Physics and Philosophy
This demanding course brings together the most fundamental subjects in the arts and the sciences. The philosophy part of the course covers logic, general philosophy, and the philosophy of space and time in the first year, and in subsequent years there are around 30 papers which can be studied. The physics part of the course covers subjects such as mechanics, quantum theory, thermodynamics and relativity.
Pembroke is one of only five colleges to have a Fellow in Philosophy of Physics - a core component of this course. Due to the wide variety of joint schools offered at Pembroke, the philosophy community within College is particularly extensive, offering students the ability to benefit from a diverse range of perspectives on philosophical matters.
What Extra Activities are on Offer?
The physics society meets on average twice per term to discuss current research and hear from engaging guest speakers. The philosophy team organise a talk from a prominent philosopher each term and there is a reading group which meets regularly. As a student studying a joint honours degree you can benefit from both sets of subject activities.
Could you be right for Physics & Philosophy at Pembroke?
You do not need to have a philosophical background to study this course – but an enthusiasm for deep thinking is compulsory! Successful students in this subject will have a good physics intuition, excellent mathematical skills and an ability to think clearly, reason and engage in structured arguments.
If you are considering this course, please attend an open day where you can meet our tutors and students and find out more. This is the best way to get a feel for whether you should make an application. We look forward to meeting you!
Have you considered our other joint honours courses?
Both of these disciplines form part of several other related courses, including Maths & Philosophy, PPL, PPE, Philosophy & Modern Languages, Philosophy & Theology, and Physics.
Philosophy video
The Rokos Internship Scheme provides full funding for academic summer internships.
Pembroke non-finalist STEM students are eligible for up to £1,000 funding for summer internships, allowing them to gain hands-on research experience. The award covers all academic and living expenses, including accommodation.
Below are some reports from Pembroke Physics and Philosophy students who have used the award in past few years.
Olivia Kelly (2018, MPhysPhil Physics and Philosophy)
Olivia spent six weeks over the summer taking part in a research project with Pembroke Fellow Professor James Read. The project involved responding to a research paper about The Hole Argument, first articulated by Einstein.
Reflecting on her research and response, she writes: "I had not yet studied category theory so it was very interesting to look into this for the first time; it is always interesting to find new mathematical ways to represent reality.
This project gave a great insight into what it would be like to do research into philosophy of physics and helped develop skills that will be very useful for writing my thesis this coming year. This project was a very enjoyable part of my summer and an experience I will always be grateful for."
Read Olivia's full report here.
Last year, Olivia spent six weeks with Vlatko Vedral’s Frontier’s of Quantum Information Research group in the physics department at the university of Oxford. Her project was to look into a specific ‘quantum Maxwell’s demon’ thought experiment in which the familiar particle in a box setup of the Maxwell’s demon thought experiment is replaced with a single photon in a box.
Matej Kratky (2020, MPhysPhil Physics and Philosophy)
Matej used the Rokos Award to undertake a summer internship in string theory at the Czech Academy of Science.
He shares: "My meetings with Dr. Chakrabarti usually took the form of an informal lecture or a discussion and the goal was to prepare myself for eventually understanding and perhaps tackling a small research problem. The topics of discussion initially revolved around general topics such as classical and quantum field theory, language of differential forms but then specialized to the case of a conformal field theory, a crucial ingredient in the covariant/modern (as opposed to light-cone) quantization of the relativistic string.
I experienced some truly exciting moments during my summer internship, and I have indeed learned a lot of physics which will certainly be useful in the upcoming academic year as well as years to come."
Pembroke Philosophers are eligible for £100 of funding in their first year and another £100 in their final year towards the cost of books for their course for personal use. This is claimed from the librarian.
Meet Our Academics
Physics and Philosophy
This demanding course brings together the most fundamental subjects in the arts and the sciences. The philosophy part of the course covers logic, general philosophy, and the philosophy of space and time in the first year, and in subsequent years there are around 30 papers which can be studied. The physics part of the course covers subjects such as mechanics, quantum theory, thermodynamics and relativity.
Pembroke is one of only five colleges to have a Fellow in Philosophy of Physics - a core component of this course. Due to the wide variety of joint schools offered at Pembroke, the philosophy community within College is particularly extensive, offering students the ability to benefit from a diverse range of perspectives on philosophical matters.
What Extra Activities are on Offer?
The physics society meets on average twice per term to discuss current research and hear from engaging guest speakers. The philosophy team organise a talk from a prominent philosopher each term and there is a reading group which meets regularly. As a student studying a joint honours degree you can benefit from both sets of subject activities.
Could you be right for Physics & Philosophy at Pembroke?
You do not need to have a philosophical background to study this course – but an enthusiasm for deep thinking is compulsory! Successful students in this subject will have a good physics intuition, excellent mathematical skills and an ability to think clearly, reason and engage in structured arguments.
If you are considering this course, please attend an open day where you can meet our tutors and students and find out more. This is the best way to get a feel for whether you should make an application. We look forward to meeting you!
Have you considered our other joint honours courses?
Both of these disciplines form part of several other related courses, including Maths & Philosophy, PPL, PPE, Philosophy & Modern Languages, Philosophy & Theology, and Physics.
Philosophy video
The Rokos Internship Scheme provides full funding for academic summer internships.
Pembroke non-finalist STEM students are eligible for up to £1,000 funding for summer internships, allowing them to gain hands-on research experience. The award covers all academic and living expenses, including accommodation.
Below are some reports from Pembroke Physics and Philosophy students who have used the award in past few years.
Olivia Kelly (2018, MPhysPhil Physics and Philosophy)
Olivia spent six weeks over the summer taking part in a research project with Pembroke Fellow Professor James Read. The project involved responding to a research paper about The Hole Argument, first articulated by Einstein.
Reflecting on her research and response, she writes: "I had not yet studied category theory so it was very interesting to look into this for the first time; it is always interesting to find new mathematical ways to represent reality.
This project gave a great insight into what it would be like to do research into philosophy of physics and helped develop skills that will be very useful for writing my thesis this coming year. This project was a very enjoyable part of my summer and an experience I will always be grateful for."
Read Olivia's full report here.
Last year, Olivia spent six weeks with Vlatko Vedral’s Frontier’s of Quantum Information Research group in the physics department at the university of Oxford. Her project was to look into a specific ‘quantum Maxwell’s demon’ thought experiment in which the familiar particle in a box setup of the Maxwell’s demon thought experiment is replaced with a single photon in a box.
Matej Kratky (2020, MPhysPhil Physics and Philosophy)
Matej used the Rokos Award to undertake a summer internship in string theory at the Czech Academy of Science.
He shares: "My meetings with Dr. Chakrabarti usually took the form of an informal lecture or a discussion and the goal was to prepare myself for eventually understanding and perhaps tackling a small research problem. The topics of discussion initially revolved around general topics such as classical and quantum field theory, language of differential forms but then specialized to the case of a conformal field theory, a crucial ingredient in the covariant/modern (as opposed to light-cone) quantization of the relativistic string.
I experienced some truly exciting moments during my summer internship, and I have indeed learned a lot of physics which will certainly be useful in the upcoming academic year as well as years to come."
Pembroke Philosophers are eligible for £100 of funding in their first year and another £100 in their final year towards the cost of books for their course for personal use. This is claimed from the librarian.