Marie Curie Fellow, Utrecht University
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Ongoing
Peebles Fan Club : Global, Online Discussion Group on the History, Philosophy & Sociology of the intersection between Cosmology, Astronomy & Particle Physics (convener)
Upcoming
Foundations of Observational, Classical and Semi-Classical Gravitational Physics and The Problem of Agency and Laws of Nature , “Taking the long view: historical, philosophical & cultural aspects of the ngEHT” , Munich, 28-31 March 2023C19C Lunchtime Seminar, “The Gravitational Constant: a Philosophical Perspective”, St. Andrews/Online, 5 April 2023
Gravitational Constant Workshop , St. Andrews, 20-21 April 2023Freudenthal Institute Research Seminar, “The Philosophy of the Next Generation Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration”, Utrecht, 11 May 2023
NgEHT HPC workshop, Boston, 16 May 2023
BHI conference, Boston, 17-19 May 2023
New Directions in the Foundations of Physics, Viterbo Italy, 26-28 May 2023XXVII International School of Philosophy and Foundations of Physics: Philosophy of Dark Matter, Various Lectures on the Philosophy of Dark Matter & Modified Gravity, Urbino, 5-9 June 2023
DBHC meeting, “Taking the long view: historical, philosophical & cultural aspects of the ngEHT”, 16 June 2023
British Society for the Philosophy of Science Conference , “Planet-sized Integrated Philosophy of Science” Symposium, “How to Organise a Telescope Collaboration”, Bristol, 5-7 July 2023MCMP Colloquium, “The Next Generation Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration: Governance & Social Epistemology”, Online/Munich, 19 July 2023
II Jornadas de Epistemología e Historia de la Astronomía, Cordoba Argentina/online, 23-24 Nov 2023
2023
Freudenthal Institute Research Seminar, “The Philosophy of Dark Energy”, Utrecht, 23 March 2023
Utrecht Philosophy & Foundations of Physics Research Seminar, “Doing More with Less – Dark Matter & Modified Gravity”, Utrecht, 10 March 2023
Theoretical Equivalence Workshop, “Constants of Nature & Theoretical Equivalence”, Birmingham, 24 Feb 2023
Dutch Black Hole Consortium Meeting , UTwente, 24 Jan 2023
2022
Large-Scale Experiments — Reflecting on Theories and Practices , Karlsruhe, 8-10 Dec 2022St. Andrews/Bonn Gravitational Constant Network Meeting, Bonn, 5-7 Dec 2022
PSA2022 , Symposium “Interpreting Theories of Modified Gravity”, “The Spacetime-Matter Distinction”, Pittsburgh, 10-13 Nov 2022Lichtenberg Research Seminar in History and Philosophy of Physics (co-convener, with Juliusz Doboszewski ), Bonn (hybrid)Dutch Black Hole Consortium Meeting , Utrecht, 30 Sept 2022GWP2022 – German Society for Philosophy of Science Conference , “Comparing the explanatory power of ΛCDM & modified gravity” (based on joint work with Martin King ), Berlin, 15-17 Aug 2022Dutch Black Hole Consortium Meeting , Leiden, 7 July 2022Persistence in Stability Workshop , “Persistence & Stability: the case of Dark Matter” , Bonn, 4-5 July 2022History, Philosophy & Sociology of Cosmology & Astroparticle Physics (HPS-CAP) conference , Bonn, 29-30 June 2022Next Generation Event Horizon Telescope Meeting , “Scientific collaborations: what makes them work?” , New Directions in the Foundations of Physics , Viterbo, Italy, 27-29 May 2022Möbius Seminar , “Philosophy of Dark Matter”, Paris/online, 19 May 2022BHI Foundations Seminar, Black Hole Initiative, “The role of hybrid theories in bridging the divide between dark matter & modified gravity” (video) ,
DPG AGPhil conference , Heidelberg/online, 21-25 March 2022ELHC Spring School “History, Philosophy & Sociology of Large Physics Experiments” , co-organiser of “Material Cultures of Large Physics Experiments” working group, Wuppertal, 13-20 March 2022Kick-off Workshop of the History Philosophy Culture working group of the ngEHT collaboration, “Epistemology of the LHC” , co-lead of the collaborations section w/ Peter Galison, Boston, 28 Feb-1 March 2022
Vossius Center for the History of Humanities and Sciences , Junior Visiting Fellow, University of Amsterdam, 31 Jan – 11 March 2022
2021
Third Weekendseminar in Philosophy of Physics , Working Group “Philosophy of Space(time) & Matter” , Cologne (online), 10-12 Dec 2021OZSW2021 , “Semantic Realism” , Tilburg, 3-4 Dec 2021Foundations 2020/21 , “Comparing the explanatory power of ΛCDM & modified gravity” (based on joint work with Martin King ), Paris, 28-30 Oct 2021European Philosophy of Science Association Biannual Conference 2021 , Symposium “Models in Particle Physics: Three Challenges to Realism” with Florian Boge & Martin King , “It’s too early for dark matter realism”, Turin, 15-18 Sept 2021Society for the Metaphysics of Science Annual Conference 2021, “Semantic Realism”, online, 1-4 Sept 2021
British Society for the Philosophy of Science Annual Conference 2021 , Symposium “Models in Particle Physics: Three Challenges to Realism” with Florian Boge & Martin King , “It’s too early for dark matter realism”, online, 5-7 July 2021The Dialectic , “Newton would have been justified in believing in unobservable absolute velocities”, Niels Martens (Proponent) and Tushar Menon (Opponent), Cambridge University (online), 1 July 2021Philosophy of Lambda Workshop (co-organiser, with Juliusz Doboszewski ), online, 16 June 2021New Directions in Foundations of Physics, online, 4 June 2021
Philosophy of Dark Matter Workshop (organiser & speaker), “Dark Matter Realism”, online, 29-30 March 2021Lichtenberg Research Seminar in History and Philosophy of Physics (co-convener, with Dennis Lehmkuhl ), Bonn (hybrid), weeklyPeebles Fan Club : Global, Online Discussion Group on the History, Philosophy & Sociology of the intersection between Cosmology, Astronomy & Particle Physics, fortnightly
2020
Vossius Seminar, “The divide between dark matter and modified gravity” , University of Amsterdam, 5 Oct 2020
Methodological Issues in the Metaphysics of Science, “Sensible metaphysics without the final physical theory” with Niels Linnemann , virtual workshop, 28-29 Sept 202010th European Congress of Analytic Philosophy, “Cartography of the space of theories: an interpretational chart for fields that are both (dark) matter and spacetime” , (video only, due to corona), Aug 2020
British Society for the Philosophy of Science Annual Conference, “Comparing the explanatory power of ΛCDM & modified gravity”, (padlet only, due to corona), July 2020
Pacific APA Meeting , “The role of explanatory power in symmetry-to-reality inferences” , San Francisco, 8-11 April 2020 (cancelled due to corona) Vossius Center for the History of Humanities and Sciences , Junior Visiting Fellow, University of Amsterdam, 1-28 Feb 2020Lichtenberg Research Seminar in History and Philosophy of Physics (co-convener, with Dennis Lehmkuhl ), Bonn (hybrid), weekly
2019
Lugano Quantities Conference, “Absolutism vs. Comparativism about Mass in Newtonian Gravity” , 16-17 Nov 2019
Beyond the Standard Model: historical-critical perspectives, Galileo Galelei Institute for Theoretical Physics, Florence, 14-27 Oct 2019The functioning of galaxies: challenges for Newtonian and Milgromian dynamics , Bonn, 23-27 Sept 2019First Oxford-Notre Dame-Bonn Workshop on the Foundations of Spacetime Theories, “Dark Matter = Modified Gravity?” , Oxford, 3-4 Sept 2019
BSPS 2019 , Durham, 17-19 July 2019‘t Hooft 2019 – From Weak Force to Black Hole Thermodynamics and Beyond , Utrecht, 9-11 July 2019Simplicities & Complexities Conference (co-organiser), 22-24 May 2019Aachen youngDFG pub philosophy, “Scientific Realism vs Anti-realism” , 8 May 2019
The German Society for Philosophy of Science Conference , “Dark Matter = Modified Gravity?” , Cologne, 25-27 Feb 2019Dark Matter & Modified Gravity Conference (co-organiser & speaker), “Dark Matter = Modified Gravity?”, RWTH Aachen, 6-8 Feb 2019.
2018
Research Colloquium , “Dark Matter = Modified Gravity?” , University of Cologne, 13 Dec 2018DFG Weekend Seminar ‘Introduction to Philosophy of Physics’ , Working Group ‘Distinguishing Spacetime and Matter’, University of Bonn, 7-9 Dec 2018Theory of Science and Technology Colloquium , “Dark Matter = Modified Gravity?” , Aachen, 6 Dec 2018Society for the Metaphysics of Science 2018, “Machian Comparativism about Mass” (slides ), Milan, 22-24 August 2018, commentator: Zee Perry . I’m also commenting on Dustin Lazarovici ‘s “Super-Humeanism: A Starving Ontology” (handout ) Particle Physics at the Crossroads , International Summer School on the Philosophy, History and Sociology of Particle Physics, Dark Matter & Modified Gravity Working Group, Wuppertal, 23-30 July 2018Foundations2018, “Symmetry-to-reality inferences: The Aharonov-Bohm Effect as a Case Study for Motivational Realism” (handout ), Utrecht, 10-13 JulyBritish Society for the Philosophy of Science, “Modified Gravity = Dark Matter? Scrutinising the spacetime-matter distinction via the modified gravity/ dark matter lens”, Oxford, 4-6 July 2018Fifth International Conference on the Nature and Ontology of Spacetime , “Modified Gravity = Dark Matter? Scrutinising the spacetime-matter distinction via the modified gravity/ dark matter lens” , Varna, Bulgaria, 14-17 May 2018Visit to the Geneva Symmetry Group , 2-9 May 2018, including my “Modified Gravity = Dark Matter?” talk on 3 May (see abstract / video )
Visits to Oxford University, to collaborate with Dennis Lehmkuhl , 16-23 January & 7-14 March 2018
Naturalness, Hierarchy, and Fine Tuning , RWTH Aachen, 28 Feb – 2 March 2018
2017
Visit to Oxford University, to collaborate with James Read and Thomas Møller-Nielsen , 13-15 December 2017
Spacetime: Fundamental or Emergent? , Bonn, 26-28 Oct 2017Visit to Oxford University, to collaborate with Dennis Lehmkuhl and Oliver Pooley , 18-22 Sept 2017
SOPhiA2017 , Modeling Physical Reality Workshop , “From Models to Reality: A Plea for Caution” (handout ), Salzburg, 13-15 Sept 2017Cosmology and the Future of Spacetime , Rotman Institute, London, Ontario, 12-14 June 2017The Foundation of Reality: Fundamentality, Space and Time , Oxford, 13-15 March 2017
2016
PSA Biennial Meeting , “Regularity Comparativism about Mass in Newtonian Gravity” (handout ), Atlanta, 3-5 Nov 2016Oxford Philosophy of Physics Research Seminar, “Comparativism about Mass in Newtonian Gravity” (abstract / handout ), 20 Oct 2016
“Does a rolling stone gather nomos?”: Humeanism (Tushar Menon ) vs Anti-Humeanism (Niels Martens) debate (handout ) , PoP-Grunch, Oxford, 13 Oct 2016Society for the Metaphysics of Science Annual Conference , “Regularity Comparativism about Mass in Newtonian Gravity” (handout ), Geneva, 15-17 Sept 2016. Commentator: C.D. McCoy Dark Matter(s) , 4th Fine-Tuning Workshop, Oxford, 8 Sept 2016Foundations2016 , “Against Reducing Newtonian Mass to Kinematical Quantities” (handout ), LSE, 16-18 July 2016The Hole Shebang , 15 July 2016, LSEStructure in Metaphysics , Oxford, 1 June 2016Lakatos Workshop: Geometry and Physics , LSE, London, 4 May 2016
PoP-Grunch, “The Regularity Approach to Comparativism about Dynamical Quantities ” (handout ), Oxford, 11 Feb 2016
2015
Ockham Society, ``Against Reducing Newtonian Mass to Kinematical Notions” (handout ), Oxford, 25 November 2015
The Cambridge Masterclass in Philosophy of Physics: Thermal Physics , Cambridge, 14 November 2015Centennial workshop on GR , Bristol, 4 Nov 2015Visiting Student Research Collaborator at Princeton, 16 Sept – 31 Oct 2015, collaborating with Prof. Shamik Dasgupta
Society for the Metaphysics of Science, First Annual Conference, Rutgers University – Newark, 17-18 Sept 20154th Tübingen Summer School in the History and Philosophy of Science: Idealizations in Physics, Lecturer: John Norton, “The Empirical Adequacy of Comparativism about Mass in Newtonian Gravity” (handout ), 27-31 July 2015HarveyBrownFest , Oxford, 13-14 July 2015British Society for the Philosophy of Science Annual Conference, Manchester, 2-3 July 2015
POP-Grunch (Oxford PhilPhys Grad Lunch Seminar), `Comparativism about Mass & the Initial Variable Problem’ (handout ), 11 June 2015
Metaphysics of Quantities Conference, `Comparativism about Mass & the Initial Variable Problem’ (abstract / handout ), NYU, 1-3 May 2015. Commentator: Eddy Keming Chen 1st Munich Graduate Workshop in Mathematical Philosophy: Philosophy of Physics , `Comparativism about Mass & the Initial Variable Problem’ (handout ) , 9-11 April 2015Outreach talk on PhilPhys , North London Collegiate’s Philosophy Society, 26 March 2015
DPG 2015 Berlin , `Against Comparativism about Mass in Newtonian Gravity’ (handout / video ), 15-20 March 2015Quantum Foundations of Statistical Mechanics Workshop (focusing on the recent work of David Wallace), Oxford, 16-17 March 2015
Ockham Society, `Ozma Games: Talking Physics with Aliens’ , Oxford, 12 March 2015
Socrates Society, `Ozma Problems: Talking Physics with Aliens’ , Oxford, 26 Feb 2015
Jeremy Butterfield Fest , Cambridge, 6-7 Feb 2015
2014
Bucharest Graduate Conference in Early Modern Philosophy , `Against Comparativism about Mass in Newtonian Gravity’ (handout DPhil Seminar , `Against Comparativism about Mass’ (abstract / handout ) , University of Oxford, Department of Philosophy, 23 Oct 2014. Commentator: Dennis Lehmkuhl Lakatos Award Conference on Philosophy of Physics , London, LSE, 21 Oct 20142nd International Topoi Conference: The Metaphysics of Quantum Mechanics , Oxford, 2-3 Oct 2014Modern Issues in Foundations of Physics: A Workshop in Honour of Chris Isham’s 70th birthday , Imperial College London, 26-28 Sept 2014Philosophy of Cosmology UK/US Conference , Tenerife, 13-16 Sept 2014SOPhiA 2014 , `Comparativism about mass’ (abstract / handout ), Salzburg, 4-6 Sept 2014. (Chair of one of the PhilSci sessions)Summer School: Arches and Scaffoldings: Continuity and Discontinuity in the Genesis of Special Relativity, General Relativity, and Quantum Mechanics , `Comparativism about mass in Newtonian Gravity’ (abstract / handout ) , Tübingen, 4-8 Aug 2014
BSPS Conference 2014 , Cambridge University, UK, 10-11 July 2014. Followed by the Joint Session of the Aristotelian Society and the Mind Association, 11-13 July 2014.Fundamentality and Parsimony Workshop , Nottingham, 4 July 2014OZSW Graduate Conference for Theoretical Philosophy 2014 , ‘The Metaphysics of Emergent Spacetime Theories (abstract / handout )’, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Netherlands, 26-28 May 2014.Establishing the Philosophy of Cosmology, Conference 5: Cosmology and the Constants of Nature , Cambridge University, 17-19 March 2014Outreach presentation for Chinese prospective applicants to UK universities, ‘Introduction to Philosophy of Physics (slides)’ , St. Anne’s College , Oxford University, 2 Feb 2014
2013
Establishing the Philosophy of Cosmology, Conference 4: Anthropics, Selection Effects and Fine-Tuning in Cosmology , Oxford University, 2-4 Dec 2013Irreversibility in Axiomatic Thermodynamics, Trinity College, Cambridge University, 30 Nov 2013Relativity Meets Quantum Theory , LSE, London, 28-29 Nov 2013Oxford Undergraduate Physics Conference 2013 , ‘A Century of Cosmic Ray Physics’, Invited speaker, sole student speaker, 16 April 2013MA Philosophy Conference , `Parity violation and the reality of space (handout)’ , Establishing the Philosophy of Cosmology, Conference 2: Is ‘God’ Explanatory? , Oxford University, 9-11 Jan 2013
2012
VSNU Student Research Conference 2012 , ‘Parity violation and the reality of space (poster)’ , Utrecht, the Netherlands, 21 Nov 2012Corpus Christi College MCR/SCR Seminar, `Galactic Sources of Ultrahigh-energy Cosmic Rays (slides)’
Summer School and Workshop on the Standard Model and Beyond , Summer School: History and Philosophy of Science: Revolutions in Science, Utrecht University, the Netherlands, 27-31 Aug 2012
Establishing the Philosophy of Cosmology, Conference 1: The Arrow of Time, Oxford University, 30 Apr – 2 May 2012Oxford Undergraduate Physics Conference 2012 , `Yang, Lee & Wu: Symmetries in Physics & CP-violation’, Invited speaker, sole student speaker, 17 April 2012Seeking Wisdom Conference: Science & Religion, Oxford, 16-17 March 2012
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Niels Martens 