isaac.wilhelm@rutgers.edu
- Logic and Justice (2022). Routledge.
- This textbook is an introduction to propositional logic and first-order logic. It motivates the study of those logical systems by explaining how they are relevant to social justice and political reform.
- The Counteridentical Account of Explanatory Identities (forthcoming). The Journal of Philosophy.
- I propose a theory of how identity facts explain by using (i) explanatory counterfactuals, (ii) counterpart theory, (iii) impossible worlds, and (iv) structural equation models.
- Intrinsicality and Entanglement (forthcoming). Mind.
- I show that when applied to entangled quantum systems, Langton and Lewis's analysis of intrinsicality faces a puzzle.
- Centering the Principal Principle (forthcoming). Philosophical Studies.
- I show that centered propositions pose a serious problem for Lewis's Principal Principle, and I solve the problem by proposing that centered propositions can be objectively chancy.
- Comparing the Structures of Mathematical Objects (forthcoming). Synthese.
- I use automorphism groups to say what it takes for one mathematical object to have at least as much structure as another.
- Comparing Mathematical Explanations (forthcoming). The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science.
- I develop an account of how to compare the explanatory capacities of mathematical proofs.
- Grounding and Propositional Identity (forthcoming). Analysis.
- I show that standard conditions for immediate partial ground contradict standard conditions for the identities of propositions.
- Logic, Mysticism, and the Nature of Rationality (forthcoming). In H. De Cruz and J. De Smedt, ed., Avatar: The Last Airbender and Philosophy. Blackwell.
- I argue that the mystical decision-making practices of the villagers in The Fortuneteller, based on the fortune-telling of Aunt Wu, are actually more rational than they might initially seem.
- Explanatory Priority Monism (forthcoming). Philosophical Studies.
- I argue that a single relation (i) backs all cases of explanation, and (ii) explains why other relations—causation, grounding, and so on—are explanation-backing.
- Typical: A Theory of Typicality and Typicality Explanation (forthcoming). The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science (archive version).
- I argue that facts about what is typical—for instance, the fact that gases typically evolve to equilibrium—can explain.
- Featured in the OUP "Best of Philosophy 2019" article collection.
- The Logic of Typicality (forthcoming). In Valia Allori, ed., Statistical Mechanics and Scientific Explanation: Determinism, Indeterminism and Laws of Nature. World Scientific (with Harry Crane).
- I propose a formal system, based on propositional modal logic, for reasoning about typicality.
- A Statistical Analysis of Luck (2020). Synthese 197: 867-885.
- I analyze luck using the Mentaculus, a statistical mechanical theory of probability.
- An Argument for Entity Grounding (2020). Analysis 80: 500-507.
- I argue for the view that non-facts—as well as facts—can ground.
- Interventionist Explanation and the Problem of Single Variable Boundary Constraints (2020). Noûs 54: 945-955.
- I use laws featuring just one variable to raise a problem—and suggest a solution—for interventionist accounts of explanation.
- The Stage Theory of Groups (2020). Australasian Journal of Philosophy 98: 661-674.
- I propose an account of groups: roughly, groups are fusions of pluralities at worlds and times.
- Celestial Chaos: The New Logics of Theory-Testing in Orbital Dynamics (2019). Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 65: 97-102.
- I argue that a new research methodology, currently emerging in the fields of astronomy and spacecraft trajectory design, solves several epistemological problems posed by chaotic dynamics in the solar system.
- The Ontology of Mechanisms (2019). The Journal of Philosophy 116: 615-636.
- I use causation to formulate existence conditions, identity conditions, and parthood conditions for mechanisms.
- New Data on the Representation of Women in Philosophy Journals: 2004-2015 (2018). Philosophical Studies 175: 1441-1464 (with Sherri Conklin and Nicole Hassoun).
- We present and analyze data on the percentage of women authors of articles in 25 top philosophy journals.
- The Representation of Belief (2018). Journal of Philosophical Logic 47: 715-732.
- I prove that if an agent's set of beliefs satisfies Scott's axiom, then that set of beliefs can be formally represented by a probability function.
- [redacted for anonymous review] I propose a stage-theoretic, fine-grained theory of properties, relations, and propositions which avoids the Russell-Myhill argument.
- [redacted for anonymous review] I argue that some individuals have their genders essentially while others do not.
- [redacted for anonymous review] I explore three principles for extracting physical content from the mathematical expressions in which physical theories are couched.
- [redacted for anonymous review] I use centered changes—chances, that is, of centered propositions—to formulate an account of probability in the Everett interpretation of quantum mechanics.
- [redacted for anonymous review] I derive a complete theory of propositional identity from a few plausible principles of grounding.
- [redacted for anonymous review] I argue that for the purposes of metaphysical theorizing, the calculus of constructions—a higher-order language which allows for quantification over types—is better than other languages discussed by philosophers.
- [redacted for anonymous review] I analyze causation in terms of explanation.
- [redacted for anonymous review] I explore several theories of the objective value of naturalness.