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Can quantum particles be regarded as individuals, just like books, tables and people? According to the 'received' view - articulated by several physicists in the immediate aftermath of the quantum revolution - quantum physics itself tells us they cannot : quantum particles, unlike theirclassical counterparts, must be regarded as 'non-individuals' in some sense. However, recent work has indicated that this is not the whole story and that the theory is also consistent with the position that such particles can be taken to be individuals, albeit at a metaphysical price. Drawing on philosophical accounts of identity and individuality, as well as the histories of both classical and quantum physics, the authors explore these two alternative metaphysical packages. In particular, they argue that if quantum particles are regarded as individuals, then Leibniz's famousPrinciple of the Identity of Indiscernibles is in fact violated. Recent discussions of this conclusion are analysed in detail and, again, the costs involved in saving the Principle are carefully considered. Taking the alternative package, the authors deploy recent work in non-standard logic and set theory to indicate how we can make sense of the idea that objects can be non-individuals. The concluding chapter suggests how these results might then be extended to quantum field theory. Identity in Physics brings together a range of work in this area and further develops the authors' own contributions to the debate. Uniquely, as the title indicates, it situates this work in the appropriate formal, historical, and philosophical contexts.

Physics --- Identity (Philosophical concept) --- Individuality. --- Philosophy. --- Individuality --- Philosophy --- Identity --- Psychology --- Conformity --- Identity (Psychology) --- Likes and dislikes --- Personality --- Self --- Comparison (Philosophy) --- Resemblance (Philosophy) --- Physics - Philosophy. --- Physics - Philosophy

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This volume in the Brazilian Studies in the Philososophy and History of Science is the first attempt to present to a general audience some works which have been done in Brazil on ths subject. The included papers are original, reaching a remarkable number of relevant topics of philosophy of science, logic and on the history of science. The Brazilian community has increased in the last years in quantity and in quality of the works, most of them being published in respectable international journals on the subject. There is an informal but general among the philosophers and historians of science that the works must be of high quality, and we hope this volume may contribute to widespread this idea. The chapters of this volume are forwarded by a general introduction, which aims at to sketch not only the contents of the chapters, but it is conceived as a historical and conceptual guide about the development of field, as developed in Brazil. The introduction intends to be be very useful to the interestes readers, and not only to the specialists helping them to evaluate the production of this country that it is raising up in the international context.

Philosophy --- Theory of knowledge --- Philosophy of science --- Logic --- Pure sciences. Natural sciences (general) --- wetenschapsgeschiedenis --- filosofie --- epistomologie --- logica --- Brazil

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