Project Description
Home / Members / Graduate Students / Nafiye Ulku Coskuner
RESEARCH AREAS:
- Philosophy of Quantum Mechanics
- Philosophy of Physics
- Philosophy of Science
CONTACT:
Rotman Institute of Philosophy
Western University
Western Interdisciplinary Research Building
London, Ontario, Canada
N6A 3K7
NAFIYE ULKU COSKUNER
Doctoral Student
Philosophy, Western University
I am currently a doctoral student in philosophy at Western University. I earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from Bogazici University, Turkey. I subsequently earned my Master’s degree in Logic and Philosophy of Science at the Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy (MCMP). My research focuses primarily on the philosophy of physics, with a particular interest in the philosophy of probabilistic theories in physics, such as quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics. For my Master’s thesis, I examined the nature of probabilities in statistical mechanics, exploring whether they have a status distinct from our ordinary conceptions of objective and subjective probability. In my doctoral work, I aim to investigate the relationship between general relativity and quantum mechanics. Specifically, I am interested in the concept of emergent spacetime from underlying quantum dynamics. Outside of my main research, I also have a personal interest in feminist philosophy.
My master’s research focuses on the concept of “probability” in physics, specifically on the unique characteristics of statistical mechanics probabilities, which fail to fit into the traditional categories of objective “chances” or subjective “credences.” In my thesis, I mainly discuss Maudlin’s (2007) typicality account of statistical mechanics probabilities, Lyon’s (2011) counterfactual probabilities, and Myrvold’s (2011) epistemic chances. My doctoral research concerns the relation between general relativity and quantum mechanics, investigating the nature of “quantum gravity” theories that aim to reconcile the two. I aim to focus on the “emergent” nature of continuous spacetime from lower-level, discrete quantum dynamics, exploring how such emergence is possible and whether existing philosophical accounts of “emergence” can adequately explain it.
Fall 2024, PHILOSOP 2074 Business Ethics, Western University (TA, Grader)
Winter 2024, PHILOSOP 2073 Death, Western University (TA, Grader)