Research projects

Progress through Principles: An Epistemology of Foundational Assumptions Guiding Contemporary Physics

DFG-funded research project

At the frontiers of contemporary fundamental physics theoretical proposals abound but empirical evidence is sparse. This situation has given rise to a renewed interest in scientific principles. Of particular interest are guiding principles such as the correspondence principle and the naturalness principle because they promise to advance inquiry as heuristic devices. However, no overarching epistemological analysis of guiding principles and their heuristic value in physics is available. This is particularly problematic because—despite their often-contentious status—such principles can play an important role in motivating large-scale research endeavors. This project will propose and develop an account of guiding principles in physics. The central hypothesis of this account is that guiding principles advance inquiry through the way they integrate descriptive and normative aspects: as supposed principles of nature they attempt to describe the object of inquiry and as principles of epistemic action they provide directives for further inquiry. The project employs this account to shed new light on the heuristic value of guiding principles. It will thus help make sense of current epistemic practices in fundamental physics research. Moreover, it will benefit the defense of those principles that help advance inquiry, and it will help indicate instances where guiding principles bear the risk of leading theory development astray. The understanding of guiding principles provided by the proposed project also promises to give a clearer view of general epistemological issues associated with the dynamics of reasoning and scientific practice where foundational assumptions are less than perfect and empirical input is sparse.

Key objectives:

• Develop a taxonomy of principles in physics based on the roles that such principles play in epistemic practices.
• In-depth case studies of historical and contemporary guiding principles.
• Systematic account of guiding principles geared towards a better understanding and more thorough evaluation of the heuristic role of such principles.

A preliminary framework is presented in:
Fischer, E. Guiding principles in physics. European Journal for Philosophy of Science 14, 65 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13194-024-00625-1

For further details and publications see Enno Fischer's personal website.

Values in Cause-of-Death Inquiry
The WHO definition of underlying cause of death is "the disease or injury which initiated the train of morbid events leading directly to death, or the circumstances of the accident or violence which produced the fatal injury". Such relations of causation are an objective feature of the world. However, as fierce discussions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic have shown, the application of the WHO definition allows for considerable leeway and is often affected by value-laden background assumptions and context-specific goals.
The aim of this project is to analyze cause-of-death inquiry with a particular focus on the various roles of causal reasoners' values and goals. What are relevant causal concepts in cause-of-death inquiry? What roles do value-laden background assumptions play? What is the role of causal reasoners' aims and goals? What legitimate influences do these factors have on our use of causal concepts? What kinds of factors impede causal inquiry? The project is concerned with specific case studies of causal reasoning. For example, it looks at the controversial diagnosis of death through the so-called 'Excited Delirium Syndrome' which is often employed to explain deaths in police custody. The project integrates both descriptive and normative considerations by focusing on the various functions of causal concepts in contexts of causal explanation and intervention in the medical sciences, and the attribution of responsibility in legal inquiry.
For further details and publications see Enno Fischer's personal website.

The Pursuitworthiness of Experiments Across the Sciences (Topical Collection in the European Journal for Philosophy of Science)

The concept of pursuitworthiness has garnered considerable attention in the philosophy of science in recent years. However, philosophical reflections on the pursuitworthiness of scientific research have almost exclusively focused on theories. This topical collection will put discussions of the pursuitworthiness of experiments on the agenda of general philosophy of science and the philosophies of the special sciences. It will bring together contributions addressing experiments across the sciences, from the physical and chemical sciences to the life, biomedical, and cognitive sciences, as well as the social sciences. See here for the full Call for Papers.