Workshop: Metaphysics of Cosmology

This workshop will explore the implications of cosmology and our best physical theories of the universe for our understanding of space and time. It aims to bridge a gap between philosophers of physics working on cosmology and those focused on the metaphysics of space and time, fostering discussions that go beyond technical issues to address broader philosophical questions. Key topics include the possibility of absolute universal time, the substantival vs. relational nature of space and time, and whether cosmology supports an asymmetrical view of time's flow. This three-day workshop will bring together established and early-career researchers, promoting cutting-edge discussions and collaborations with the potential to shape future research.

Wednesday, 10 Sept — Day 1

• 14:15–14:30 — Welcome & opening remarks
• 14:30–15:30 — James Read: Permanent underdetermination in dark energy and inflationary cosmology (replacing: Karim Thebault: Time and Knowledge in Quantum Cosmology) 
• 15:30–16:00 — Coffee break
• 16:00–17:00 — Henrique Gomes: What functionalism about time can do for shape dynamics

Thursday, 11 Sept — Day 2

• 09:30–10:30 — Damiano Costa: Separatism and Unitism about Spacetime
• 10:30–11:00 — Coffee break
• 11:00–12:00 — Lorenzo Lorenzetti & Enrico Cinti: Newton-Cartan Lessons for the Metaphysics of Time
• 12:00–13:30 — Lunch
• 13:30–14:30 — Oliver Pooley: How to recover spacetime structure from privileged coordinates
• 14:30–15:30 — Eleanor March: Minimal coupling, the strong equivalence principle, and the adaptation of matter to spacetime geometry
• 15:30–16:00 — Coffee break
• 16:00–17:00 — James Read: Regularity relationalism and general relativity

Friday, 12 Sept — Day 3

• 09:30–10:30 — Antonis Antoniou: Whence the desire to close the Universe? 
• 10:30–11:00 — Coffee break
• 11:00–12:00 — Federico Viglione: The Absoluteness of Absolute Cosmic Simultaneity
• 12:00–13:30 — Lunch
• 13:30–14:30 — Nicola Bamonti: In Search of Cosmic Time 
• 14:30–15:30 — Jim Weatherall: Cosmology, Spacetime Geometry, and the Metaphysics of Laws 
• 15:30–16:00 — Coffee break
• 16:00–17:00 — Silvia de Bianchi: Functionalism: Limits and Perspectives

Location:

10-11 September 2025: Room D1.13, USI East Campus, Via La Santa, 1, Lugano, Switzerland 

12 September 2025: Room 2.2, Department of Theology, USI West Campus, Via Buffi 13, Lugano, Switzerland

To register, please write to [email protected].

Contacts
Istituto di Studi Filosofici (ISFI)
[email protected]