Explaining explanation in chemistry

Abstract

The notion that explanations are arguments, central to the covering law account, persists in developments of accounts of explanation in general philosophy of science. I argue that these developments fail to capture chemical explanation-motivating the explanatory autonomy of chemistry requires the investigation of alternative accounts. Ubiquitous use of models in chemistry is indicative of their importance to explanation. I argue that contemporary accounts of models that emphasize their partial autonomy from fundamental physical laws provide a basis for investigating explanation in chemistry. Furthermore, I sketch the importance of the semantic view of theories in articulating model autonomy, and thus why the semantic view might fulfill a significant role in explicating the explanatory autonomy of chemistry.