Guo, Bixin (2020) Two Approaches to Reduction: A Case Study from Statistical Mechanics. [Preprint]
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Abstract
I argue that there are two distinct approaches to understanding reduction: the ontology-first approach and the theory-first approach. They concern the relation between ontological reduction and inter-theoretic reduction. Further, I argue for the significance of this distinction by demonstrating that either one or the other approach has been taken as an implicit assumption in, and has in fact shaped, our understanding of what statistical mechanics is. More specifically, I argue that the Boltzmannian framework of statistical mechanics assumes and relies on the ontology-first approach, whereas the Gibbsian framework should assume the theory-first approach.
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| Item Type: | Preprint | ||||||
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| Keywords: | Reduction, Statistical mechanics, Boltzmannian Framework, Gibbsian Framework, Probability, Coarse-graining | ||||||
| Subjects: | General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics General Issues > Philosophers of Science Specific Sciences > Physics General Issues > Reductionism/Holism Specific Sciences > Physics > Statistical Mechanics/Thermodynamics |
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| Depositing User: | Bixin Guo | ||||||
| Date Deposited: | 06 Nov 2023 15:57 | ||||||
| Last Modified: | 06 Nov 2023 15:57 | ||||||
| Item ID: | 22733 | ||||||
| DOI or Unique Handle: | https://doi.org/10.1017/psa.2023.52 | ||||||
| Subjects: | General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics General Issues > Philosophers of Science Specific Sciences > Physics General Issues > Reductionism/Holism Specific Sciences > Physics > Statistical Mechanics/Thermodynamics |
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| Date: | September 2020 | ||||||
| URI: | https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/22733 |
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Two Approaches to Reduction: A Case Study from Statistical Mechanics. (deposited 10 Apr 2022 18:36)
- Two Approaches to Reduction: A Case Study from Statistical Mechanics. (deposited 06 Nov 2023 15:57) [Currently Displayed]
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