Molecules & Mirrors —Vanessa Seifert on the Philosophy of Chemistry

Why do molecules have a "handedness" when the physics that determines their structure does not?* 

 This is a question emblematic of the philosophy of chemistry; at times, it has been used to argue that chemistry cannot be reduced to physics. However, Vanessa Seifert has a different — yet equally intriguing — answer. This symmetry breaking is closely linked to that contentious area of quantum mechanics: the measurement problem.  

 Vanessa is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellow based at the University of Athens and a visiting fellow at the University of Bristol. In addition to molecules, we discuss the project of reductionism, laws, and alchemy.  

 I found this to be a wonderful example of the fruitfulness of turning the philosophical gaze to sciences beyond physics.

*(Note, it can't be explained by the chirality of the weak nuclear force)

Links

vanessa-seifert.com has links to Vanessa's publications and popular writing  — her articles on philosophy in Chemistry World are a great introduction to a broad range of topics

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