt with some topic to find out whether you want
to write about it, especially since some of the most fascinating material
is reached only in the last month. Of course, we hope that what's said
in the course will be of use to you in deciding what to write after you've
decided on your topic.
The term paper project has four milestones. Meeting each
of these milestones is necessary if you are to receive a good grade.
- You must choose a topic
by April 2. You will turn in a tentative topic paragraph and a list of
the main references. Unlike other assignments, this one must be
revised until it is acceptable. It's better to spend an extra round of
work finding a good topic and approach at this early stage than to waste
time writing a dead-end paper. At least one in-person
consultation with Prof. Phillips must be held while the paper is
being written. Electronic consultations are also encouraged.
- An outline with topic paragraphs
is due April 9. I need to see that you know what the structure of
your paper will be. You should write an introductory paragraph for each
of the two or three major sections of the paper. You should list the working
bibliography (the books you're actually using).
- A complete draft (perhaps
not well-polished) is due April 25. Our comments will be returned
by May 2 -- first come, first served.
- The final revised paper is due by the beginning of the final exam, 7p on May 9.
The topic/ abstract will constitute 10% of the term paper grade,
the outline 15%, the first draft 25%, and the final draft the remaining
50%.
Notes on Papers
You are to write a critical essay of about 2500-4000 words (~12
pages, but go by word count) on some aspect of the interpretation of physical theories. The topic
should reflect your interests and make use of your background. You should
develop your topic into a coherent presentation of ideas for which you
argue clearly and convincingly. We do not expect you to do ground breaking
work on the foundations of science, but you must not merely summarize or
restate some other author's views. You must, of course, properly reference
all information you obtain from outside sources, including the textbooks.
Possible approaches to the paper include:
- Write a critical essay on some recent or well known work concerning
the meaning of physics.
One can often come up with intelligent criticisms and supporting arguments
for new works. There are often no standard texts providing such arguments.
Thus, these critical essays offer a good opportunity to do original but
not groundbreaking work.
- Numerous attempts have been made to popularize some of the philosophical
implications of quantum physics, including the Tao of Physics, The
Dancing Wu-Li Masters, and, to some extent, Herbert's Quantum Reality.
Examine whether the actual problems of the theory are well represented
in these books and whether the broader implications proposed are valid.
- Many recent books have proposed major revisions of the standard view
of the relation of physics and other sciences to reality. (Some of the
better known authors include Rorty, Derrida, Haraway, LaTour...). Examine
whether these give a reasonable interpretation of the history and practice
of physics.
- In light of the Gettier problem, survey the recent literature on this problem and propose a fourth
proposition that can be added to make justified true belief true knowledge.
- Design an experiment which could detect an electron going through both slits
of the two-slit experiment at the same time.
Explain the inner logic of some difficult scientific transition.
- The rejection of classical space and time rested on a series of experiments
which ruled out various alternatives to Einstein's approach. Explain what
the alternate views were and how they were eliminated.
Examine the arguments underlying Godel's theorem.
Consciousness, the hard problem of the explanatory gap between a second-hand physical account
of the mental and inner quality that seem to be intrinsic to qualia. Or argue against qualia. Or present
several arguments against physicalism. Or analyse Rumelin's Mariana or Jackson's Mary.
Kripke has put forth a theory of common names based on the notion of rigid designation.
How does rigid designation come into play in the brute fact/social fact distinction and how does
it play out in the realist/instrumentalist debate.
- Kuhn proposed a general outline for major scientific "paradigm
changes" in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Examine
how well the theory describes several of the major upheavals covered in
this course.
- How did the laws of thermodynamics develop? What were the roles of
engineering, physics, economics, etc?
- How did ideas about electricity develop in the early 19th century?
What role did the prior Newtonian framework play?
Why is physical world amenable to a mathematical description?
Examine the interplay between philosophy and physics at some important
juncture.
- Compare and contrast the views of Descartes, Newton, and Leibniz on
the nature of space. How did their views tie in with other aspects of their
philosophy and physics?
- What role did "pragmatism", "logical positivism",
"existentialism", etc. play in setting the stage for the
Copenhagen interpretation of QM?
Explicate some thorny question of interpretation.
- The existence of observations which violate Bell's inequality requires
some deep revision of either local causality, induction, realism, or logic.
Trace how (or if) locality is violated in any of the accounts of the experimental
results.
- Einstein and Infeld claim that it is a matter of pure convention whether
one adopts the Copernican or Tychonean system. Examine the extent to which
that claim is true. (best for the mathematically inclined).
- One of the most universal laws of physics is that entropy always increases.
Yet the definition of entropy is disturbingly dependent on the knowledge
of the system, not just the intrinsic properties of the system. Examine
Bayesian or other approaches to making a consistent account of entropy.
- What is the evidence for the proposition that space is non-Euclidean.
What are the alternative hypotheses?
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