Wayne, Andrew (2010) Emergence and Singular Limits. [Preprint]

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Abstract

Recent work by Robert Batterman and Alexander Rueger has brought attention to cases in physics in which governing laws at the base level “break down” and singular limit relations obtain between base- and upper-level theories. As a result, they claim, these are cases with emergent upper-level properties. This paper contends that this inference—from singular limits to explanatory failure, novelty or irreducibility, and then to emergence—is mistaken. The van der Pol nonlinear oscillator is used to show that there can be a full explanation of upper-level properties entirely in base-level terms even when singular limits are present. Whether upper-level properties are emergent depends not on the presence of a singular limit but rather on details of the ampliative approximation methods used. The paper suggests that focusing on explanatory deficiency at the base level is key to understanding emergence in physics.

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Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Wayne, Andrew
Keywords:	Emergence; Reduction; Explanation; Singular limit; nonlinear oscillator
Subjects:	General Issues > Reductionism/Holism General Issues > Explanation Specific Sciences > Physics
Depositing User:	Andrew Wayne
Date Deposited:	08 Sep 2010
Last Modified:	07 Oct 2010 15:20
Item ID:	5532
Subjects:	General Issues > Reductionism/Holism General Issues > Explanation Specific Sciences > Physics
Date:	September 2010
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/5532

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• Emergence and Singular Limits. (deposited 20 Oct 2009)
  • Emergence and Singular Limits. (deposited 08 Sep 2010) [Currently Displayed]

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