Marta Emilia Bielińska

Junior Research Fellow

Pembroke College, University of Oxford

I am a philosopher of physics with a particular interest in the foundations of physics, including the epistemology of non-metrical spacetime structure, hidden symmetries, and laws of nature. I am also interested in philosophy of religion and analytic ontology.

I studied philosophy, mathematical and theoretical physics, and theology at the University of Oxford, and before that physics and philosophy in Kraków. Before returning to Oxford to take up my Junior Research Fellowship, I was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pittsburgh.

See my research Portrait of Marta Emilia Bielińska

Curriculum vitae

Academic appointments

Education

  • DPhil in Science and Religion

    University of Oxford

    2022–2025

  • MSc in Mathematical and Theoretical Physics

    University of Oxford

    2021–2022

  • BPhil in Philosophy

    University of Oxford

    2019–2021

  • BSc in Theoretical Physics

    Interfaculty Studies in Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Jagiellonian University

    2016–2019

  • BA in Philosophy

    Individual Interfaculty Studies in the Humanities, Jagiellonian University

    2015–2018

Internships and Research Projects

  • Chaos and non-signalling in quantum information

    International Centre for Theory of Quantum Technologies, one year.

    2022 – 2023

  • Quantum computing and quantum cryptography

    SpeQtral and the National University of Singapore, 2 months.

    2023

  • Symmetries in protein chains

    Department of Physics, University of Oxford, 2 months.

    2022

Achievements and scholarships

Research

While my main area of interest remains philosophy of physics, I have also published in theoretical physics, history of science, philosophy of religion, and ontology.

Publications

Preprints

Talks

We live in a time when many academic talks are recorded and shared online. Here are some I have given recently.

Recorded talks

  • Epistemology of Spacetime Orientability

    Foundations Seminar, Black Hole Initiative, Harvard University

    Watch on YouTube

    2026

  • Is the Best System approach really best for scientific practice?

    Lunchtime Talk, Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh

    Watch on YouTube

    2026

  • A five-minute introduction to my research

    Fellow profile video, Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh

    Watch on YouTube

    2025

Teaching

I have taught undergraduate tutorials at the University of Oxford, including at Pembroke College, Oriel College, and Wycliffe Hall, and in the Faculties of Philosophy and Theology and Religion.

Courses I have taught at the University of Oxford:

  • General Philosophy
  • Philosophy of Special Relativity
  • Knowledge and Reality
  • Philosophy of Science
  • Science and Religion
  • Philosophical Logic
  • Moral Philosophy

I am an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA), having completed Oxford’s Advancing Teaching and Learning programme in 2024.

Public Engagement

Answering the most fundamental questions about the universe (or at least trying to!) is fun, and that is not something one should keep to oneself. In my spare time, I give lectures and write popular articles on physics and philosophy for Copernicus and Tygodnik Powszechny.

Osobliwości fizyki · a series on Copernicus

≈ 500,000 views across the first 11 episodes (November 2026)

My lecture series is called Osobliwości fizyki, which, sadly, does not translate well into English. Osobliwości can mean both “singularities” (as in spacetime singularities) and “peculiarities”, and fizyki means “of physics”. So far, I have covered key moments in the modern history of the debate on the nature of space, special relativity, and some questions in philosophy of time.

Watch the series on Copernicus (in Polish)

Marta Emilia Bielińska speaking into a studio microphone

Public lectures

  • Symmetries in Physics: What’s the origin of 26 dimensions in string theory?

    Public lecture

    Watch on YouTube

Writing and interviews

Outreach

  • Fundusz ZDOLNI

    As a former scholarship holder, I support the programme by teaching classes for talented high-school students from Poland.

  • OxNet

    I contribute to OxNet by giving occasional talks for Year 12 students.

Contact

For academic collaborations, please contact me at my academic e-mail address.