Measurement under uncertainty: theory-measurement relations in early electrophysiological research

Şerban, Maria (2025) Measurement under uncertainty: theory-measurement relations in early electrophysiological research. History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences, 47 (4). ISSN 0391-9714

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Abstract

Recent work in philosophy of measurement has converged on a "theory-dependence consensus”, according to which measurement reliability requires sophisticated theoretical scaffolding. This consensus has been largely shaped by case studies from physics and high-precision metrology. This paper questions whether this consensus adequately captures measurement practices in biology, where researchers often operate under significant uncertainty about their target phenomena. Through detailed historical analysis of early electrophysiological research—from Carlo Matteucci through Emil du Bois-Reymond, Hermann von Helmholtz, and Ludimar Hermann—I examine how quantitative measurement practices emerged under theoretical uncertainty. The cases reveal recurring patterns including productive theoretical inadequacy and instrumental constraint-driven discovery, supporting an analytical framework that distinguishes multiple levels of theoretical involvement in measurement. Building on these cases, I argue that biological measurement practices function productively as strategies for causal discovery, and theoretically inadequate frameworks prove epistemically valuable by structuring empirical inquiry to reveal previously unrecognised causal factors.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	electrophysiology,experiment,measurement,mechanism,methodological pluralism,theory-dependence,history,arts and humanities (miscellaneous),history and philosophy of science ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/1200/1202
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Politics, Philosophy and Area Studies
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Philosophy Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Medical Humanities Research Network
Related URLs:	http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?...
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	23 Feb 2026 15:30
Last Modified:	23 Feb 2026 15:30
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/102017
DOI:	10.1007/s40656-025-00708-z

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