ΛCDM and MOND: A debate about models or theory?

Abstract

The debate between ΛCDM and MOND is often cast in terms of competing gravitational theories. However, recent philosophical discussion suggests that the ΛCDM-MOND debate demonstrates the challenges of multiscale modeling in the context of cosmological scales. I extend this discussion and explore what happens when the debate is thought to be about modeling rather than about theory, offering a model-focused interpretation of the ΛCDM-MOND debate. This analysis shows how a model-focused interpretation of the debate provides a better understanding of challenges associated with extension to a different scale or domain, which are tied to commitments about explanatory fit.

Nested modalities in astrophysical modeling

“…In fact, the functions and meaning of modeling and simulations in astrophysics have been objects of extensive philosophical study, especially in the last decade (e.g., Vanderburgh, 2003Vanderburgh, , 2014Anderl, 2018;Massimi, 2018;Smeenk & Gallagher, 2020;Gueguen, 2020;Jacquart, 2020Jacquart, , 2021. Here, we take a slightly different direction with respect to this literature, by considering the issue of astrophysical modeling in the framework of the current debate on modal modeling in science.…”

Robustness and Dark-Matter Observation

“…The present article falls within the recently rising literature on the philosophy of dark matter (e.g., Vanderburgh 2014;Kosso 2013;Massimi 2018;Weisberg et al 2018;de Swart 2020;Martens and Lehmkuhl 2020;Smeenk 2020;De Baerdemaeker 2021;Jacquart 2021b;De Baerdemaeker and Boyd 2020), and its broader aim is to explore an existing methodological challenge in cosmology regarding the proliferation of viable models for the nature of dark matter by embedding it in the current philosophical literature on robustness. Although the main conclusion partly concerns the limits of robustness arguments in dark-matter research, the present study, at the same time highlights the need for a common ground of reference in dark-matter research for the integration of results from different methods and should not be seen as introducing any kind of pessimism or skepticism about dark-matter research.…”