This book gives a broad synthesis of conceptual developments of twentieth-century field theories, from the general theory of relativity to quantum field theory and gauge theory. The author gives a his
Quantum field theory is a powerful language for the description of the subatomic constituents of the physical world and the laws and principles that govern them. This book contains up-to-date in-depth analyses, by a group of eminent physicists and philosophers of science, of our present understanding of its conceptual foundations, of the reasons why this understanding has to be revised so that the theory can go further, and of possible directions in which revisions may be promising and productive. These analyses will be of interest to graduate students and research workers in physics who want to know about the foundational problems of their subject. The book will also be of interest to professional philosophers, historians and sociologists of science, because it contains much material for metaphysical and methodological reflections, for historical and cultural analyses, and for sociological analyses of the way in which various factors contribute to the way the foundations are revised.
The advent of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) in the early 1970s was one of the most important events in twentieth-century science. This book examines the conceptual steps that were crucial to the rise of QCD, placing them in historical context against the background of debates that were ongoing between the bootstrap approach and composite modeling, and between mathematical and realistic conceptions of quarks. It explains the origins of QCD in current algebra and its development through high-energy experiments, model-building, mathematical analysis and conceptual synthesis. Addressing a range of complex physical, philosophical and historiographical issues in detail, this book will interest graduate students and researchers in physics and in the history and philosophy of science.
This new edition of Conceptual Developments of 20th Century Field Theories explores the conceptual foundations and historical roots of fundamental field theories. It also uncovers the underlying issues, logic and dynamics in fundamental physics. In response to new advances in the field over the past twenty years, the sections on gauge theory and quantum field theory have been thoroughly revised and elaborated. The chapter on ontological synthesis and scientific realism has also been reconsidered, now suggesting a new approach that goes beyond structuralism and historicism. Providing an integrated picture of the physical world, it is a valuable resource for theoretical physicists and philosophers of science with an interest in the development of twentieth century mathematical physics. It also provides professional historians and sociologists of science with a basis for further historical, cultural and sociological analysis of the theories discussed.
In the face of rapid and radical social changes since the late 1970s, contemporary China faces tremendous challenges. What is China transforming toward? What are the ideological positions and, more ge
