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The Physicists, the Chemists, and the Pragmatics of Explanation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2022

Robin Findlay Hendry
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Abstract

In this paper I investigate two views of theoretical explanation in quantum chemistry, advocated by John Clarke Slater and Charles Coulson. Slater argued for quantum-mechanical rigor, and the primacy of fundamental principles in models of chemical bonding. Coulson emphasized systematic explanatory power within chemistry, and continuity with existing chemical explanations. I relate these views to the epistemic contexts of their disciplines.

Type
Causation and Explanation in Chemistry
Information
Philosophy of Science , Volume 71 , Issue 5: Proceedings of the 2002 Biennial Meeting of The Philosophy of Science Association. Part II: Symposia Papers , December 2004 , pp. 1048 - 1059
Copyright
Copyright © 2004 by the Philosophy of Science Association

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Footnotes

‡

Research towards this paper, and my attendance at the PSA meeting were supported financially by the Leverhulme Trust and the British Academy.

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