CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
Open positions in philosophy of physics: 1 Postdoc and 1 PhD Fellowships – Geneva Symmetry Group, Department of Philosophy, University of Geneva
The Department of Philosophy, University of Geneva invites applications for two positions for Christian Wüthrich's new SNSF‐funded project PHILOSOPHY OF COLLECTIVE PHYSICS:
- one 2-year Postdoc Fellowship (100%), and
- one 4-year PhD Fellowship.
The project will be housed at the Geneva Symmetry Group, which is part of the Department of Philosophy of the University of Geneva (https://genevasymmetrygroup.wordpress.com/)
The positions will start on 1 February 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.
For a brief description of the project, please see below.
The postdoc position is open to scholars with a PhD. Candidates must have a track record in independent research in philosophy of physics and ideally (though not necessarily) a solid background in both physics and philosophy. In particular, relevant background in philosophy includes philosophy of physics, general philosophy of science, and metaphysics; in physics, it includes quantum theory, statistical physics, renormalization group methods and, if possible, quantum field theory and quantum gravity.
PhD candidates must have completed an MA degree in philosophy or in physics. Successful candidates are expected to have a strong background either in philosophy of science or in advanced physics and some preparation to do work in the other field, such as course work. Relevant background in philosophy is philosophy of physics, general philosophy of science, and metaphysics; in physics, it includes quantum theory, statistical physics, renormalization group methods and, if possible, quantum field theory and quantum gravity.
It should be noted that neither candidate is expected to contribute to *all* aspects of the project.
For both posts, candidates must have excellent communication skills in English. Proficiency in French is not necessary at the time of application (but PhD candidates will eventually have to pass a French exam before submitting their thesis).
Applications from members of groups that are currently underrepresented in academic philosophy are strongly encouraged.
The application dossier must contain the following:
(1) Candidates for the postdoc position:
‐ cover letter detailing your research interests and experience
- proposal of a length of about one page for research to be conducted in the context of 'Philosophy of Collective Physics' (description below)
‐ CV
‐ 1 writing sample
‐ 3 names and email addresses for potential academic references
(2) PhD candidates:
‐ cover letter explaining your interest in the topic, including a brief description of the direction of research you would like to undertake in the context of 'Philosophy of Collective Physics' (description below)
‐ CV
‐ Master thesis
‐ 2 names and e‐mail addresses for potential academic references
Please send applications by email as a single PDF file named simply [your last name].pdf showing your email address on top.
Please send applications and queries to Christian Wüthrich at christian.wuthrich(a)unige.ch
To ensure full consideration, please send applications by 1 November 2025.
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Brief description of the project
PHILOSOPHY OF COLLECTIVE PHYSICS
The broad goal of this project is to explore a long-standing and fascinating question: What is the universe really made of? Traditionally, both philosophers and physicists have assumed that reality is built from simple, basic units—such as atoms, particles, or strings—that exist on their own and combine to form everything else. This atomistic view treats isolated systems as the most fundamental building blocks of reality.
The guiding hypothesis of this project is that certain physical phenomena—most paradigmatically, critical phenomena, where systems undergo, under specific experimental conditions, dramatic changes—cannot be properly understood through this atomistic lens. Instead, they point toward a systemic, open-systems perspective, where the interactions of systems with their surrounding environments play a pivotal role. If this perspective is sound, we need to seriously rethink what counts as “basic” in the structure of the universe and to evaluate whether the idea of fundamental units making everything up is still tenable.
In physics, critical phenomena (such as a magnet losing its magnetism or a material exhibiting superconductivity) involve systems near a critical point—a moment of transformation where their behaviour becomes highly sensitive to external conditions. The project argues that such phenomena cannot be explained by looking only at the underlying, microscopic configurations of atoms and/or molecules in isolation. Rather, they demand a view that puts primary emphasis on mutual dependence (between the relata of the phase transition), context (environmental conditions such as pressure and temperature), and large-scale structure (boundary conditions).
To test this hypothesis, the project will follow a three-part methodology:
1. Theoretical analysis of current scientific and philosophical accounts of 'fundamentality', providing a comparison between the isolated systems and the open systems frameworks.
2. Case studies from contemporary physics, especially in condensed matter and quantum many-body physics, to show how real-world examples of critical phenomena support the open-systems view.
3. Philosophical integration, exploring how this shift affects our understanding of key issues like emergence (how complex entities arise from simpler ones), scientific realism (how to secure the physical salience of entities defined within specific theoretical frameworks), and the relationship between physical theories (how to reconceptualize inter-theoretic relations within the open systems perspective).
Ultimately, the project aims to emphasize the pivotal role of condensed matter and quantum many-body physics to tackle several challenges that contemporary research in both experimental and theoretical physics is dealing with. As such, the project will be rather timely, promising a significant impact on the debate exploring the relations between the philosophy of cosmology and the philosophy of quantum gravity, as the ultimate testbed will be to examine geometrogenesis—a striking proposal from quantum gravity suggesting that spacetime itself may emerge through a phase transition from a non-spatiotemporal regime. We will investigate whether the open-systems view can help explain how spacetime arises and what this tells us about the structure of physical reality.
In this way, the project will be of timely relevance to philosophical inquiries addressing not only the putative fundamental structure of the universe, but also the relationship with other levels of physical reality. Accordingly, the scope of the project is not confined to the sole philosophy of physics, but aspires to provide wider results in the research areas of metaphysics, philosophy of science, and epistemology. Its eminently interdisciplinary character, exploring cutting-edge research areas of physics from a philosophically robust standpoint, foreshadows to make it concretely relevant to both physics and philosophy.