62 - David Papineau: Realism, Antirealism, and The Philosophy of Science

David Papineau is Professor of Philosophy of Science at King’s College London. He also teaches at the City University of New York Graduate Center, and before that he lectured in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science at Cambridge. Robinson and David speak broadly about the philosophy of science. Some topics they touch on include the distinction between realism and antirealism, the role of a philosopher of science in actual scientific practice, and the current replication crisis. They finish with an introduction to the statistical theory of causation. For some background information, listen to David’s episode of Philosophy Bites on scientific realism. The painting used in the “album art” comes by way of David’s daughter, Katy Papineau. See her website for more information. David’s most recent book is the Metaphysics of Sensory Experience (OUP 2021), a discussion of which will have to wait for another episode. You can keep up with David on his website, https://www.davidpapineau.co.uk, or via Twitter, @davidpapineau. Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com OUTLINE: 00:00 In This Episode… 00:38 Introduction 4:51 David and the Philosophy of Science 10:32 The Philosopher’s Role in Science 25:07 Scientific Realism and Anti-Realism 47:11 On Pessimistic Meta-Induction From Past Falsity 55:27 On The Replication Crisis in Science 1:15:21 The Statistical Theory of Causation Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.