Foundational Challenges in Cosmological Studies of Black Holes

With the emergence of new observational windows, black holes are increasingly used in constraining cosmological theories. This workshop aims to address the major foundational and methodological challenges in cosmological studies of black holes: What are the methodological principles of these searches? What should we expect from future observations? How do long-standing research programs look from the new vantage points? What foundational lessons can be drawn from cosmological studies of new physics? The workshop will facilitate a multi-disciplinary perspective on the cosmological implications of black holes, by bringing together contributions from theoretical physics, astronomy, and the philosophy of physics. 

Main topics of the workshop include, but are not limited to: 

• primordial black holes as dark matter candidates 
• epistemology of gravitational wave astrophysics 
• model agnostic searches and notions of model independence 
• philosophical issues in multi-messenger astronomy 
• alternatives to black holes 
• statistical wars in astrophysics and cosmology 
• foundational issues in black hole physics 

Call for Abstracts: 

We accept the submission of abstracts for a limited number of slots for contributed talks related to the topics of the workshop. Please submit the title of your talk and an abstract of up to 500 words along with your name, contact details and affiliation in a pdf file by email to:

[email protected] 

by 31st of March midnight anywhere on Earth (UTC -12). We will communicate the decision soon after.