AI Article Synopsis
- Measurement results in particle physics often rely on theoretical assumptions that can lead to circular reasoning, where the result itself may support the very assumptions being tested.
- The paper argues that assessing measurement uncertainty effectively minimizes this potential circularity, allowing for more robust conclusions.
- By refining the concept of uncertainty evaluation, the authors propose a practical method to address Duhemian underdetermination, enhancing the relationship between theory dependence and hypothesis testing.
Article Abstract
Measurement results depend upon assumptions, and some of those assumptions are theoretical in character. This paper examines particle physics measurements in which a measurement result depends upon a type of assumption for which that very same result may be evidentially relevant, thus raising a worry about potential circularity in argumentation. We demonstrate how the practice of evaluating measurement uncertainty serves to render any such evidential circularity epistemically benign. Our analysis shows how the evaluation and deployment of uncertainty evaluation constitutes an in practice solution to a particular form of Duhemian underdetermination that improves upon Duhem's vague notion of "good sense," avoids holism, and reconciles theory dependence of measurement with piecemeal hypothesis testing.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.shpsa.2020.10.004 | DOI Listing |
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