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Putting Quantum Mechanics to Work in Chemistry: The Power of Diagrammatic Representation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2022

Andrea I. Woody
Andrea I. Woody*
Affiliation:
University of Washington
*
†Send requests for reprints to the author, Department of Philosophy, Box 353350, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195.
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Abstract

Most contemporary chemists consider quantum mechanics to be the foundational theory of their discipline, although few of the calculations that a strict reduction would seem to require have ever been produced. In this essay I discuss contemporary algebraic and diagrammatic representations of molecular systems derived from quantum mechanical models, specifically configuration interaction wavefunctions for ab initio calculations and molecular orbital energy diagrams. My aim is to suggest that recent dissatisfaction with reductive accounts of chemical theory may stem from both the inability of standard accounts of reduction to incorporate the diverse forms of representation found in chemical practice and our philosophical predilection to analyze all connections between theories in terms of logical reduction.

Type
Philosophy of Physics and Chemistry
Information
Philosophy of Science , Volume 67 , Issue S3: Supplement. Proceedings of the 1998 Biennial Meetings of the Philosophy of Science Association. Part II: Symposia Papers Sep., 2000 , 2000 , pp. S612 - S627
Copyright
Copyright © 2000 by the Philosophy of Science Association

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