Kant’s Dynamic Theory of Matter

In-person conference, Brussels
See more here.

Confirmed speakers:

• Kristina Engelhard (Universität Trier)
• Paolo Pecere (Università degli Studi Roma Tre)
• Helmut Pulte (Ruhr-Universität Bochum)
• Marius Stan (Boston College)
• Daniel Sutherland (University of Illinois, Chicago)
• Daniel Warren (University of California, Berkeley)
• Henny Blomme (Université Libre de Bruxelles)
• Stephen Howard (KU Leuven)

Over the last few decades, scholars have made great advances in clarifying issues in Kant’s theory of matter as exposed in the Metaphysical Foundations of Natural Science (MAN). Such issues include Kant’s accounts of the forces of matter, space-filling and mass; the dynamical and mechanical conceptions of matter and their respective laws; the role and scope of ‘construction’ in natural science; the phoronomical concept of motion and its role in matter theory; the applicability of mathematics to physical bodies; the regulative idea of absolute space; and the relationship between the 1786 work and the Critiques. Following the publication of McNulty, ed., Kant's Metaphysical Foundations of Natural Science: A Critical Guide (2022), now is a good time to take stock and identify where further progress can be made in understanding and assessing Kant’s dynamic theory of matter, either by deepening existing debates or opening new areas of investigation.

Organizers: Henny Blomme & Stephen Howard

Programme:

Programme Kant's Dynamic Theory of Matter - Final