Tim Maudlin on Scientific Realism

Robinson’s Podcast #142 - Tim Maudlin: Carnap, Kuhn, Bell’s Inequality, & The Philosophy of Science

Tim Maudlin is Professor of Philosophy at NYU and Founder and Director of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. Tim is renowned as one of the leading philosophers of physics, and he also works in the philosophy of science and metaphysics. This is Tim’s fourth appearance on the show. Tim was also a guest on episode 46 (laws of nature, space, and free will), episode 67 with David Albert (the foundations of quantum mechanics), and episode 115 with Craig Callender (the philosophy of time). In this episode, Robinson and Tim dig into some of the crucial developments in the philosophy of science that took place during the 20th century. Then they move on to John Bell and the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics—which you absolutely should be—then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life.

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

[psmoyer]

This is an excellent philosophical discussion of scientific realism It truly gets to the meaning of the question in a way I've not heard before. "I think the root that will get us to a correct theory runs through this one."

[afriedrich]

@0:27 "versus certain proof you get in mathematics" ??? All of mathematics is based on axioms. Axioms, by definition, are statements you believe are true, but can't prove are true. This makes mathematics a branch of religion.