Call for Papers for a Special Issue of HOPOS

Call for Papers for a Special Issue of HOPOS: The Journal of the International Society for the History of Philosophy of Science Building Universe(s). The philosophical and mathematical underpinnings of cosmology (18th-20th century).

The ERC project Paradoxes and Metaphors of Time in Early Universe(s) (PROTEUS) is delighted to invite submissionsfor the special issue titled “Building Universe(s). The philosophical and mathematical underpinnings of cosmology (18th-20th century)”.

Editors: Silvia De Bianchi, Autonomous University of Barcelona, silvia.debianchi@uab.cat

Federico Viglione, Autonomous University of Barcelona federico.viglione@uab.cat

This special issue is devoted to the history of the philosophical and mathematical foundations of cosmology (18th-20th century). It takes into account the period ranging from the great revolution in observational cosmology introduced by William Herschel up to the 20th century, including the observation of the CMB radiation. The development of both theoretical and observational cosmology disclosed with unprecedented precision and depth the structure of our universe and they had been and still are inextricably based on mathematical and philosophical underpinnings. In this special issue both are investigated by focusing on the work of scientists, mathematicians and philosophers that contributed to the formulation of approaches that were or still are of fundamental importance for the understanding of the history and philosophy of cosmology. We welcome contributions on both how mathematicians and philosophers contributed to cosmological models or on the analysis of the history of the models, such as the steady state theory, and the concurring contribution of various actors for their development.

Invited contributors

– Cinzia Ferrini (University of Trieste)

– Claus Beisbart (University of Bern)

– Craig Fraser (University of Toronto)

Our issue can already count on contributions on the following topics

– Kant and Schelling on cosmology

– Kant’s Evolutionary View of Natural History

– The Antinomy of Pure Reason in the Light of Problems of Present-Day Cosmology

– The reception of the first antinomy and the cosmological debate of the middle 20th century

– Cosmology Before Slipher

Instructions for Authors

Contributors should submit their articles by January 31, 2021. Papers must not exceed 7000 words. Please make your submission through https://www.editorialmanager.com/hopos/default.aspx More information available at https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/journals/hopos/instruct?mobileUi=0