This is philosophy bites with me Nigel Warburton and me David Edmonds.

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Not so long ago,

the renowned astrophysicist Stephen Hawking declared that philosophy is dead.

Philosophy he claimed had nothing to teach physics.

But another distinguished scientist, the Italian theoretical physicist Carlo Raveli, is eager to come to philosophy's defense.

Carlo Rivelli, welcome to Philosophy Bites.

Thank you very much.

The topic we're going to focus on today is philosophy and physics. What do you think the relationship

between philosophy and physics is and should be?

I think the relationship exists and should be much stronger than what it is today.

It was stronger in the past, Heisenberg, Einstein, Newton-Red philosophy with enormous

interest and enormous relevance of the work.

It has weakened after the war in the second half of the 20th century.

And I think this has not done good to physics and perhaps neither to philosophy too.

If we go back to the classical period, it's impossible sometimes to distinguish between

natural scientists and philosophers.

They were the same people speculating about the nature of the cosmos.

Yes, Newton was considering himself a philosopher and a scientist.

...