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 Φ-Geo research group at Boston University. My research focuses on the philosophy of measurement, the history and philosophy of physics and earth science, and the ways in which financial incentive structures shape scientific research. You can use this website to discover my research and teaching, a full CV, and some impressions of academic life. 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
28 Aug - 1 Sep
Topic: Recovering a Lost Arc in the History Statistical Inference: Geodetic Statistics from Laplace to Peirce
Occasion: Fifth AIP Early Career History of Physics Conference
@ University of Copenhagen / Niels Bohr Archive
5-7 Jul 2023
[with Cristian Larroulet Philippi]
Topic: Is Physical Measurement Relevantly Similar to Human Science Measurement?
Occasion: British Society for Philosophy of Science Conference
@ University of Bristol
8-10 Jul 2023
Topic: Approximation as Severe Testing: Laplace's Geophysical Argument for Particle-to-Particle Gravitation
Occasion: 21st European Conference on Foundations of Physics
@ University of Bristol
5-6 May 2023
Topic: Bringing Gravitation Down to Earth: Severe Testing in Laplace’s Mécanique Céleste
Occasion: Boston Colloquium for Philosophy of Science: History and Philosophy of the Geosciences
@ Boston University, Center for Computing & Data Science
16 Apr 2023
Topic: Newton as Geodesist: The Problem of the Earth's Figure and the Argument for Universal Gravitation
Occasion: History & Philosophy of Physics Award Lecture, April Meeting of the American Physical Society
@ Hilton Minneapolis
17 Nov 2022
Topic: Old and New Problems in Geodetic Modelling
Occasion: Invited Talk
@ Harvard University, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
forthcoming and recent publications
Forthcoming
The Epistemic Privilege of Measurement: Motivating a Functionalist Account. Philosophy of Science. philsci-archive preprint
Forthcoming
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]
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
2021
Theodolites at 20000 Feet: Justifying Precision Measurement during the Trigonometrical Survey of Kashmir, 1855-65. Notes and Records: The Royal Society Journal of the History of Science (online preprint).
2020
The Limits of Conventional Justification: Industry Bias and Inductive Risk beyond Conventionalism. Frontiers in Research Metrics and Analytics, Special Issue: Public Research and Private Knowledge – Science in Times of Diverse Research Funding.