Hi, welcome to my website!
I am Miguel, a philosopher and historian of science, currently based at the University of Cambridge and affiliated with The Royal Institution. I am writing a book for Oxford University Press, tentatively titled "Newton's Open Problem: Earth's Figure and Universal Gravitation." My research explores the philosophies of measurement and statistics, and the evidential and political foundations of quantification in science (especially physics and earth science). You can use this website to discover my research and teaching. Of course, you can also reach out to me directly.
If you have little time, you can find basic information about my recent publications and upcoming talks by simply scrolling down.
Thank you for your interest in my research!
Me, during the daily pandemic walk in a forest near my hometown Göttingen, photographed by my partner Maria.
upcoming and recent talks
14-17 Nov 2024
Topic: Symposium on Philosophy of Seismology
Occasion: Philosophy of Science Association Conference
@ New Orleans
9-12 Jul 2024
Topic: Why C. S. Peirce Became A Frequentist
Occasion: Congress of the International Society for the History of Philosophy of Science
@ University of Vienna
30 Mar 2024
Topic: Should We Align Quantitative Measures with Stakeholder Values?
Occasion: Values in Science Workshop
@ Pembroke College, University of Cambridge
31 Jan 2024
Topic: What Philosophers and Scientists Get Wrong About Quantification
Occasion: Invited Talk
@ Boston University
30 Nov 2023
Topic: How to Test a Law of Nature: Earth's Shape and Universal Gravitation
Occasion: Du Châtelet Prize Workshop: Laws and Symmetries in the Practice of Physics
@ Duke University
28 Oct 2023
[with Alisa Bokulich & Matilde Carrera]
Topic: Solid-Body Tides and the Epistemology of Anomaly-Driven Research
Occasion: Rethinking Anomalies in Science Workshop
@ University of Pittsburgh
forthcoming and recent publications
2023
The Epistemic Privilege of Measurement: Motivating a Functionalist Account. Philosophy of Science 90.
2023
The Promises and Pitfalls of Precision: Random and Systematic Error in Physical Geodesy, 1800-1910. Annals of Science. [Special Issue: Promises of Precision, ed. Sibylle Gluch]
2023
With Aja Watkins:
Review of 'Naomi Oreskes: Science on a Mission'. British Journal for the Philosophy of Science.
2022
Newton as Geodesist: The Problem of the Earth's Figure and the Argument for Universal Gravitation.* Newsletter of the American Physical Society (Oct).
*Winner of the 2022 APS History and Philosophy of Physics Essay Price
2022
Pluralizing Measurement: Physical Geodesy’s Measurement Problem and its Resolution, 1880-1924.* Studies in the History and Philosophy of Science A 96.
*Winner of the 2021 Du Châtelet Price in Philosophy of Physics