Buddhist philosophy
Shakespeare
Goethe
Joyce's Ulysses
the Allied rescue of Bohr
Mach
Red Star, sf novel by Russian revolutionary, Bogdanov
Lenin's philosophical argument with Bogdanov
the mind-body problem
Many Worlds theory
Regular readers will recognize the relevance of many of these items to Poul Anderson's works.
Rovelli argues against Many Worlds. A phenomenon has properties only in relation to other phenomena, whether or not any of these phenomena is a conscious observer. A mountain is big in relation to an atom but small in relation to a planet and none of them is conscious. When I open the box, is there one universe with me seeing Schrodinger's cat dead and another with me seeing it alive? No. Before I opened the box, the cat was in a superposition in relation to me but not in relation to itself and the inside of the box, according to Rovelli.
2 comments:
Bigger and smaller are concepts, not 'facts'. Concepts can exist only in minds.
This is the basic truth behind Nietzsche's observation that there are "no facts, only interpretations of fact".
Data exists by itself, but what data can 'mean' is possible only through thought.;
Kaor, Paul and Mr. Stirling!
Paul: I happen to be reading again Sean Carroll's book SOMETHING DEEPLY HIDDEN. Unlike Rovelli, Carroll does accept the many/parallel/alternate worlds hypothesis.
Mr. Stirling: If you mean facts can only be understood when they are interpreted, I agree. It's another issue whether or not those interpretations FITS the facts.
Ad astra! Sean
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