Re: (OT) Re: Object identity

On 29 Jun 2006 06:05:52 -0700, David Barrett-Lennard wrote:

I'm quite interested in the idea that Quantum Mechanics (with all its
weirdness) can come out of number theory. If physicists develop a self
consistent, computable TOE that passes experimental testing then a
mathematician will say : There exists turing machine T st T is
isomorphic to our universe.

Hmm, why are you so sure that it would be computable? For what we know now,
it is quite probable that it could stay incomputable. So far, TOE includes
randomness, which is incomputable, and has an uncountable number of states
[as long as no observer forces it to a definite state.]

Much more exciting were to get grip on some hardware capable to solve
problems beyond Turing completeness. Maybe we could, maybe not.

That is rather startling for philosophy,
because the mathematician will say that T exists independently of a
postulate of physical reality.

So? It wouldn't make any difference.

Real difference would be a mathematical reality shaping the physical one.
Summa Technologiae [the fundamental philosophic work on this issue]
considers such scenario as a high-end product of technological progress.

--
Regards,
Dmitry A. Kazakov
http://www.dmitry-kazakov.de
.

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