John T. Roberts works in the intersection of metaphysics and philosophy of science. His book The Law-Governed Universe was published in 2009 by Oxford University Press. His published articles include: "Some Laws are Contingent," Australasian Journal of Philosophy (forthcoming); "A Puzzle about Laws, Symmetries, and Measurable Quantities," British Journal for the Philosophy of Science (2008); Leibniz on Force and Absolute Motion," Philosophy of Science (2003); "Contact with the Nomic, Parts I and II" (co-authored with John Earman) Philosophy and Phenomenological Research (2005); and "Ceteris Paribus, There is No Problem of Provisos" (co-authored with John Earman), Synthese (1999). He is currently working on chance, probabilistic laws, counterfactuals, and the fine-tuning argument.
Works in Progress:
Laws About Frequencies. (This is what I am currently working on; comments are very welcome.)
Measurement, Laws, and Counterfactuals. (This is a talk about the theory presented in The Law-Governed Universe.)
Book:
The Law-Governed Universe (Oxford University Press, 2009) at Google Books
A Precis (Ha!) of The Law-Governed Universe. (This is a 42-page summary of the main argument of the book.)
Some Published Articles:
Some Laws of Nature are Metaphysically Contingent. Forthcoming in Australasian Journal of Philosophy.
A Puzzle about Laws, Symmetries, and Measurable Quantities. British Journal for the Philosophy of Science 59: 143-168, 2008.
Contact with the Nomic: A Challenge for Deniers of Humean Supervenience about Laws of Nature, Part I: Humean Supervenience (with John Earman). Philosophy and Phenomenologial Research 71(1): 1-22, 2005.
Contact with the Nomic: A Challenge for Deniers of Humean Supervenience about Laws of Nature, Part II: The Epistemological Argument for Humean Supervenience (with John Earman). Philosophy and Phenomenologial Research 71(2): 253-286, 2005.
Measurability and Physical Laws. Synthese 144(3): 433-447, 2005.
Leibniz on Force and Absolute Motion, Philosophy of Science 70:553-573, 2003.
Ceteris Paribus Lost (With John Earman and Sheldon Smith). Erkenntnis 57(3): 281-301, 2002.
Ceteris Paribus, There is No Problem of Provisos (with John Earman). Synthese 118: 439-478, 1999.
Lewis, Carroll, and Seeing Through the Looking Glass. Australasian Journal of Philosophy 76(3): 426-438, 1998.
Some Unpublished Papers:
Fine-Tuning and the Infra-Red Bull's Eye.
Sellars, van Fraassen, Layer Cakes, and Scientific Realism.
The Semantic Novelty of Theoretical Terms
Coping with Severe Test Anxiety: Problems and Prospects for an Error-Statistical Philosophy of Science.
Complete CV:
