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The many laws in the periodic table

Seifert, Vanessa A. (2025) The many laws in the periodic table. Philosophy of Science. ISSN 1539-767X

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Abstract

There are many- not just one- periodic laws in chemistry. These laws correspond to non-accidental regularity relations about physical and chemical properties of (sets of) chemical elements. I support this by showing how these regularity relations can be understood from the perspective of a philosophical analysis of laws. Specifically, I show that these relations instantiate standard features associated with laws; they can be spelled out in terms of two standard accounts of laws; and, they can coherently figure in debates about the reality of laws as plausible candidates of ceteris paribus laws.


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Item Type: Published Article or Volume
Creators:
CreatorsEmailORCID
Seifert, Vanessa A.vs14902@bristol.ac.uk0000-0002-5391-0791
Keywords: Laws of nature; Periodic Table; Metaphysics of Science
Subjects: General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics
Specific Sciences > Chemistry
General Issues > Explanation
General Issues > Laws of Nature
Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics
Depositing User: Dr. Vanessa A. Seifert
Date Deposited: 17 Nov 2025 11:46
Last Modified: 18 Nov 2025 17:17
Item ID: 27237
Journal or Publication Title: Philosophy of Science
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Subjects: General Issues > Scientific Metaphysics
Specific Sciences > Chemistry
General Issues > Explanation
General Issues > Laws of Nature
Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics
Date: August 2025
ISSN: 1539-767X
URI: https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/27237

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