•  7
    Reconstructing Newton’s Conception of the Laws of Nature
    Revista de Humanidades de Valparaíso 23 309-330. 2023.
    We routinely speak of Newton’s laws in classical mechanics without really knowing how Newton understood such laws. This article clarifies some of the ontological, epistemological, and theological presuppositions underpinning his conception of the laws of nature. After introducing the Cartesian background (2), we examine the Newtonian view of laws of nature in three respects, namely: the character of laws of nature in the context of the rules for natural philosophy (3); the emanative conception o…Read more
  •  2
    In this chapter, we provide an analysis of Torretti’s main views in the general philosophy of science. I shall examine his Kantian take on objectivity (Sect. 2.2), the creative understanding thesis (Sect. 2.3), his critique of scientific realism (Sect. 2.4), his elaboration of mathematical fictionalism (Sect. 2.5), his analysis of physical laws (Sect. 2.6), and his examination of the contribution of philosophical reflection to scientific progress (Sect. 2.7). For this, I will consider Torretti’s…Read more
  •  2
    This volume collects previously unpublished contributions to the philosophy of science. What brings them together is a twofold goal: first and foremost, celebrating the name of Roberto Torretti, whose works in this and other areas have had – and continue to have – a significant impact on the international philosophy of science community; and second, the desire of advancing novel perspectives on various issues in the philosophy of science broadly construed. In what follows, I firstly offer a brie…Read more
  •  7
    This volume collects previously unpublished contributions to the philosophy of science. What brings them together is a twofold goal: first and foremost, celebrating the name of Roberto Torretti, whose works in this and other areas have had –and continue to have– a significant impact on the international philosophy of science community; and second, the desire of advancing novel perspectives on various issues in the philosophy of science broadly construed. Roberto Torretti has made substantial con…Read more
  •  7
    Nomological dispositionalism has occupied a center stage in contemporary metaphysics about laws, holding the view that laws of nature derive from an ontology of intrinsically modal dispositional properties. This view faces, though, various challenges, some of which are worth revisiting. Among them, dispositionalism about properties condemns laws to ontological redundancy; its reconstruction of properties does not seem to fit with experimentalism; it introduces a view of metaphysical modality tha…Read more
  •  32
    Humeanism and laws of nature: scope and limits
    Revista de Humanidades de Valparaíso 17 145-167. 2021.
    Nomological Humeanism has developed into a research program encompassing several variations on a single theme, namely, the view that laws are statements about regularities that we find in nature. After briefly revisiting an early form of nomological Humeanism in Hume’s critique of the idea of necessary connection, this article critically examines Lewis’ two-fold approach based on Humean supervenience and the best system account. We shall point out three limits of nomological Humeanism, which are…Read more
  •  11
    A Framework for an Inferential Conception of Physical Laws
    with Otávio Bueno
    Principia: An International Journal of Epistemology 23 (3): 423-444. 2019.
    We advance a framework for an inferential conception of physical laws, addressing the problem of the application of mathematical structures to the relevant structure of physical domains. Physical laws, we argue, express generalizations that work as rules for deriving physically informative inferences about their target systems, hence guiding us in our interaction with various domains. Our analysis of the application of mathematics to the articulation of physical laws follows a threefold scheme. …Read more
  •  24
    Local Selective Realism: Shifting from Classical to Quantum Electrodynamics
    with Diego Romero-Maltrana
    Foundations of Science 25 (4): 955-970. 2020.
    This article elaborates local selective realism in view of the shifting from classical to quantum electrodynamics. After some introductory remarks, we critically address what we call global selective realism, hence setting forth the background for outlining local selective realism. When examining the transition from classical to quantum electrodynamics, we evaluate both continuities and discontinuities in observational features, mathematical structures, and ontological presuppositions. Our argum…Read more
  •  8
    Capacidades y leyes fenomenológicas: El disposicionalismo experimental
    with Pascal Rodríguez
    Revista de Filosofía 76 185-201. 2019.
    Elaboramos una versión del disposicionalismo experimental que esclarece la relación entre capacidades y leyes fenomenológicas. Tras algunas consideraciones introductorias, presentamos el disposicionalismo experimental en vistas de las nociones de modalidad física y ambiente de estímulo. Trazamos las líneas generales para una epistemología experimentalista de las capacidades y esclarecemos la modalidad física e invariancia de las leyes fenomenológicas. Luego examinamos las generalizaciones física…Read more
  •  13
    Sobre el colapso de las estructuras matemáticas Y físicas en el realismo estructural óntico
    Kriterion: Journal of Philosophy 60 (143): 279-295. 2019.
    RESUMEN La sección 1 introduce lo que llamo la tesis del colapso de las estructuras matemáticas y las estructuras físicas. La sección 2 examina si acaso la indispensabilidad de las matemáticas para la física fundamental involucra la adopción del platonismo matemático, en este caso acerca de estructuras matemáticas, como argumenta el realismo estructural óntico. La sección 3 muestra que la adopción de la tesis del colapso arriesga introducir la hipótesis del universo matemático. Desde la perspect…Read more
  •  16
    Globally and locally applied naturalistic metaphysics
    Manuscrito 40 (3): 33-50. 2017.
    ABSTRACT This article addresses the prospects of applied naturalistic metaphysics from both a global and a local perspective. Adopting a broad Sellarsian approach, I look into whether metaphysics has a place and role in the overall scientific image and assess whether it has its own subject matter as a first- or second- order discipline. After outlining the general argument in section 1, section 2 examines our construal of science and metaphysics, drawing some considerations for restating the que…Read more
  •  36
    The Epistemic Indispensability Argument
    Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie 50 (1): 145-161. 2019.
    This article elaborates the epistemic indispensability argument, which fully embraces the epistemic contribution of mathematics to science, but rejects the contention that such a contribution is a reason for granting reality to mathematicalia. Section 1 introduces the distinction between ontological and epistemic readings of the indispensability argument. Section 2 outlines some of the main flaws of the first premise of the ontological reading. Section 3 advances the epistemic indispensability a…Read more
  •  35
    A Proposal for a Coherent Ontology of Fundamental Entities
    with Diego Romero-Maltrana and Federico Benitez
    Foundations of Science 23 (4): 705-717. 2018.
    We argue that the distinction between framework and interaction theories should be taken carefully into consideration when dealing with the philosophical implications of fundamental theories in physics. In particular, conclusions concerning the nature of reality can only be consistently derived from assessing the ontological and epistemic purport of both types of theories. We put forward an epistemic form of realism regarding framework theories, such as Quantum Field Theory. The latter, indeed, …Read more
  • Review (review)
    Revista de Filosofía 66 269-272. 2010.
    Sergio Rojas ha hecho una importante contribución al desarrollo de los estudios kantianos en el mundo de habla hispana con su libro El problema de la historia en la filosofía crítica de Kant, puesto que, al menos por el propósito que lo inspira, es seguro que su trabajo motivará a otros estudiosos a abrir el horizonte de reflexión más allá de las tres Críticas, tanto a los opúsculos de filosofía natural y metafísica del período precrítico, como a los escritos, problemáticamente llamados menores,…Read more
  •  5
    Teoría de la verdad evolucionaria en Peirce
    Critica 42 (126): 25-44. 2010.
    Expondré las líneas generales de una teoría de la verdad evolucionaria con tres objetivos principales: primero, mostrar que ella da cuenta de la teoría de la verdad pragmatista de Peirce, reuniendo la convergencia y la correspondencia; segundo, evidenciar que involucra compromisos metafísicos realistas a partir de la relación entre evolución, verdad y realidad; y, tercero, arrojar luz sobre un aspecto importante de la discusión contemporánea sobre teorías de la verdad, a saber, su carácter emine…Read more
  •  81
    Debates on the metaphysics of science have steadily gained momentum over the last decade or so. This appears to illustrate a case of philosophers’ realisation that metaphysics—and theoretical philosophy overall—largely depends upon the sciences and has a good deal to learn from them. Recent literature on this, in fact, has reached an unforeseen high level of refinement in the arguments and a very much desirable precision in the consequences that we can derive from examining the interplay current…Read more
  •  11
    Una evaluación del realismo científico de Peirce a 100 años de su muerte
    Cuadernos de Filosofía Latinoamericana 35 (111): 26. 2014.
    En este artículo se plantean las siguientes preguntas: primero, ¿es Peirce un realista científico? Segundo, ¿han sido relevantes las ideas de Peirce para la defensa contemporánea del realismo científico? Y tercero, ¿está el realismo científico peirceano comprometido con una metafísica de la ciencia? La respuesta a tales preguntas es positiva. En el argumento se apela tanto a consideraciones de los manuscritos de Peirce como al debate contemporáneo sobre realismo científico. Luego de algunas obse…Read more
  • Review (review)
    Revista de filosofía (Chile) 66 269-272. 2010.
    Sergio Rojas ha hecho una importante contribución al desarrollo de los estudios kantianos en el mundo de habla hispana con su libro El problema de la historia en la filosofía crítica de Kant, puesto que, al menos por el propósito que lo inspira, es seguro que su trabajo motivará a otros estudiosos a abrir el horizonte de reflexión más allá de las tres Críticas, tanto a los opúsculos de filosofía natural y metafísica del período precrítico, como a los escritos, problemáticamente llamados menores,…Read more
  •  82
    I examine the current state of the debate on the metaphysics of science. In 1, I identify some of the main questions belonging to the MS, looking into the relationship between science and metaphysics. In 2, I expound the rise of the old wave in the MS, which endorses the belief that metaphysics is a guide to, or a heuristic for, science and outlines the stronger idea that metaphysics makes science possible. In 3, I examine the maximalist MS. This is a contemporary revival of the old wave, reform…Read more