Philosophical perspectives on ad hoc hypotheses and the Higgs mechanism
Synthese 191 (16):3897-3917 (2014)
Abstract
We examine physicists’ charge of ad hocness against the Higgs mechanism in the standard model of elementary particle physics. We argue that even though this charge never rested on a clear-cut and well-entrenched definition of “ad hoc”, it is based on conceptual and methodological assumptions and principles that are well-founded elements of the scientific practice of high-energy particle physics. We further evaluate the implications of the recent discovery of a Higgs-like particle at the CERN’s Large Hadron Collider for the charge of ad hocness against the Higgs mechanismAuthor Profiles
DOI
10.1007/s11229-014-0504-4
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Citations of this work
Naturalness, the autonomy of scales, and the 125GeV Higgs.Porter Williams - 2015 - Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 51:82-96.
From a boson to the standard model Higgs: a case study in confirmation and model dynamics.Cristin Chall, Martin King, Peter Mättig & Michael Stöltzner - 2019 - Synthese 198 (Suppl 16):3779-3811.
Model choice and crucial tests. On the empirical epistemology of the Higgs discovery.Peter Mättig & Michael Stöltzner - 2019 - Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 65:73-96.
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Gauging What's Real: The Conceptual Foundations of Contemporary Gauge Theories.Richard Healey - 2007 - Oxford University Press.
The Life of The Cosmos.Steven Weinstein & Arthur Fine - 1998 - Journal of Philosophy 95 (5):264-268.