Philippe Verreault-Julien

Philippe Verreault-Julien

Postdoctoral Researcher

Eindhoven University of Technology

About Me

I am a postdoctoral researcher at Eindhoven University of Technology, where I am part of a project that examines philosophical issues raised by artificial intelligence systems, in particular those related to their opacity.

My research primarily concerns the epistemology of scientific modelling, understanding, and explanation.

Interests
  • Philosophy of Science
  • Philosophy of Technology
  • Philosophy of Economics
  • Epistemology
  • Philosophy of Biology
  • Metaphilosophy
Education

  • PhD Philosophy, 2019

    Erasmus University Rotterdam

  • MA Philosophy, 2013

    Erasmus University Rotterdam

  • Minor Economics, 2009

    Université Laval

  • BA Philosophy, 2009

    Université Laval

Contributions & Work in Progress

Explanation in economics
Discussions in the literature on economic methodology often do not explicitly concern explanation. The goal of this chapter is to show …
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Understanding with models (PhD thesis summary)
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Philosophical methodology in theoretical modelling: the case of herd behaviour
Naturalism is the view according to which philosophy should solve its problems using the empirical scientific methodology. It assumes a …
Project
Understanding with models
Theoretical modelling raises many epistemological challenges. Models appear to explain economic phenomena, yet they also seem to lack …
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Learning and understanding with models: same same but different?
This paper is about two proposals that have been made about the possible epistemic function of highly idealized models. Some argue that …
Project
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Past & Upcoming Talks

Recommander pour le bien-être: vers des standards éthiques pour le recours algorithmique
People are increasingly subject to algorithmic decisions, and it is generally agreed that end-users should be provided an explanation …
May 11, 2022 10:30 Université Laval
Project
Toy models, dispositions, and the power to explain
Two recent contributions have discussed, and disagreed, over whether so-called toy models that attempt to represent dispositions have …
April 23, 2022 12:10 Fordham University
Project
Representing non-actual targets?
Scientists seek to learn about targets of interest by representing them with models. This supposes that we have an account of how …
June 1, 2021 14:00 University of Alberta
Project
Representing and Understanding (Im)Possible Targets?
One strategy that scientists use to understand targets of interest is by representing them with models. Understanding the world by …
March 12, 2020 — March 14, 2020 Emory University, United States
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Projects

Meta-Empirical Reasoning and Justification in Philosophy and the Sciences
Methodological naturalism (naturalism henceforth) is the view according to which the empiricist scientific methodology is adequate for both philosophy and the sciences. However, the validity of naturalism crucially depends on the alleged distinctiveness between philosophical and scientific methods.
Models, Understanding, and Explanation
Philosophers have been interested in how models that systematically and deeply idealize may explain or afford understanding if they misrepresent the very things that are supposed to explain and be explained.
Towards a Methodology of Modal Modeling for Science
Project on which I collaborate.
Explanation in Social Evolution Theory
This project concerns the explanatoriness of theoretical principles in social evolution theory, in particular Hamilton’s rule and the Price equation. Whether or how these widely accepted principles provide insight into evolutionary phenomena is the subject of scientific controversy and of philosophical discussion.

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