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I am an assistant professor in the philosophy department at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). My primary research interests are philosophy of physics, philosophy of science, and metaphysics. I also have interests in philosophy of mind, decision theory, formal epistemology, philosophy of mathematics, philosophy of religion, and Chinese philosophy.
I am also an Associate Editor at the journal Foundations of Physics, a fellow of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics, and an affiliated faculty member of the UCSD Chinese studies program. I received a Ph.D in philosophy, a M.Sc in mathematics, and a graduate certificate in cognitive science from Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ in 2019. On this website, you can find my CV as well as information about my research, teaching, talks, and some of the events I organized. Here is a brief interview about me and my current research in the American Philosophical Association (APA) Blog. Outside philosophy, I enjoy traveling, skiing, and standup paddleboarding. I also have a side interest in using films to popularize philosophical and scientific ideas. Currently, I'm co-writing a screenplay about a time-travel romance (partly based on this fascinating article in the SEP). You can contact me here. |
Book
Laws of Physics
Cambridge Elements in Philosophy of Physics, Cambridge University Press, in preparation
Preprints
Quantum States of a Time-Asymmetric Universe: Wave Function, Density Matrix, and Empirical Equivalence [arXiv]
Uniform Probability Distribution Over All Density Matrices (with Roderich Tumulka) [arXiv]
An Intrinsic Theory of Quantum Mechanics: Progress in Field's Nominalistic Program, Part I [arXiv]
Journal Articles
Time's Arrow and Self-Locating Probability [PhilPapers]
Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, forthcoming
Fundamental Nomic Vagueness [arXiv preprint] [Presentation slides] [Video]
The Philosophical Review, forthcoming
Welcome to the Fuzzy-Verse (popular version of "Fundamental Nomic Vagueness") [Penultimate] [Magazine]
[Featured on the cover as "The Flaw at the Heart of Reality: Why precise mathematical laws can never fully explain the universe"]
New Scientist, Issue 3298, Sep 5th, 2020
From Time Asymmetry to Quantum Entanglement: The Humean Unification [arXiv] [Journal]
Noûs, 2020
Realism about the Wave Function [arXiv] [Journal]
Philosophy Compass, 2019
Quantum Mechanics in a Time-Asymmetric Universe: On the Nature of the Initial Quantum State [arXiv] [Journal]
The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, 2018
Surreal Decisions (with Daniel Rubio) [Penultimate] [Journal]
Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 2018
Our Fundamental Physical Space: An Essay on the Metaphysics of the Wave Function [Penultimate] [Journal]
The Journal of Philosophy, 2017
Great Expectations: Introducing Surreal Decision Theory (with Daniel Rubio) [Proceedings]
Proceedings of the 5th International Workshop on Logic, Rationality, and Interaction (LORI-V), Springer-Verlag, 2015
Publications in Edited Volumes:
The Past Hypothesis and the Nature of Physical Laws [arXiv]
Barry Loewer, Eric Winsberg, and Brad Weslake (eds.), Time’s Arrows and the Probability Structure of the World, Harvard University Press, forthcoming
Bell's Theorem, Quantum Probabilities, and Superdeterminism [arXiv]
Eleanor Knox and Alastair Wilson (eds.), The Routledge Companion to the Philosophy of Physics, Routledge, forthcoming
The Cosmic Void: Ontological Nihilism and Many Worlds [PhilPapers]
Sara Bernstein and Tyron Goldschmidt (eds.), Non-Being: New Essays on the Metaphysics of Nonexistence, Oxford University Press, 2021
Time's Arrow in a Quantum Universe: On the Status of Statistical Mechanical Probabilities [arXiv] [Book]
Valia Allori (ed.), Statistical Mechanics and Scientific Explanation: Determinism, Indeterminism and Laws of Nature, World Scientific, 2020
Book Reviews:
Richard Healey, The Quantum Revolution in Philosophy [Penultimate] [Journal]
The Philosophical Review, 2020
Other Works in Progress:
Philosophy of Physics, Phillosophy of Science, and Metaphysics:
Minimal Primitivism about Laws of Nature (with Sheldon Goldstein)
Varieties of Intrinsicality and the Hardest Road to Nominalism [Video][Slides]
The Best Summary of the Quantum World: The Universal Wave Function as a Humean Law
Decision Theory:
Surreal Decisions II: Infinite State Space (with Daniel Rubio)
Philosophy of Religion:
Evil and the Quantum Multiverse (with Daniel Rubio)
Chinese Philosophy:
A Hybrid Voluntarist Interpretation of Xunzi
Philosophy of Mind:
Comparativism about the Mind: From Metaphysics of Quantities to the Nature of Mentality
Dissertation:
Essays on the Metaphysics of Quantum Mechanics (Supervisors: Barry Loewer and David Albert) [Rutgers University Repository]
Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA, 2019
Laws of Physics
Cambridge Elements in Philosophy of Physics, Cambridge University Press, in preparation
Preprints
Quantum States of a Time-Asymmetric Universe: Wave Function, Density Matrix, and Empirical Equivalence [arXiv]
Uniform Probability Distribution Over All Density Matrices (with Roderich Tumulka) [arXiv]
An Intrinsic Theory of Quantum Mechanics: Progress in Field's Nominalistic Program, Part I [arXiv]
Journal Articles
Time's Arrow and Self-Locating Probability [PhilPapers]
Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, forthcoming
Fundamental Nomic Vagueness [arXiv preprint] [Presentation slides] [Video]
The Philosophical Review, forthcoming
Welcome to the Fuzzy-Verse (popular version of "Fundamental Nomic Vagueness") [Penultimate] [Magazine]
[Featured on the cover as "The Flaw at the Heart of Reality: Why precise mathematical laws can never fully explain the universe"]
New Scientist, Issue 3298, Sep 5th, 2020
From Time Asymmetry to Quantum Entanglement: The Humean Unification [arXiv] [Journal]
Noûs, 2020
Realism about the Wave Function [arXiv] [Journal]
Philosophy Compass, 2019
Quantum Mechanics in a Time-Asymmetric Universe: On the Nature of the Initial Quantum State [arXiv] [Journal]
The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, 2018
Surreal Decisions (with Daniel Rubio) [Penultimate] [Journal]
Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 2018
Our Fundamental Physical Space: An Essay on the Metaphysics of the Wave Function [Penultimate] [Journal]
The Journal of Philosophy, 2017
Great Expectations: Introducing Surreal Decision Theory (with Daniel Rubio) [Proceedings]
Proceedings of the 5th International Workshop on Logic, Rationality, and Interaction (LORI-V), Springer-Verlag, 2015
Publications in Edited Volumes:
The Past Hypothesis and the Nature of Physical Laws [arXiv]
Barry Loewer, Eric Winsberg, and Brad Weslake (eds.), Time’s Arrows and the Probability Structure of the World, Harvard University Press, forthcoming
Bell's Theorem, Quantum Probabilities, and Superdeterminism [arXiv]
Eleanor Knox and Alastair Wilson (eds.), The Routledge Companion to the Philosophy of Physics, Routledge, forthcoming
The Cosmic Void: Ontological Nihilism and Many Worlds [PhilPapers]
Sara Bernstein and Tyron Goldschmidt (eds.), Non-Being: New Essays on the Metaphysics of Nonexistence, Oxford University Press, 2021
Time's Arrow in a Quantum Universe: On the Status of Statistical Mechanical Probabilities [arXiv] [Book]
Valia Allori (ed.), Statistical Mechanics and Scientific Explanation: Determinism, Indeterminism and Laws of Nature, World Scientific, 2020
Book Reviews:
Richard Healey, The Quantum Revolution in Philosophy [Penultimate] [Journal]
The Philosophical Review, 2020
Other Works in Progress:
Philosophy of Physics, Phillosophy of Science, and Metaphysics:
Minimal Primitivism about Laws of Nature (with Sheldon Goldstein)
Varieties of Intrinsicality and the Hardest Road to Nominalism [Video][Slides]
The Best Summary of the Quantum World: The Universal Wave Function as a Humean Law
Decision Theory:
Surreal Decisions II: Infinite State Space (with Daniel Rubio)
Philosophy of Religion:
Evil and the Quantum Multiverse (with Daniel Rubio)
Chinese Philosophy:
A Hybrid Voluntarist Interpretation of Xunzi
Philosophy of Mind:
Comparativism about the Mind: From Metaphysics of Quantities to the Nature of Mentality
Dissertation:
Essays on the Metaphysics of Quantum Mechanics (Supervisors: Barry Loewer and David Albert) [Rutgers University Repository]
Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA, 2019
Links
From Ants to Quantum Non-Locality (with Isaac Wilhelm)
Some Philosophy Books for Beginners
Google Scholar
PhilPapers
Orcid.org/0000-0001-5144-0952
Citation Information
Please cite my last name as "Chen."
Example of an in-text citation: "Chen (2019) discusses several realist interpretations of the wave function."
Example of a bibliographic entry: Chen, E. K. (2019). Realism about the wave function. Philosophy Compass, 14(7): e12611.
From Ants to Quantum Non-Locality (with Isaac Wilhelm)
- Philosophy Phriday, The Daily Ant, July 2017.
Some Philosophy Books for Beginners
Google Scholar
PhilPapers
Orcid.org/0000-0001-5144-0952
Citation Information
Please cite my last name as "Chen."
Example of an in-text citation: "Chen (2019) discusses several realist interpretations of the wave function."
Example of a bibliographic entry: Chen, E. K. (2019). Realism about the wave function. Philosophy Compass, 14(7): e12611.