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Miraculous Success? Inconsistency and Untruth in Kirchhoff's Diffraction Theory

Saatsi, J; Vickers, P

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Authors

J Saatsi



Abstract

Kirchhoff’s diffraction theory is introduced as a new case study in the realism debate. The theory is extremely successful despite being both inconsistent and not even approximately true. Some habitual realist proclamations simply cannot be maintained in the face of Kirchhoff’s theory, as the realist is forced to acknowledge that theoretical success can in some circumstances be explained in terms other than truth. The idiosyncrasy (or otherwise) of Kirchhoff’s case is considered.

Citation

Saatsi, J., & Vickers, P. (2011). Miraculous Success? Inconsistency and Untruth in Kirchhoff's Diffraction Theory. The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, 62(1), 29-46. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjps/axq008

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Mar 1, 2011
Deposit Date Aug 26, 2011
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science
Print ISSN 0007-0882
Electronic ISSN 1464-3537
Publisher The University of Chicago Press
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 62
Issue 1
Pages 29-46
DOI https://doi.org/10.1093/bjps/axq008

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Copyright Statement
This is a pre-copy-editing author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in British journal for the philosophy of science following peer review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version Saatsi, J. and Vickers, P. (2011) 'Miraculous success ? inconsistency and untruth in Kirchhoff's diffraction theory.', British journal for the philosophy of science., 62 (1). pp. 29-46 is available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bjps/axq008





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