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The Virtues of Pursuit-Worthy Speculation: The Promises of Cosmic Inflation

Wolf, William J. and Duerr, Patrick M. (2023) The Virtues of Pursuit-Worthy Speculation: The Promises of Cosmic Inflation. [Preprint]

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Abstract

The paper investigates the historical and contemporary pursuit-worthiness of cosmic inflation-the rationale for working on it (rather than necessarily the evidential support for claims to its approximate truth): what reasons existed, and exist, that warrant inflation's status as the mainstream paradigm studied, explored, and further developed by the majority of the cosmology community? We'll show that inflation exemplifies various salient theory virtues: explanatory depth, unifying/integrative power, fertility and positive heuristics, the promotion of understanding, and the prospect (and passing) of novel benchmark tests. This, we'll argue, constitutes inflation's auspicious promise. It marks inflation as preferable over both the inflation-less Hot Big Bang Model, as well as rivals to inflation: inflation, we maintain, rightly deserved, and continues to deserve, the concerted research efforts it has enjoyed.


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Item Type: Preprint
Creators:
CreatorsEmailORCID
Wolf, William J.williamjwolf2@gmail.com
Duerr, Patrick M.patrick-duerr@gmx.de
Additional Information: Forthcoming in British Journal for the Philosophy of Science. Updated version of the text fixing minor typos.
Keywords: Cosmology, inflation, early universe, pursuit vs.\ acceptance, theory virtues, explanatory power, unificatory power, fertility, understanding
Subjects: Specific Sciences > Physics > Astrophysics
Specific Sciences > Physics > Cosmology
General Issues > Explanation
General Issues > Philosophers of Science
Specific Sciences > Physics
General Issues > Values In Science
Depositing User: Mr. William Wolf
Date Deposited: 05 Jan 2024 03:12
Last Modified: 05 Jan 2024 03:12
Item ID: 22912
Subjects: Specific Sciences > Physics > Astrophysics
Specific Sciences > Physics > Cosmology
General Issues > Explanation
General Issues > Philosophers of Science
Specific Sciences > Physics
General Issues > Values In Science
Date: 28 September 2023
URI: https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/22912

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