The philosophy behind Quantum Gravity

• Autores: Henrik Zinkernagel
• Localización: Theoria: an international journal for theory, history and foundations of science, ISSN 0495-4548, Vol. 21, Nº 57, 2006, págs. 295-312
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • This paper investigates some of the philosophical and conceptual issues raised by the search for a quantum theory of gravity. It is critically discussed wheter such a theory is necessary in the first place, and how much would be accomplished if it is eventually constructed. I argu that the motivations behind, and expectations to, a theory of quantum gravity are entangled with central themes in the philosophy of science, in particular unification, reductionism, and the interpretation of quantum mechanics. I further argue that there are - contrary to claims made on behalf of string theory - no good reasons to think that a quantum theory of gravity, if constructed, will provide a theory of everything, that is, a fundamental theory from which all physics ini principle can be derived