Dualities
from MCMP – Philosophy of Physics
Elena Castellani (Florence) gives a talk at the MCMP Colloquium (28 January, 2015) titled "Dualities". Abstract: Dualities are a key, intriguing ingredient in mathematics, logic and physics. This talk is concerned with physical dualities, in particular those dualities that have played "a central role in mapping out the structure of theoretical physics" in the past two decades (quoting Polchinski, 2015). Despite the importance of duality in field and string theory, philosophers are just starting to pay the due attention to the subject. This talk is meant as an introduction to discussing the significance of physical dualities, by pointing out the different relevant functions they play and the kinds of philosophical issues they connect or give rise to (in particular: theoretical equivalence and ontological indeterminacy).
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