On Wednesday February 10th, our very own Christian Wüthrich will present  “Laws Beyond Spacetime”, as part of our online seminar series at the Pittsburgh Center for Philosophy of Science. Please join us. Full details and registration at https://www.centerphilsci.pitt.edu/cosmology-beyond-spacetime/.

Abstract: Quantum gravity’s suggestion that spacetime may be emergent and so only exist contingently would force a radical reconception of extant analyses of laws of nature. Humeanism presupposes a spatiotemporal mosaic of particular matters of fact on which laws supervene. I will show how the Humean supervenience basis of non-modal facts can be reconceived, avoiding a reliance on fundamental spacetime. However, it is unclear that naturalistic forms of Humeanism can maintain their commitment to there being no necessary connections among distinct entities. This talk is based on a joint project with Vincent Lam.