Ilkka Niiniluoto – Wikipedia

#Workshop: #Trust in #Science: from #Politicization to #Crisis, 15 April 2026 in #Groningen

Come listen to Torsten Wilholt, (@unihannover): "What is (wrong with) the politicization of science?" and Mathias Frisch: "#Climate Tipping Points: scientific disagreement and public trust in the face of uncertain evidence"

Info and registration: https://www.rug.nl/filosofie/organization/news-and-events/events/2026/trustevent

#philosophy #PhilosophyOfScience

Trust in Science: from Politicization to Crisis

The perception that science is politicized or that scientific experts are highly divided is a potential threat to public trust in science. But what exactly...

University of Groningen

New publication: What’s Wrong with the Semantic Conception of Scientific Theories | Erkenntnis

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10670-026-01079-y

#philosophyofscience #philsci

I argue against the move away from linguistic analysis of theories and models in philosophy of science, in particular against the relevance of model-theoretic tools, and outline a pragmatic conception of theories.

What’s Wrong with the Semantic Conception of Scientific Theories: Towards a Pragmatic View - Erkenntnis

In contrast to the syntactic conception of scientific theories, the semantic conception holds that theories are not statements about the world, but families of models. Recent debates have tended to blur the differences between these two views. Practice-oriented philosophers of science have also challenged both views on the ground that models are central to science, but autonomous from theories. However, they have not proposed any alternative. This article is an attempt to sharpen the challenges faced by the semantic view in order to pave the way for a truly pragmatic conception of theories. I examine different ways in which a focus on models could make the semantic view different from the syntactic view. In the end, they share the same resources to individuate theories, they account just as well for different layers of interpretation, and they face the same issues regarding the relation between formal representation and informal experience. I argue that the only relevant contrast lies not between linguistic and non-linguistic representation, but between descriptive and schematic representation, but this ultimately favours a pragmatic view by implying a role for context in theoretical interpretation. I sketch an account of schematic representation that could serve as a basis for a pragmatic conception of theories.

SpringerLink

🧩 β€œIs structure the true reality?β€πŸŒ

In the current Zoomposium, we discuss with Michael Esfeld why reality does not consist of things, but of structures and relations. His moderate ontic structural realism combines quantum physics, metaphysics, and consciousnessβ€”and shows that

holism is not a marginal phenomenon, but the key to understanding the world, freedom, and knowledge.

Immerse yourself in the philosophical perspective that unites natural science and metaphysics.

πŸ“Ί Watch the full interview now: https://youtu.be/tUcT4a-UNr0

πŸ”—or get more information: https://philosophies.de/index.php/2026/02/27/struktur-die-wahre-realitaet/

#StructuralRealism #OnticStructuralRealism #Holism #Metaphysics #QuantumMechanics #PhilosophyOfScience #MichaelEsfeld #QuantumHumeanism #Freedom #Reality #Zoomposium #PhilosophyOfPhysics #PhilosophyOfMind

I wonder whether the digital age has led to a decline in the use of atlases, which in turn might be expected to imbue a false sense of increasing objectivity as scientific practitioners of become less acquainted with analog methods.

#science #PhilosophyOfScience #objectivity #digital