Simulation as Experiment: A Test Case for the Prospects for a Computational Philosophy

Jermon Franklin and John Moore

In this research poster, I utilize published, computational research in chemistry to analyze the use of simulation as a form of experimentation. I then outline the impacts that simulation-as-experimentation (SAE) makes on the prevailing understanding of scientific method, especially regarding the question of empirical validity, and what makes a simulated trial-result a “scientific” result?  I then raise the following question, how scientific are simulations inherently? Assuming that simulation is a valid form of experimentation, can it also be used to add an empirical element to philosophy research itself? How might this new form of philosophical experimentation be applied to past philosophical questions? In tracing out the impacts of simulation-as-experiment on our sense of scientific method, I examine ideas borrowed from the philosophical writings of Stephen Hawking, Sandra Greer, Thomas Kuhn, and Sherrilyn Roush. I close by suggesting how simulation might become a more accepted form of experimentation, if it is employed critically, empirically, logically, and ethically. These closing reflections lead me to conclude that epistemology should be pursued in a bold, new way, using a modified scientific method, that I model on the active sub-field, known as computational chemistry, which I propose to call, by analogy, “computational philosophy”.   

• Jermon Franklin is a junior chemistry major at Lander University who is also pursuing a minor in philosophy. Jermon has a broad range of interests including chemistry, environmental science, and philosophy.  Currently, he is working to find new and innovative ways to apply philosophy to chemistry. After he graduates, he plans on pursuing a graduate degree in materials science.