The best Humean system for statistical mechanics

Frigg, Roman ORCID: 0000-0003-0812-0907 and Hoefer, Carl (2015) The best Humean system for statistical mechanics. Erkenntnis, 80 (S3). pp. 551-574. ISSN 0165-0106

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Abstract

Classical statistical mechanics posits probabilities for various events to occur, and these probabilities seem to be objective chances. This does not seem to sit well with the fact that the theory’s time evolution is deterministic. We argue that the tension between the two is only apparent. We present a theory of Humean objective chance and show that chances thus understood are compatible with underlying determinism and provide an interpretation of the probabilities we find in Boltzmannian statistical mechanics.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	http://www.springer.com/philosophy/journal/10670
Additional Information:	© 2013 Springer Science + Business Media Dordrecht
Divisions:	Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > B Philosophy (General) H Social Sciences > HA Statistics
Date Deposited:	27 Jun 2011 15:46
Last Modified:	12 Dec 2024 00:48
Projects:	FFI2012-37354, FFI2008-06418-C03-03, FFI2011-29834-C03-03, CSD2009-00056, SGR2009-01528
Funders:	Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/37075

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