Hilary Greaves

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Hilary Greaves
Hilary Greaves (20613169345).jpg
Greaves in 2015
Born1978 (age 4647)
Education
Era Contemporary philosophy
Region Western philosophy
Institutions
Thesis Spacetime Symmetries and the CPT Theorem  (2008)
Doctoral advisor Frank Arntzenius
Main interests
Website users.ox.ac.uk/~mert2255/

Hilary Greaves (born 1978) is a British philosopher, currently serving as professor of philosophy at the University of Oxford. [1] From 2017 to 2022, she was the founding director of the Global Priorities Institute, a research centre for effective altruism at the university supported by Open Philanthropy. [2] [3]

Contents

Education

Greaves earned a BA in philosophy and physics from the University of Oxford in 2003, and a PhD in philosophy from Rutgers University in 2008. [4] Her doctoral thesis was titled Spacetime Symmetries and the CPT Theorem and was supervised by Frank Arntzenius. [5] She has held appointments at Merton College and Somerville College and, since 2016, has been a professor of philosophy at Oxford. [4]

Research

Greaves' current work is on issues related to effective altruism, particularly in connection to global prioritisation. Her research interests include moral philosophy (including foundational issues in consequentialism, interpersonal aggregation, population ethics, [6] and moral uncertainty), formal epistemology, and the philosophy of physics, [7] particularly quantum mechanics. [8] [9]

In October 2022, she was featured in Vox's Future Perfect 50 for her work on longtermism. [10] She has argued that, just as geographical distance should make no difference to how important it is to alleviate a person's suffering (to the extent that one is able to), temporal distance is likewise morally irrelevant. Greaves has defended her longtermist position in terms of both utilitarian outcomes and intergenerational justice. [11]

Selected publications

Books

Peer-reviewed articles

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Many-worlds interpretation</span> Interpretation of quantum mechanics

The many-worlds interpretation (MWI) is an interpretation of quantum mechanics that asserts that the universal wavefunction is objectively real, and that there is no wave function collapse. This implies that all possible outcomes of quantum measurements are physically realized in different "worlds". The evolution of reality as a whole in MWI is rigidly deterministic and local. Many-worlds is also called the relative state formulation or the Everett interpretation, after physicist Hugh Everett, who first proposed it in 1957. Bryce DeWitt popularized the formulation and named it many-worlds in the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quantum field theory</span> Theoretical framework

In theoretical physics, quantum field theory (QFT) is a theoretical framework that combines field theory and the principle of relativity with ideas behind quantum mechanics. QFT is used in particle physics to construct physical models of subatomic particles and in condensed matter physics to construct models of quasiparticles. The current standard model of particle physics is based on quantum field theory.

An interpretation of quantum mechanics is an attempt to explain how the mathematical theory of quantum mechanics might correspond to experienced reality. Quantum mechanics has held up to rigorous and extremely precise tests in an extraordinarily broad range of experiments. However, there exist a number of contending schools of thought over their interpretation. These views on interpretation differ on such fundamental questions as whether quantum mechanics is deterministic or stochastic, local or non-local, which elements of quantum mechanics can be considered real, and what the nature of measurement is, among other matters.

In philosophy, the philosophy of physics deals with conceptual and interpretational issues in physics, many of which overlap with research done by certain kinds of theoretical physicists. Historically, philosophers of physics have engaged with questions such as the nature of space, time, matter and the laws that govern their interactions, as well as the epistemological and ontological basis of the theories used by practicing physicists. The discipline draws upon insights from various areas of philosophy, including metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of science, while also engaging with the latest developments in theoretical and experimental physics.

Charge, parity, and time reversal symmetry is a fundamental symmetry of physical laws under the simultaneous transformations of charge conjugation (C), parity transformation (P), and time reversal (T). CPT is the only combination of C, P, and T that is observed to be an exact symmetry of nature at the fundamental level. The CPT theorem says that CPT symmetry holds for all physical phenomena, or more precisely, that any Lorentz invariant local quantum field theory with a Hermitian Hamiltonian must have CPT symmetry. In layman terms, this stipulates that an antimatter, mirrored, and time reversed universe would behave exactly the same as our regular universe.

Supersymmetry is a theoretical framework in physics that suggests the existence of a symmetry between particles with integer spin (bosons) and particles with half-integer spin (fermions). It proposes that for every known particle, there exists a partner particle with different spin properties. There have been multiple experiments on supersymmetry that have failed to provide evidence that it exists in nature. If evidence is found, supersymmetry could help explain certain phenomena, such as the nature of dark matter and the hierarchy problem in particle physics.

In theoretical physics, the Coleman–Mandula theorem is a no-go theorem stating that spacetime and internal symmetries can only combine in a trivial way. This means that the charges associated with internal symmetries must always transform as Lorentz scalars. Some notable exceptions to the no-go theorem are conformal symmetry and supersymmetry. It is named after Sidney Coleman and Jeffrey Mandula who proved it in 1967 as the culmination of a series of increasingly generalized no-go theorems investigating how internal symmetries can be combined with spacetime symmetries. The supersymmetric generalization is known as the Haag–Łopuszański–Sohnius theorem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Symmetry (physics)</span> Feature of a system that is preserved under some transformation

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The Born rule is a postulate of quantum mechanics that gives the probability that a measurement of a quantum system will yield a given result. In one commonly used application, it states that the probability density for finding a particle at a given position is proportional to the square of the amplitude of the system's wavefunction at that position. It was formulated and published by German physicist Max Born in July, 1926.

In mathematical physics, Gleason's theorem shows that the rule one uses to calculate probabilities in quantum physics, the Born rule, can be derived from the usual mathematical representation of measurements in quantum physics together with the assumption of non-contextuality. Andrew M. Gleason first proved the theorem in 1957, answering a question posed by George W. Mackey, an accomplishment that was historically significant for the role it played in showing that wide classes of hidden-variable theories are inconsistent with quantum physics. Multiple variations have been proven in the years since. Gleason's theorem is of particular importance for the field of quantum logic and its attempt to find a minimal set of mathematical axioms for quantum theory.

Population ethics is the philosophical study of the ethical problems arising when our actions affect who is born and how many people are born in the future. An important area within population ethics is population axiology, which is "the study of the conditions under which one state of affairs is better than another, when the states of affairs in question may differ over the numbers and the identities of the persons who ever live."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeremy Butterfield</span> British philosopher (born 1954)

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In the philosophy of science, structuralism asserts that all aspects of reality are best understood in terms of empirical scientific constructs of entities and their relations, rather than in terms of concrete entities in themselves.

An index list of articles about the philosophy of science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toby Ord</span> Australian philosopher (born 1979)

Toby David Godfrey Ord is an Australian philosopher. In 2009 he founded Giving What We Can, an international society whose members pledge to donate at least 10% of their income to effective charities, and is a key figure in the effective altruism movement, which promotes using reason and evidence to help the lives of others as much as possible.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Saunders</span> Philosopher of physics

Simon Wolfe Saunders is a British philosopher of physics. He is noted for his work on quantum mechanics, on identity and indiscernibility in physics, and on structural realism.

Effective altruism (EA) is a 21st-century philosophical and social movement that advocates impartially calculating benefits and prioritizing causes to provide the greatest good. It is motivated by "using evidence and reason to figure out how to benefit others as much as possible, and taking action on that basis". People who pursue the goals of effective altruism, who are sometimes called effective altruists, follow a variety of approaches proposed by the movement, such as donating to selected charities and choosing careers with the aim of maximizing positive impact. The movement has achieved significant popularity outside of academia, spurring the creation of university-based institutes, research centers, advisory organizations and charities, which, collectively, have donated several hundreds of millions of dollars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Maudlin</span> American philosopher of science (born 1958)

Tim William Eric Maudlin is an American philosopher of science who has done influential work on the metaphysical foundations of physics and logic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Longtermism</span> Philosophical view which prioritises the long-term future

Longtermism is the ethical view that positively influencing the long-term future is a key moral priority of our time. It is an important concept in effective altruism and a primary motivation for efforts that aim to reduce existential risks to humanity.

References

  1. "Faculty of Philosophy, University of Oxford" . Retrieved 10 September 2019.
  2. "Global Priorities Institute opens at Oxford" . Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  3. "People, Global Priorities Institute" . Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  4. 1 2 "Curriculum vitae: Hilary Greaves" (PDF). Retrieved 10 September 2019.
  5. Greaves, Hilary (2008). Spacetime symmetries and the CPT theorem. RUcore (Thesis). Rutgers University. doi:10.7282/T3CF9QFX . Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  6. Riesz, Matthew (28 March 2015). "British Academy announces Rising Star Engagement winners". Times Higher Education . Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  7. "Hilary Greaves' home page" . Retrieved 10 September 2019.
  8. Price, Huw (2012). "Decisions, Decisions, Decisions: Can Savage Salvage Everettian Probability?" (PDF). Many Worlds? Everett, Quantum Theory, & Reality. Oxford University Press. ISBN   9780199655502. OCLC   1103786900.
  9. Dizadji-Bahmani, Foad (2015). "The Probability Problem in Everettian Quantum Mechanics Persists". British Journal for the Philosophy of Science . 66 (2): 257–283. doi:10.1093/bjps/axt035.
  10. Matthews, Dylan (20 October 2022). "Hilary Greaves is the world's leading philosopher of the long-term future". Vox. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  11. Samuel, Sigal (2 July 2021). "What we owe to future generations". Vox. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  12. "Cushing Prize 2012 Winner". University of Notre Dame. Retrieved 2 November 2019.