Idealized and perspectival representations: : some reasons for making a distinction

• Autores: Alexander Rueger
• Localización: Synthese, ISSN-e 1573-0964, Vol. 191, Nº. 8, 2014, págs. 1831-1845
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • I argue that an adequate understanding of the practice of constructing models in physics requires a distinction between two strategies that are commonly both labeled �idealization�. The formal characteristic of both methods is to let a parameter in the equations for a target system go to zero. But the discussion of examples from various applications of perturbation theory shows that there is in general a difference with respect to the aims such limiting procedures are supposed to serve; and with different aims comes the need to characterize the means (the interpretation of the limits) differently. I therefore suggest that we distinguish �idealizations� from �perspectives� or perspectival representations.