Castellani, Elena and Margoni, Emilia
(2022)
Renormalization Group Methods: Which Kind of Explanation?
Studies in History and Philosophy of Science, 95.
pp. 158-166.
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Abstract
Renormalization and Renormalization Group (RG) have proven to be very powerful tools
in contemporary physics, with a decisive influence on how to conceive of key physical
aspects, including theories themselves. While they can be tackled from a variety of stand-
points, this paper focuses on a speci�c philosophical issue, that is, which kind of expla-
nation can be provided by means of RG methods. After a short, historical overview to
set out the physical context, we scrutinize recent debates on the topic, with a particular
focus on Morrison's seminal work. With respect to her account, where RG explanation
is portrayed as mathematical, non-reductive, and non-causal, our focus is on the first
aspect. Our claim is that RG theory's explanatory role cannot reside exclusively in its
mathematical character, independently from a physical interpretation: mathematical and
physical features intersect in a highly non-trivial way to provide an explanation of physical
phenomena.
| Item Type: |
Published Article or Volume
|
| Creators: |
|
| Keywords: |
Renormalization group, E�ective theories, Critical phenomena, Non-causal explanation,
Mathematical explanation |
| Depositing User: |
Dr. Emilia Margoni
|
| Date Deposited: |
09 Sep 2022 20:00 |
| Last Modified: |
09 Sep 2022 20:00 |
| Item ID: |
21148 |
| Journal or Publication Title: |
Studies in History and Philosophy of Science |
| Publisher: |
Elsevier |
| DOI or Unique Handle: |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shpsa.2022.07.009 |
| Date: |
August 2022 |
| Page Range: |
pp. 158-166 |
| Volume: |
95 |
| URI: |
https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/21148 |
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