Our study of science seeks to combine insights and methods from history and philosophy, often in an integrated way, to further our understanding of scientific practice, and its theories and experiments. The goal is to gain insight into how knowledge, and its making, works—how it informs us about the world, and both shapes and is conditioned by society.  

Our first theme is the history and philosophy of modern physics, for which we use the full benefit of our placement in the research environment of the Institute of Physics.

Currently, we focus on the subject of duality: what kind of equivalence between theories is a duality, what is its relation to emergence, and how can it be used in an experimental context to understand quantum gravity? To address such questions we have, e.g., conducted philosophical and historical work on holography and on dualities in statistical mechanics and quantum field theory; we also are currently conducting an experimental project with Quantum Materials Amsterdam and the Dutch Institute for Emergent Phenomena.

We are equally committed to the study of black holes: how have dualities been used to address the black hole information paradox? Why are they taken to explain black hole microstates? And what is really at stake in the information paradox—according to whom? We believe that historical-philosophical perspectives can be immensely helpful in addressing such questions—just as these themes are very informative for the field of History and Philosophy of Science proper: clearly, some believe that a sense of progress is attained, even in the absence of evidently direct empirical evidence. Why do these scholars believe so?

Why did Einstein not believe in the existence of black holes—and how does evidence work in the imaging methods of modern astronomy, ranging from the construction of the averaged images of the Milky Way constructed by early twentieth century astronomer Anton Pannekoek to its modern equivalent: the constructed and calculated images of black holes by the Event Horizon Telescope ? These questions illustrate the immediate relevance of the historical perspective, also for today’s practice of science. In the Dutch context, we are a member of the Dutch Black Hole Consortium.

We explore the intellectual and societal impact of quantum information and quantum technology. In this project, we identify technical and societal requirements on innovation policies for the transition to quantum-safe cryptography. We also aim to understand the dynamics of knowledge and understanding in research and innovation ecosystems and to draft novel innovation policies that satisfy the societal requirements for the financial and government sectors. See the project Quantum Impact on Societal Security, which is carried out in collaboration with QuSoft, the Informatics Institute, the Institute for Information Law, and Quantum Delta NL.

Amsterdam research on the history of science is brought together by the Vossius Center for the History of Humanities and Sciences.