Einstein and the Laws of Physics
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Date
2007-05-03T14:25:37Z
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Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the importance of constraints
in the theory of relativity and, in particular, what philosophical
work they do for Einstein's views on the laws of physics. Einstein
presents a view of local ``structure laws'' which he characterizes
as the most appropriate form of physical laws. Einstein was committed
to a view of science, which presents a synthesis between rational
and empirical elements as its hallmark. If scientific constructs
are free inventions of the human mind, as Einstein, held, the
question arises how such rational constructs, including the symbolic
formulation of the laws of physics, can represent physical reality. Representation
in turn raises the question of realism. Einstein uses a number
of constraints in the theory of relativity to show that by imposing
constraints on the rational elements a certain ``fit'' between theory
and reality can be achieved. Fit is to be understood as satisfaction
of constraint. His emphasis on reference frames in the STR and
more general coordinate systems in the GTR, as well as his emphasis
on the symmetries of the theory of relativity suggests that Einstein's
realism is akin to a certain form of structural realism. His
version of structural realism follows from the theory of relativity
and is independent of any current philosophical debates about
structural realism.
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Keywords
covariance, Einstein, invariance, laws of nature, laws of physics, realism, relativity, structural realism, symmetries