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Reduction of Thermodynamics: A Few Problems

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2022

Sang Wook Yi
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Abstract

Lawrence Sklar in his book, Physics and Chance (1993), proposes a sophisticated account of reduction of thermodynamics (TD) by statistical mechanics (SM). I argue that Sklar's analysis of the alleged reduction of TD by SM is problematic in several respects. I consider a few counterexamples to show that none of what Sklar takes to be the central features of successful reduction in science (unification and identification) holds in the case of TD and SM. I suggest the broader conclusion that a more useful way of understanding the relationship between TD and SM is as collaboration and competition among alternative methodologies rather than reduction of one theory to another.

Type
Reduction and Structure of Theories
Information
Philosophy of Science , Volume 70 , Issue 5: Proceedings of the 2002 Biennial Meeting of The Philosophy of Science Association. Part I: Contributed Papers , December 2003 , pp. 1028 - 1038
Copyright
Copyright © The Philosophy of Science Association

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Footnotes

‡

I wish to thank Craig Callender, Nancy Cartwright, Jordi Cat, Hasok Chang, and Paul Teller for their helpful comments.

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