Niels Bohr for the 21st Century

Introduction

Niels Bohr has been hugely influential both in physics and outside physics, but he is also hugely misunderstood, partly because a few of his writings have been overstudied at the expense of many others. This ERC project is devoted to his philosophical legacy and will establish an unprejudiced understanding of Bohr, building on a current revival of interest in Bohr’s ideas in the philosophy of physics. It will extend this understanding, among other things, to his wider influence in other scientific disciplines, specifically in biology, and on general debates such as on science and objectivity.

Project Ambitions

This ERC project has the ambition to:

1. Rectify historical misjudgements.
2. Build bridges between:
   • Physics and philosophy.
   • Different schools in the philosophy of physics.
   • Philosophy of physics and philosophy of biology.
   • Analytic philosophy and continental philosophy.

The relevant resources are only now becoming more widely available.

Methodology

It is a large and methodologically novel project, combining philosophy and history. The project involves:

• Systematic study of extensive sources.
• Applications to philosophy of physics, philosophy of biology, and general philosophy of science.

Historically informed analysis has long proved to be an important tool in the philosophy of science. The project will lead the way in applying a historically accurate understanding of Bohr’s thought to 21st-century debates.