Abstract Lam and Esfeld have argued that, within Bohmian mechanics, the wave function can be interpreted as a physical structure instantiated by the fundamental particles posited by the theory. Further, to characterize the nature of this structure, they appeal to the framework of Ontic Structural Realism (OSR), thereby proposing a structuralist interpretation of Bohmian mechanics. However, I shall point out that OSR denotes a family of distinct views, each of which maintains a different account about the relation between structures and objects, and entails a different kind of ontology. Thus, in this paper I will show how to articulate the structuralist approach to Bohmian Mechanics accordingly to the different standard versions of OSR, and I will evaluate these alternatives. Moreover, I will propose a novel and sui generis kind of structuralist interpretation of Bohmian Mechanics, based on the framework of metaphysical coherentism.
This thesis aims to contribute to the discussion of how to interpret the Bohmian ontology. Bohmian Mechanics is a quantum theory that describes the motion of particles, whose trajectories are determined by the quantum wave-function. This theory faces two key questions. The former concerns the metaphysical characterization of the particles; the latter relates to the ontological status of the wave-function. \nAfter briefly presenting two possible metaphysical characterizations of the particles, I dedicate the bulk of this work to investigating the status of the wave-function. In particular, I analyse the realist view (which regards the wave-function as a multi-dimensional field) and the nomological view (which considers the wave-function as a law-like entity). My investigation touches upon different levels of inquiry. First, I show that these two ontological interpretations depend on contrasting formulations of the law that dictates the particle motion. Second, I argue that both views defend very problematic ontologies that not only violate familiar metaphysical criteria but also fail to provide a satisfactory explanation of the relation between the particles and the wave-function. Third, I spell out the implicit methodologies that underlie the two views, arguing that they conflate three important categories that should rather be kept separate: the informationally-complete representation of the system, the ontologically-complete representation of the system, and the ontology itself. \nFinally, I present and advocate structural realism as the metaphysical framework for investigating and understanding the Bohmian ontology. According to the structuralist interpretation, the wave-function represents a network of modal relations whose relata are the particles. I argue that this third view provides the best account of the Bohmian system for three reasons. First of all, it offers a parsimonious ontology that does not create any issue of metaphysical underdetermination. Secondly, it supplies an explanatorily powerful ontology. Thirdly, it relies on a sound methodological program. I conclude with an interesting insight: this structuralist interpretation can be regarded as reconciling the realist view and the nomological view given that it takes on aspects of both views and is compatible with both formulations of the law of motion for the particles. \n
What is a photograph? What can a photograph be? This doctorate synthesises quantum theory and post-structuralist discourse, within a media-arts context, to examine photography in new ways. Rather than the conventionally held view of the photograph as a static, purely material object, this exegesis argues that the photograph is better understood as a relational, fluctuating process. The identity of photography, its operation and the resulting formal and narrative consequences are the main areas of this inquiry. The original contribution that this doctorate makes towards research and creative practice is to provide a unique understanding of how photography operates through the philosophical lens of quantum science. Quantum theories such as ‘entanglement’, the ‘many-worlds interpretation’, the ‘uncertainty principle’ and ‘nonlocality’ are employed to consider photography as a destabilised and diffuse medium. Gilles Deleuze’s concept of the ‘crystal-image’ (1989) is applied to explore these questions within a media-arts setting. In this context, the actual and virtual converge, the real and the imaginary entwine, and the photographer, subject and spectator merge with the image itself. Together, quantum theory and Deleuzian post-structuralist discourse are engaged to reveal photography as an indeterminate and open-ended assemblage. The practice-led component of this doctorate, Duplicity, is a large-scale, site-specific photomedia installation that embodies these ideas. Out of this work, the concept of the intra-image is proposed as a novel interpretation of the photographic image – one that is fragmented, entangled and relational. This research aims to contribute towards work by scholars and image-makers operating in the domain of photomedia, within a media-arts context.