Physics Needs Philosophy. Philosophy Needs Physics

Carlo Rovelli
CPT, Aix-Marseille Université, Université de Toulon, CNRS Marseille, France | rovelli@cpt.univ-mrs.fr

Received: 22-November-2017 | Accepted: 19-May-2018 | Published: 31-December-2018
Disputatio [Dec. 2018], Vol. 7, No. 8, a019 | DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.2554714
Article | [ES] | Full Text | Statistics | Copyright Notice [es] | Vol. 7 No. 8

How to cite this article:
Rovelli, Carlo (2018). «La física necesita la filosofía. La filosofía necesita la física». Disputatio. Philosophical Research Bulletin 7, no. 8: a019.


Abstract | Contrary to claims about the irrelevance of philosophy for science, I argue that philosophy has had, and still has, far more influence on physics than is commonly assumed. I maintain that the current anti-philosophical ideology has had damaging effects on the fertility of science. I also suggest that recent important empirical results, such as the detection of the Higgs particle and gravitational waves, and the failure to detect supersymmetry where many expected to find it, question the validity of certain philosophical assumptions common among theoretical physicists, inviting us to engage in a clearer philosophical reflection on scientific method.
Keywords |
 Philosophy of Physics · Aristotle · Popper · Kuhn.

La física necesita la filosofía. La filosofía necesita la física

Resumen | Contrariamente a las afirmaciones acerca de la irrelevancia de la filosofía para la ciencia, yo defiendo que la filosofía ha tenido, y sigue teniendo, mucha más influencia sobre la física de lo que se suele asumir. Afirmo que la actual ideología anti-filosófica ha tenido efectos dañinos sobre la fertilidad de la ciencia. También sugiero que algunos recientes e importantes resultados empíricos, como el descubrimiento de la partícula de Higgs y el de las ondas gravitacionales, y el fracaso en la detección de la supersimetría donde muchos esperaban encontrarla, cuestionan la validez de ciertos supuestos filosóficos comunes entre los físicos teóricos, invitándonos a comprometernos en una más clara reflexión filosófica sobre el método científico.
Palabras Clave | Filosofía de la Física · Aristóteles · Popper · Kuhn.


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