Vincent Lam
Education | Research interest | Current research projects | Selected recent publications
External scientific collaborator
Epistemology and Philosophy of Science
University of Lausanne
Department of Philosophy
CH-1015 Lausanne
Email: vincent.lam@unil.ch
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
School of Mathematics and Physics &
School of History, Philosophy, Religion and Classics
University of Queensland
Brisbane QLD 4072
Office: Forgan Smith E322
Phone: (+61 7) 3365 2823
Email: v.lam@uq.edu.au
Education
| Year | Activity |
| 2003-2008 | PhD in Philosophy at the University of Lausanne. Title: "Space-Time within General Relativity: A Structural Realist Understanding". Committee: M. Esfeld (Director - Lausanne), D. Dieks (Utrecht), S. French (Leeds), Cl. Kiefer (Cologne). |
| 1999-2000 | Physics studies (exchange) at the Berlin Institute of Technology (TU Berlin) and at the Humboldt University (HU) in Berlin. |
| 1997-2002 | MSc in Physics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL / ETH Lausanne) - Master thesis at the Institute of Geometry, Algebra and Topology with Prof. Hess Bellwald. |
Research interest
Foundational issues in general relativity and quantum theory, philosophy of space and time, philosophy of physics, philosophy of science, metaphysics.
Current research projects
Definition and meaning of gravitational energy, gravitational waves and causation, interpretation of quantum fields (including possible quantum aspects of the gravitational field), non-intrinsic identity within ontic structural realism.
Selected recent publications
- V. Lam, ‘Gravitational and non-gravitational energy : the need for background structures’, submitted.
- M. Esfeld and V. Lam, ‘Holism and structural realism’, in R.Vanderbeeken & E.Weber (eds.): Worldviews, science and us: Studies of analytical metaphysics. A selection of topics from a methodological perspective, forthcoming.
- M. Esfeld and V. Lam, ‘Structures as the objects of fundamental physics’, in U. Feest et H.-J. Rheinberger (eds.), Epistemic Objects, Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, 2009.
- V. Lam, ‘Structural aspects of the singular feature of space-time’, in D. Dieks (ed.), Ontology of Spacetime. Philosophy and Foundations of Physics Series. Vol.2, 111-131. Amsterdam : Elsevier, 2008.
- M. Esfeld and V. Lam, ‘Moderate structural realism about space-time’, Synthese, 160, 27-46, 2008.
- V. Lam, ‘The singular nature of space-time’, Philosophy of Science, 74, 712-723, 2007.
- V. Lam, ‘Causation and Space-time’, Hist. Phil. Life Sci., 27, 483-499, 2005.
