Tytułowe pytanie dla niemal wszystkich fizyków jeszcze niedawno byłoby jawną prowokacją, myślę zresztą, że wielu również dziś potraktowałoby je w ten sposób. Oczywistą odpowiedzią byłoby dla nich „nie”: cokolwiek istnieje realnie, w sposób materialny, jest – lub w przyszłości będzie – opisywane do końca przez fizykę. Wszystko, co do tej kategorii nie należy, albo istnieje w sposób ułomny i ulotny, albo nie jest bytem, a jedynie relacją pomiędzy bytami. Warto tu wspomnieć o immanentnym ograniczeniu: fizyka nie zajmuje się bytami wewnętrznie sprzecznymi (na przykład poruszaniem się małych ciał poza geodezyjnymi w ogólnej teorii względności). Pozornie mogę wypowiedzieć zdanie o ich istnieniu, ale tak naprawdę nie mogę tego pomyśleć, jeżeli wiem o ich wewnętrznej sprzeczności, co podkreślał na gruncie logiki Ludwig Wittgenstein w swoim traktacie. Ważna uwaga dotyczy języka, jakim mówimy o bytach. Mogłoby się wydawać, że w fizyce nie ma z tym problemu, bo językiem fizyki jest matematyka, i ten język jest taki sam dla wszystkich. Jednak nie jest to takie proste: ten sam wzór, na przykład równania Alberta Einsteina w ogólnej teorii względności, jest zupełnie inaczej odbierany przez kogoś, kto widzi je po raz pierwszy, inaczej po roku pracy nad nimi, i jeszcze inaczej przez kogoś, kto pracował nad nimi przez trzydzieści lat, jak w moim przypadku. Znaczenie przekazu zależy też od odbiorcy – można nie potrafić powiedzieć, ale można też nie potrafić odebrać. W tekście poruszę dwie kwestie: bytów, którymi fizyka się zajmuje, ale których status ontologiczny jest niejasny (więc potrafię mówić, ale nie bardzo wiem, czy to istnieje), oraz bytów, które istnieją, ale nie potrafię o nich mówić w ramach fizyki.
EN
Not so long ago the titular question would have been an open provocation in the eyes of almost all physicists and I believe that today too many would treat it identically. For them the obvious answer would be: “no”: whatever exists in reality, in a material way, is – or will be in the future – described to the very end by physics. Everything that does not belong to this category either exists in a deformed and fleeting fashion, or is not a being but only a relation between beings. At this point it is worth mentioning an immanent limitation: physics does not deal with beings that are internally contradictory (take the example of the motion of small bodies in the general theory of relativity). Ostensibly, I can express an opinion about their existence, but actually I cannot think in this way if I know about their inner contradiction, which Ludwig Wittgenstein stressed in his treatise on logic. A significant remark concerns the language in which we speak about beings. It could appear that this is not a problem in physics, since the language of physics is mathematics, the identical for all. Nonetheless, things are not that simple. For instance, the same equations, for instance Albert Einstein’s equations in the general theory of relativity, are experienced completely differently by someone who sees them for the very first time or after a year’s work with them, and still differently by someone who has dealt with them for over 30 years, as in my case. The meaning of the message also depends on the recipient – it is possible to be unable to say it but it is just as possible to be unable to receive it. My text will deal with two questions: beings, which physics deals with but whose ontological status is unclear (in other words, I am capable of speaking about it but am not quite sure whether it exists), and beings that exist but about which I am unable to speak within the range of physics.
Interview with Serguei Grib By Philip Clayton for The Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences. Edited version for spring workshops (CTNS Program on Science and Spiritual Quest, Spring 1997, Workshop Physics Interviews).
The article discusses the study of the topic “Polarization” in the process of implementation of laboratory works of the students of higher military education institutions. The results of the study of modern physics teaching and the issues of rational use of teaching time has shown that it is expedient to introduce innovations in the methodology of conducting those activities in which the students acquire practical skills in professional direction from the first years of study in higher school. The use of one of the classes of experimental and practical components in the study of one topic in the process of training of students clearly indicates integration of fundamental and professional components of training of the future military specialists. The process of the combination of the practical and experimental component of the work in the framework of laboratory classes on the topic “Polarization” is described; it is studied in the second semester. To explore this phenomenon cadets are offered three laboratory works: - laboratory work № 26, under the theme “Experimental verification of law of Malus”, the goal of the study was to explore the phenomenon of polarization in the process of experimental verification of law of Malus; - laboratory work № 27, under the theme “Study of polarization of light upon reflection from a dielectric surface”, the aim of this work is to investigate experimentally the degree of polarization of light reflected at the interface of two dielectrics, and to verify the Brewster’s law; - laboratory work № 28, the theme of which is “the study of the phenomenon of rotation of plane of polarization of light”, the aim of the study was to investigate the natural phenomenon of rotation of polarized light in optically active substances. Before they perform the work, the students should repeat the following theoretical questions: - for the laboratory work № 26: 1. The phenomenon of polarization of electromagnetic waves. Natural and polarized light. 2. Methods of obtaining polarized light. The physical nature of the action of the polarization devices. Law of Malus. - laboratory work № 27:1. The concept of light polarization and its types.2. Law Of Malus. The Law Of Brewster. - laboratory work №28:1. Podine premeasurement. The natural rotation of the plane of polarization. 2. Magnetic rotation of the plane of polarization. 3. The Faraday Effect. According to the tasks and equipment of each laboratory work the study of the topic is weighty fact that laboratory works vary by complexity of implementation; therefore, students with low levels of training are offered the laboratory work № 26; and work № 27 and № 28 are proposed for the students with a high level of knowledge of the discipline, because even the equipment itself requires discipline and responsibility of the students in the deposition and withdrawal of the installation to its original state (especially working with goniometer – laboratory work № 27 and accuracy with the polarimeter cuvettes and the appropriate concentrations, laboratory work №28). Each of the works serves a separate theoretical introduction and an appropriate order of execution. The order of execution of each job was individually taught in all workplaces. After performing the experimental part of the work the teacher gives the students a checklist of questions for which they should know answers during the oral defense.
In this article an application of neural networks to the reconstruction of unknown physical quantities in particle physics is presented. As an example the mass reconstruction of the hypothetical Higgs boson in the typical high energy physics experiment is used. Monte Carlo events are used to determine the probability distributions of observables (energies of two jets and the angle between them) for various Higgs boson mass, which are later fitted using a Neural Network. These distributions are used to determine the mass probability distribution of the measured particle. The mass is reconstructed without knowing the functional dependence between the observables and the measured quantity. The miscalibration of the measured quantities is automatically corrected in this method.
PL
W artykule zaprezentowane jest zastosowanie sieci neuronowych do rekonstrukcji nieznanych wielkości w fizyce cząstek elementarnych. Jako przykład użyta jest rekonstrukcja masy hipotetycznego bozonu Higgsa oparta na symulowanych danych. Dane te zostały użyte do wyznaczenia rozkładów prawdopodobieństwa mierzonych wielkości (energie dwóch dżetów oraz kąt pomiędzy nimi) dla różnych mas cząstki Higgsa. Rozkłady te zostały następnie sparametryzowane za pomocą sieci neuronowych oraz wyznaczenia rozkładu prawdopodobieństwa masy mierzonej cząstki. Masa jest wyznaczona bez użycia zależności funkcyjnej pomiędzy mierzonymi wielkościami a rekonstruowaną masą. Kalibracja wielkości pomiarowych jest automatycznie korygowana poprzez rozkłady prawdopodobieństwa.
“Is logic a physical variable?” This thought-provoking question was put forward by Michael Heller during the public lecture “Category Theory and Mathematical Structures of the Universe” delivered on 30th March 2017 at the National Quantum Information Center in Sopot. It touches upon the intimate relationship between the foundations of physics, mathematics and philosophy. To address this question one needs a conceptual framework, which is on the one hand rigorous and, on the other hand capacious enough to grasp the diversity of modern theoretical physics. Category theory is here a natural choice. It is not only an independent, well-developed and very advanced mathematical theory, but also a holistic, process-oriented way of thinking.
This study aims to determine the influence of the use of e-portfolio tasks through the Facebook network on the creativity of students in the subject of physics in junior high school. One Group Pretest-Posttest research design was used in the quasi-experimental research type, which included 31 first-year students (Grade 7), selected by purposive sampling for the research sample. Data collection techniques were conducted using tests, performance assessment, portfolio assessment, observation, and teacher interviews. Data analysis was conducted with the use of correlation test and correlation hypothesis test. T-test was used to analyse the data collected. The result from the post-test showed that there was a positive and significant influence on the students’ creativity in physics. Based on the results of data analysis, the obtained correlation coefficient was 0.99965 with very strong correlation interpretation, and tcount > ttable. Thus, it can be concluded that there was a positive and significant influence of the e-portfolio tasks through the Facebook network on students’ creativity in physics lessons at junior high school.
The course of physics is perceived by the majority of students of nonphysical specialties as the discipline that has no attitude toward their future professional activity. Therefore due attention is not paid to its study. Absence of motivation results in the decline of cognitive activity of students and the quality of knowledge. For achievement of primary purpose of teaching it is necessary to use the differentiated approach that will provide the professionally-oriented teaching physics. Material of lectures, practical and laboratory workshops must demonstrate to the students the possibility of physics in the context of future professional activity. Physics plays an important role in the formation of the scientific worldview of students. During the study of physics the student should understand that in all its diversity surrounding material world is a unity. This unity is manifested primarily in the fact that all the phenomena, no matter how difficult they may seem, are the moving matter in different states and properties are have material origin. The unity of the world is also evident in the relationship of all the phenomena, the possibility of interconversion of forms of matter and motion. However, the unity of the world is manifested in the existence of some general laws of motion of matter (laws of conservation of energy, momentum, electric charge, the relationship of mass and energy and so on). The task of physics and other natural sciences is to identify the most general laws of nature and to explain on their basis specific phenomena and processes. Teaching physics to non-physical specialties of classical universities will be the most effective if the system of differentiation of teaching physics with regard to the future profession of the students will be implemented, namely:differential approach to the content of educational; extensive use of cross-curricular links of physics with related subjects; selection of appropriate forms of educational practice; taking into account individual characteristics and abilities of the students. This approach will promote a logically-structured, qualitative learning; provide the opportunity for students to receive new information, additional material, to form the ability to produce new knowledge and to instill the desire for self-knowledge acquisition.
The religious attitude of many physicists is atheist or agnostic. In the present article, it is argued that this attitude is favoured by the present shape of the natural science called Physics. The first reason is that the modern concept of nature is alienated from that of creation. The second is that, according to the dominating view, nature is epistemologically silent about itself. Additionally, the view of the axiomatic and thence hypothetical-deductive character of modern Mathematics and the conjectural character of its applications to the material world make impossible an organic connection between mathematical objects and material things. There exists only a practical knowledge of the successful use of Mathematics in Physics. This peculiar epistemological climate in Physics has become more and more alienated from the intellectual climate generated by ordinary experience and its evidence, which in turn is confirmed by Christian revelation. It is this peculiar intellectual atmosphere in which a physicist carries out his professional actions. Their moral assessment is done with the help of two distinctions: the first between the views of Physics as providing a physicalist world-view or as a field of professional activity like others. The second distinction is between the two effects of a professional action of a physicist: every such action tends to its immediate object, and every such action, by upkeeping the existing professional standards, contributes eo ipso toperpetuate the present intellectual climate in Physics. While such actions may be still morally acceptable, the situation is precarious. Therefore it is convenient to have Physics reformed from within. Such an internal reform should be experience-based and thus start from the very outset from the epistemological climate generated by ordinary experience, which is in harmony with the epistemological climate generated by Christian revelation. This reason on moral grounds is the third motive for attempting an internal reform of Physics. The first one concerns the removal of the ignorance about the link of mathematical objects to material things. It is simply due to the necessity of having a sound selfunderstanding of Physics. This in turn is closely related to the “apologetic” motive of removing the disharmony between the epistemological climates referred to above. Surprisingly, some current views of the relationship between Theology and Physics (I. G. Barbour, M. Heller, Th. F. Torrance) do not envisage any need for an internal reform of Physics. Instead they promote an increased influence of Physics upon Theology.
Today, the problems in the relationship of man and nature have a great influence on the development of civilization. In these conditions it is necessary to shape people’s thinking, which is able to withstand global catastrophes. That is the teaching task of forming the ecological style of thinking in the process of training and education of students on employment on the physics. At the heart of the process of formation of ecological thinking style is a set of principles: the principle of humanization, the principle of integration, the principle of interconnection of theoretical knowledge and practical activities, the principle of joint disclosure of global, national and regional studies of the factors of nature, the principle of continuity and systematic. The overall goal of the formation of the ecological thinking style of younger generations is facing all academic subjects. But a special role among them is played by physics. The study of physics gives students an idea of the integrity of nature, the interconnectedness and interdependence of processes occurring in it, the source of «natural» pollution. Physics plays a critical role in the proper understanding of many ecological problems as a side effect of technological progress. It serves as the scientific basis of the technical means, which are created to neutralize the harmful effects of human activity, the nature of the technologies used. Therefore, consistent disclosure of relevant aspects of ecological education throughout the course of physics and the development of the students’ ecological thinking style on this basis should be a priority today in the teaching of physics. The interdisciplinary nature of ecological education should consider the needs to interact with the teachers of other subjects to integrate and synthesize all the studied ecological material. For this purpose, it is desirable to organize a cycle of lectures by teachers of related disciplines, joint problem solving lessons, seminars on ecological issues, etc. As a result, students should have a clear idea of the existence of environmental problems – social reality of modern life. Their implementation will be in the future related to the solution of these problems by optimizing the relationship with nature. This optimization is feasible in terms of science and technology, and therefore there is no valid reason for pessimism yet.
This article presents various teaching methods that include an experimental approach to the gymnasium and high-school physics curriculum. Various methods of an interdisciplinary approach between physics and other sciences, technology and the students’ everyday life are presented. A sample laboratory lesson focusing on electrical circuits in the gymnasium curriculum is also included. Cases presented in the article are based on informal education practices, such as academic science encouragement programmes and NGO experiences.
Today Ukraine focuses on the quality of education. The traditional view of education in building knowledge and skills no longer meets the demands of society. Among the priorities of the state policy in terms of integration of national higher education to European and world educational space were defined the problems of continuous improving of the quality of education, modernizing its contents and organization of the educational process; development and implementation of educational innovation. Innovative methods include static perfection of an education system, the introduction of its new triggers that cause a violation of the stability, familiarity, predictability, typical situations and so on. Therefore, innovation is linked to certain risks, unpredictable learning outcomes of atypical situations, which complicates their introduction in the educational process. One of the innovative training problems is that technology is often seen as a developmental education aimed at obtaining active knowledge formation of mental abilities and techniques of research, involving scientific research, development of works. Compared to traditional training objective problem-based learning is wider: learning is not only the results of scientific knowledge, but also the way and the process of obtaining these results, it includes also the formation of students’ learning, the development of their creative abilities (except mastering the system of knowledge and skills). The emphasis is made on the development of thinking. The content of physics that includes scientific facts, concepts, laws, theories is set out in the order that promotes problem-based learning, i.e. physics course has educational problems which can be arranged as problem tasks and problem questions. Students are proposed the problem situations related to life, the solution of which requires knowledge of physics. Students can nominate their assumptions and ways of solving this problem. Technology problem-based learning requires a significant investment of time and effort on the part of the teacher and of the students. However, the use of problem-based learning can achieve a better understanding of the material, its conscious learning, provides scientific evidence knowledge, teaches students to think dialectically, and promotes the development of personal qualities.
The article aims to describe and analyse the opinions of European physicists as to the reasons for the overrepresentation of men in the discipline, as well as to supply some reflections on the barriers encountered by female physicists in their careers. The article is based on qualitative data – 83 in-depth interviews with female and male physicists – collected in 2016 and 2017 under the framework of the project “Gender Equality Network in European Research Area” (GENERA). The main reasons voiced by interviewees for the gender imbalance in physics are to be found ‘outside’ the scientific institutions themselves, namely the early processes of the socialisation of girls and boys, together with existing gender stereotypes. Other reasons are related to recent developments in academia linked to work organization and structural conditions – precariousness, competitiveness, and the demand for mobility, but also to a masculinised working culture resulting in gender bias, as well as microaggressions and discrimination. In relation to recent studies showing that awareness of gender (in)equalities remains of crucial importance for structural/institutional change, the article reflects on the potential implications of the perception by physicists of the determinants of gender inequality for the implementation of gender equality policy in research organisations.
In this article, I restate the interpretation of Aristotle’s Ph. 2.5, 196b17–21, which I presented for the first time in my book I fondamenti della causalità naturale (2006). According to my reading, both the things that are due to deliberation and those that are not (Arist. Ph. 196b17–18) fall within the group of beings which come to be not for the sake of anything (Arist. Ph. 196b17). In his recent book, Aristotle’s Concept of Chance (Albany 2012), John Dudley found my interpretation laudable and original but rejected it, opting for the traditional interpretation. As he did not provide sufficient reasons for this, I deem it appropriate to discuss more broadly and in greater detail my interpretation in order to demonstrate that it is correct theoretically, linguistically and grammatically. I also discuss a reading of Neoplatonic commentators which seems to me very useful: when commenting on Aristotle, they start with a very prejudicial interpretation which comes from Alexander and which probably determined all later interpretations of the passage. According to this interpretation, beings which come to be not for the sake of anything (Arist. Ph. 196b17) are beings that have no teleology of any kind. Yet this exegetic position faces a series of difficulties which can easily be solved if one assumes, as I do, that these beings have a certain end albeit not an intrinsic one.
IT
In this article, I restate the interpretation of Aristotle’s Ph. 2.5, 196b17– 21, which I presented for the first time in my book I fondamenti della causalità naturale (2006). According to my reading, both the things that are due to deliberation and those that are not (Arist. Ph. 196b17–18) fall within the group of beings which come to be not for the sake of anything (Arist. Ph. 196b17). In his recent book, Aristotle’s Concept of Chance (Albany 2012), John Dudley found my interpretation laudable and original but rejected it, opting for the traditional interpretation. As he did not provide sufficient reasons for this, I deem it appropriate to discuss more broadly and in greater detail my interpretation in order to demonstrate that it is correct theoretically, linguistically and grammatically. I also discuss a reading of Neoplatonic commentators which seems to me very useful: when commenting on Aristotle, they start with a very prejudicial interpretation which comes from Alexander and which probably determined all later interpretations of the passage. According to this interpretation, beings which come to be not for the sake of anything (Arist. Ph. 196b17) are beings that have no teleology of any kind. Yet this exegetic position faces a series of difficulties which can easily be solved if one assumes, as I do, that these beings have a certain end albeit not an intrinsic one.
In his works on natural sciences, primarily in the Physics, Aristotle focuses on different forms of metabolē and distinguishes movement in general from substantial change. The On generation and corruption deals with the latter. When reading this treatise, one should pay particular attention to the concept of mixture. Apart from being the subject of a specific chapter (I 10), the problem of mixture permeates the whole work. But what exactly is mixture? Is it a simple combination of small parts? Can a compound of water and wine be called mixture? If so, is this mixture and nothing more? In the course of the discussion, it is argued that the Aristotelian idea of mixis does not correspond to the concept that is usually associated with it. Rather, it is shown that mixis is fundamental for comprehending the physical world and constitutes not only the term per quem the first elements of all material bodies originate, but also plays a fundamental role in all natural sciences, particularly, in biology.
Since 1911, the international Solvay Conferences on Physics have been and continues to be one the most significant conventions of physicists and is of great importance for the progress in this field of science. Between 1911 and 1933, Marie Skłodowska-Curie took an active part in the organisation and works of those Conferences. The article discusses the origin of the Conferences and contribution of Marie Skłodowska-Curie to their organisation, as well as her rank as a member of the International Scientific Committee, whose task was to convene them. Marie Skłodowska-Curie’s important part in the selection of participants and her own participation in discussions at the Conferences is also presented in this article.
The aim of this article is a creation of general method of using the historical material for the formation of learners’ interest in physics. The learner will be not able to understand the educational material, if the learner doesn’t feel the need to study it. In this way, it is necessary to develop the learners’ interest. The history of physics has a great potential for the formation of learners’ interest in physics. The forms of the historical material in physics teaching have been defined. These are historical views, descriptions of experiments, tasks with historical content, demonstration of models of historical devices, biographies of scientists. Results proved that the appropriate forms of historical material increase the level of learners’ interest in physics. Every science has its own history. Therefore, this general method can be used in the teaching of other sciences.
The article is devoted to the display of modern achievements of physics as a science in the school physics course. The existences of contradictions between modern scientific concepts in physics and content curriculum of discipline have been found. At the same time, it is proved that the curriculum requirements for general education of students has not been specifically formulated in the part of expected results of training on the basic concepts of nanoscience. The research is based on the general scientific theory and empirical methods: analysis – in order to study modern physics in secondary schools, finding the provision in the learning process of necessary learning tools; synthesis – for designing content for elective courses; observing of the educational process in physics. Based on the analysis of scientific and technical literature and teaching experience it is shown that the issue of development and implementation of appropriate elective courses in the context of the reform of secondary education are not reasonable: methodology of the use of elective courses while studying modern physics in secondary school has not been disclosed; relevant materials of these courses have not been developed, and there are no methodological and logistical support for their teaching. It is proved that today there is an urgent need for the development and implementation in the learning process, starting with secondary schools, of tailored training courses that include individual questions of modern physics and nanotechnology. The authors proposed elective course “Fundamentals of Modern Physics” for high school students. The course objective is to resolve contradictions between modern scientific concepts in physics and curriculums physics. In the article elective course program and guidelines for teachers are revealed. Course content promotes pupils with the modern scientific world. Holding this course the authors consider appropriate in the end of the11th class curriculum. The effective implementation of the foundations of modern physical science in the educational process of secondary schools requires creating programs and teacher training courses and developing of appropriate methodological provision of the studied subjects.
This article presents fourteen propositions summarising the hypotheses advanced in Alain Testart’s book Pour les sciences sociales: essai d’épistémologie. This text crucially challenges the bases of social sciences in general. It mainly analyses, from a unified perspective, the position of the observer, by highlighting that a poor understanding of this issue has contributed to social sciences’ struggle to acquire a scientific status. In this article these positions will be compared to those developed by Jean-Claude Passeron in his book Le raisonnement sociologique: l’espace non poppérien du raisonnement naturel, which at first glance are irreducible. Nonetheless these two approaches seem to be complementary. Passeron focuses his proposal on historicity but he is forced to treat secondarily the nomological aspect. His proposal sets out the non-Popperian character of historical approach. Testart centres his proposal on the nomological aspect but he is forced to consider secondarily the aspect of historicity. This opposition can be incorporated into our epistemological approach inspired by natural sciences.
This article discusses the biography, works and philosophical views of Giuseppe Angiolini, an Italian Jesuit working at the Academy of Polotsk at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. The whole philosophy represented by Angiolini is in line with Italian Catholic philosophy, which in turn was influenced by the traditional Jesuit Collegium Romanum. The philosophy of Angiolini contains certain Suarezian ideas. In this respect it was influenced by the Jesuit tradition, especially as regards the mental difference between essence and existence, and modalism.
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