Time as an Empirical Concept in Special Relativity
Slavov, M. (2019). Time as an Empirical Concept in Special Relativity. Review of Metaphysics, 73(2), 335-353. https://www.pdcnet.org/revmetaph/content/revmetaph_2019_0073_0002_0335_0353
Published in
Review of MetaphysicsAuthors
Date
2019Copyright
© 2019 Philosophy Education Society
According to a widespread view, Einstein’s definition of time in his special relativity is founded on the positivist verification principle. The present paper challenges this received outlook. It argues that Einstein’s position on the concept of time, to wit, simultaneity, is best understood as a mitigated version of concept empiricism. He contrasts his position to Newton’s absolutist and Kant’s transcendental arguments, and in part sides with Hume’s and Mach’s empiricist arguments. Nevertheless, Einstein worked out a concept empiricism that is considerably more moderate than what we find in the preceding empiricist tradition and early logical positivism. He did not think that the origin of concepts is in observations, but in conventions, and he also maintained a realist ontology of physical events, which he thought is necessary for his theory. Consequently, his philosophy of time in special relativity is not couched in terms of an antimetaphysical verificationism.
Publisher
Philosophy Education SocietyISSN Search the Publication Forum
0034-6632
Original source
https://www.pdcnet.org/revmetaph/content/revmetaph_2019_0073_0002_0335_0353Publication in research information system
https://converis.jyu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/33939738
Metadata
Show full item recordCollections
License
Related items
Showing items with similar title or keywords.
-
Suppea suhteellisuusteoria : Einsteinin postulaattien ja aikadilaation kokeellisia varmennuksia
Rantanen, Vesa (2000) -
Empiricism and Relationism Intertwined: Hume and Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity
Slavov, Matias (University of the Basque Country, 2016)Einstein acknowledged that his reading of Hume influenced the development of his special theory of relativity. In this article, I juxtapose Hume’s philosophy with Einstein’s philosophical analysis related to his ... -
Tulkinta empirismin tieto-opista : tietoteoreettinen analyysi David Humen, A.J. Ayerin ja Eino Kailan empiristisistä tietokäsityksistä
Slavov, Matias (2011)Tämä pro gradu -tutkielma käsittelee empirismin tieto-oppia. Analysoitavina ovat tietoteoriassa vaikuttaneiden David Humen (1711–1776), A. J. Ayerin (1910–1989) sekä Eino Kailan (1890–1958) tietokäsitykset. Tulkintakulma ... -
Temporal Nature of Philosophy and the Concept of Duration in the Philosophical Method of Henri Bergson
Lipsanen, Katariina (Suomen filosofinen yhdistys ry, 2023)This article explores the temporal nature of philosophy and the concept of duration (durée) in Henri Bergson's (1859–1941) philosophical methodology. The aim is to examine how time, particularly the concept of duration, ... -
Iʿtibārī Concepts in Suhrawardī : The Case of Substance
Kaukua, Jari (Brill, 2020)Shihāb al-Dīn al-Suhrawardī (d. 587/1191) famously criticised the central concepts of Avicennian metaphysics as merely mind-dependent (or iʿtibārī) notions. This paper aims to show that despite his critique, Suhrawardī ...