Isabelle Wilhelm
Biographic Data
| ID | 904875 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Isabelle Wilhelm |
| GIVEN NAMES | Isabelle |
| FAMILY NAME | Wilhelm |
| SIGNATURE | WILHELM I |
| AFFILIATIONS | National University of Singapore |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6796-403X |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 27 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 18 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 27 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2016 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
The Value of Naturalness
Pure type systems and generalized grounding
Disregard: Attitudes about Male Survivors
In this article, I discuss some ways in which my experience, as a sexual assault survivor, has often been disregarded. It was disregarded when it occurred, by a crowd of people who watched. It has also been disregarded, however, in certain sorts of conversations—that occur within feminist communities—about sexual violence. The latter forms of disregard stem from the fact that I am male, and so do not fit many peoples’ preconceptions about survivo…
Typicality First
Instances of the law of large numbers are used to model many different physical systems. In this paper, I argue for a particular interpretation, of those instances of that law, which appeals to typicality. As I argue, the content of that law, when used to model physical systems, is that the probability of an event typically—rather than probably—approximates the frequency with which that event occurs
Typicality-based chance
I use typicality to formulate and defend a functional characterization of chance. According to the characterization, called ‘Typicality-Based Chance’, to be a chance is to be typically approximated by possible frequencies, where the details of the approximation are expressed by the law of large numbers. Among its other virtues, Typicality-Based Chance supports an attractively empiricist answer to a persistent question in the literature—often rais…
Wavefunction Mereology
I propose and defend an analysis of the parthood relation among quantum wavefunctions. Roughly put, according to the analysis, one wavefunction is part of another just in case the latter can be projected onto the former. This analysis brings mereology into closer contact with contemporary physics, implies many standard mereological principles, challenges some traditional mereological presuppositions, and supports compelling answers to long-standi…
The Typical Principle
If a proposition is typically true, given your evidence, then you should believe that proposition; or so I argue here.In particular, in this paper, I propose and defend a principle of rationality-call it the 'Typical Principle'-which links rational belief to facts about what is typical.As I show, this principle avoids several problems that other, seemingly similar principles face.And as I show, in many cases, this principle implies the verdicts o…
Worlds are Pluralities
I propose an account of possible worlds. According to the account, possible worlds are pluralities of sentences in an extremely large language. This account avoids a problem, relating to the total number of possible worlds, that other accounts face. And it has several additional benefits
Explanatory circles
Roughly put, explanatory circles - if any exist - would be propositions such that (i) each explains the next, and (ii) the last explains the first. In this paper, I give two arguments for the view that there are explanatory circles. The first argument appeals to general relativistic worlds in which time is circular. The second argument appeals to special science theories that describe feedback loops. In addition, I show that three standard argume…
The Propositional Account of Effective Theories
I propose the “Propositional Account” of effective quantum field theories. According to the Propositional Account, each effective quantum field theory expresses propositions about various physical items: fields, interactions, and more. In addition, two effective quantum field theories are physically equivalent just in case they express the same propositions. As I explain, the Propositional Account is scientifically naturalistic, since it invokes …
Comparing Mathematical Explanations
10.1086/714800
Pluralities, counterparts, and groups
Tractability and laws
Typical: A Theory of Typicality and Typicality Explanation
Typicality is routinely invoked in everyday contexts: bobcats are typically short-tailed; people are typically less than seven feet tall. Typicality is invoked in scientific contexts as well: typical gases expand; typical quantum systems exhibit probabilistic behaviour. And typicality facts like these support many explanations, both quotidian and scientific. But what is it for something to be typical? And how do typicality facts explain? In this …
Centering the Everett Interpretation
I propose an account of probability in the Everett interpretation of quantum mechanics. According to the account, probabilities are objective chances of centered propositions. As I show, the account solves a number of problems concerning the role of probability in the Everett interpretation. It also challenges an implicit assumption, concerning the aim and scope of fundamental physical theories, that is made throughout the philosophy of physics l…
Centering the Principal Principle
Explanatory priority monism
The Counteridentical Account of Explanatory Identities
Many explanations rely on identity facts. In this paper, I propose an account of how identity facts explain: roughly, the fact that A is identical to B explains another fact whenever that other fact depends, counterfactually, on A being identical to B. As I show, this account has many virtues. It avoids several problems facing accounts of explanatory identities, and when precisified using structural equations, it can be used to defend interventio…
Les ambivalences du don dans les projets humanitaires transnationaux. De la générosité des associations de Lao de France, et de sa réception par la population du Laos
Depuis le milieu des années 1990, des Lao de France (exilés à la suite des événements de 1975) mettent en œuvre des projets qu’ils qualifient d’« humanitaires » dans leur pays d’origine. Le plus souvent organisés en associations, ils y construisent, entre autres, des bâtiments scolaires, et y distribuent vêtements, matériel médical et ordinateurs. Ces projets peuvent être envisagés comme une forme de transfert. En s’appuyant sur la littérature su…
The Ambivalence of the Gift in Transnational Humanitarian Projects. The Generosity of the Associations of French Lao and its Reception by the People in Laos
Since the mid-1990s, some French Lao (exiled following the events of 1975), have been implementing projects that they describe as “humanitarian” in their country of origin. Most often organized in associations, they build schools and distribute clothing, medical equipment and computers, among other things. These projects can be seen as a form of transfer. Drawing on the literature on the gift, this article then proposes to analyze the characteris…
Impacts of political and social contexts on refugees’ experiences: A comparison between Southeast Asian refugees arriving in France in the 70s and recent refugee migration
The influx of refugees into France since 2015 has been framed as a crisis and marked by a restrictive turn in arrival and asylum policies. By comparison, in the 1970s Southeast Asian refugees fleeing from communist regimes were welcomed warmly in the country. This article compares two in-depth case studies of refugees, analysed using the biographical policy evaluation method, to retrace how the policies and collective representations of these two…
Comparing the structures of mathematical objects
The Stage Theory of Groups
I propose a ‘stage theory’ of groups: a group is a fusion of group-stages, where a group-stage is a plurality of individuals at a world and a time. The stage theory consists of existence conditions, identity conditions, and parthood conditions for groups
A statistical analysis of luck
French Lao and their transnational humanitarian activities in Laos: Between Illusions and Disillusionment
The studies on overseas Lao who left Laos after the 1975 political events have generally focused on these migrants' social incorporation in their receiving countries and on the dynamics of their intergenerational transmission. On the contrary, the present article explores the links that these migrants maintain with Laos, by examining the case of French Lao and their transnational humanitarian activities. It is based on a multi-sited ethnography c…
Typical: A Theory of Typicality and Typicality Explanation
Typicality is routinely invoked in everyday contexts: bobcats are typically short-tailed; people are typically less than seven feet tall. Typicality is invoked in scientific contexts as well: typical gases expand; typical quantum systems exhibit probabilistic behaviour. And typicality facts like these support many explanations, both quotidian and scientific. But what is it for something to be typical? And how do typicality facts explain? In this …
Comparing the structures of mathematical objects
Centering the Everett Interpretation
I propose an account of probability in the Everett interpretation of quantum mechanics. According to the account, probabilities are objective chances of centered propositions. As I show, the account solves a number of problems concerning the role of probability in the Everett interpretation. It also challenges an implicit assumption, concerning the aim and scope of fundamental physical theories, that is made throughout the philosophy of physics l…
Tractability and laws
Impacts of political and social contexts on refugees’ experiences: A comparison between Southeast Asian refugees arriving in France in the 70s and recent refugee migration
The influx of refugees into France since 2015 has been framed as a crisis and marked by a restrictive turn in arrival and asylum policies. By comparison, in the 1970s Southeast Asian refugees fleeing from communist regimes were welcomed warmly in the country. This article compares two in-depth case studies of refugees, analysed using the biographical policy evaluation method, to retrace how the policies and collective representations of these two…
Les avatars du don dans le Laos contemporain. Essai d’anthropologie politique, Léo Mariani: Paris, Connaissances et savoirs, coll. « Sources d’Asie », 2012, 222 p
Léo Mariani, chercheur pour le Fonds national de la recherche scientifique belge à l’université de Liège, présente et reformule à travers son premier ouvrage, les principales conclusions de sa thèse soutenue en 2008. Fruit d’un séjour de quatre ans au Laos, il traite des transformations de la société urbaine de Vientiane. Cette publication est la bienvenue alors que les recherches sur le Laos sont relativement rares, en raison, notamment, de la f…
Celestial chaos: The new logics of theory-testing in orbital dynamics
The Stage Theory of Groups
I propose a ‘stage theory’ of groups: a group is a fusion of group-stages, where a group-stage is a plurality of individuals at a world and a time. The stage theory consists of existence conditions, identity conditions, and parthood conditions for groups
A statistical analysis of luck
French Lao and their transnational humanitarian activities in Laos: Between Illusions and Disillusionment
The studies on overseas Lao who left Laos after the 1975 political events have generally focused on these migrants' social incorporation in their receiving countries and on the dynamics of their intergenerational transmission. On the contrary, the present article explores the links that these migrants maintain with Laos, by examining the case of French Lao and their transnational humanitarian activities. It is based on a multi-sited ethnography c…
Centering the Principal Principle
Explanatory priority monism
The Counteridentical Account of Explanatory Identities
Many explanations rely on identity facts. In this paper, I propose an account of how identity facts explain: roughly, the fact that A is identical to B explains another fact whenever that other fact depends, counterfactually, on A being identical to B. As I show, this account has many virtues. It avoids several problems facing accounts of explanatory identities, and when precisified using structural equations, it can be used to defend interventio…
Les ambivalences du don dans les projets humanitaires transnationaux. De la générosité des associations de Lao de France, et de sa réception par la population du Laos
Depuis le milieu des années 1990, des Lao de France (exilés à la suite des événements de 1975) mettent en œuvre des projets qu’ils qualifient d’« humanitaires » dans leur pays d’origine. Le plus souvent organisés en associations, ils y construisent, entre autres, des bâtiments scolaires, et y distribuent vêtements, matériel médical et ordinateurs. Ces projets peuvent être envisagés comme une forme de transfert. En s’appuyant sur la littérature su…
The Ambivalence of the Gift in Transnational Humanitarian Projects. The Generosity of the Associations of French Lao and its Reception by the People in Laos
Since the mid-1990s, some French Lao (exiled following the events of 1975), have been implementing projects that they describe as “humanitarian” in their country of origin. Most often organized in associations, they build schools and distribute clothing, medical equipment and computers, among other things. These projects can be seen as a form of transfer. Drawing on the literature on the gift, this article then proposes to analyze the characteris…
Impacts of political and social contexts on refugees’ experiences: A comparison between Southeast Asian refugees arriving in France in the 70s and recent refugee migration
The influx of refugees into France since 2015 has been framed as a crisis and marked by a restrictive turn in arrival and asylum policies. By comparison, in the 1970s Southeast Asian refugees fleeing from communist regimes were welcomed warmly in the country. This article compares two in-depth case studies of refugees, analysed using the biographical policy evaluation method, to retrace how the policies and collective representations of these two…
Comparing the structures of mathematical objects
Pluralities, counterparts, and groups
Tractability and laws
Typical: A Theory of Typicality and Typicality Explanation
Typicality is routinely invoked in everyday contexts: bobcats are typically short-tailed; people are typically less than seven feet tall. Typicality is invoked in scientific contexts as well: typical gases expand; typical quantum systems exhibit probabilistic behaviour. And typicality facts like these support many explanations, both quotidian and scientific. But what is it for something to be typical? And how do typicality facts explain? In this …
Centering the Everett Interpretation
I propose an account of probability in the Everett interpretation of quantum mechanics. According to the account, probabilities are objective chances of centered propositions. As I show, the account solves a number of problems concerning the role of probability in the Everett interpretation. It also challenges an implicit assumption, concerning the aim and scope of fundamental physical theories, that is made throughout the philosophy of physics l…
Comparing Mathematical Explanations
10.1086/714800
Worlds are Pluralities
I propose an account of possible worlds. According to the account, possible worlds are pluralities of sentences in an extremely large language. This account avoids a problem, relating to the total number of possible worlds, that other accounts face. And it has several additional benefits
Explanatory circles
Roughly put, explanatory circles - if any exist - would be propositions such that (i) each explains the next, and (ii) the last explains the first. In this paper, I give two arguments for the view that there are explanatory circles. The first argument appeals to general relativistic worlds in which time is circular. The second argument appeals to special science theories that describe feedback loops. In addition, I show that three standard argume…
The Propositional Account of Effective Theories
I propose the “Propositional Account” of effective quantum field theories. According to the Propositional Account, each effective quantum field theory expresses propositions about various physical items: fields, interactions, and more. In addition, two effective quantum field theories are physically equivalent just in case they express the same propositions. As I explain, the Propositional Account is scientifically naturalistic, since it invokes …
The Value of Naturalness
Pure type systems and generalized grounding
Disregard: Attitudes about Male Survivors
In this article, I discuss some ways in which my experience, as a sexual assault survivor, has often been disregarded. It was disregarded when it occurred, by a crowd of people who watched. It has also been disregarded, however, in certain sorts of conversations—that occur within feminist communities—about sexual violence. The latter forms of disregard stem from the fact that I am male, and so do not fit many peoples’ preconceptions about survivo…
Typicality First
Instances of the law of large numbers are used to model many different physical systems. In this paper, I argue for a particular interpretation, of those instances of that law, which appeals to typicality. As I argue, the content of that law, when used to model physical systems, is that the probability of an event typically—rather than probably—approximates the frequency with which that event occurs
Typicality-based chance
I use typicality to formulate and defend a functional characterization of chance. According to the characterization, called ‘Typicality-Based Chance’, to be a chance is to be typically approximated by possible frequencies, where the details of the approximation are expressed by the law of large numbers. Among its other virtues, Typicality-Based Chance supports an attractively empiricist answer to a persistent question in the literature—often rais…
Epistemology (18 works) · Philosophy (18 works) · Computer Science (14 works) · Philosophy and History of Science (12 works) · Mathematics (9 works) · Epistemology, Ethics, and Metaphysics (8 works) · Philosophy and Theoretical Science (8 works) · Physics (8 works) · Metaphysics (7 works) · Philosophy of language (7 works)