On Feb 15, 10:12 pm, Brent Meeker <[email protected]> wrote: > On 2/15/2011 1:48 PM, 1Z wrote: > > > > > > > On Feb 15, 9:22 pm, Brent Meeker<[email protected]> wrote: > > > Whatever question you can > > >> ask about a number has a factual answer, although you may not know it or > >> how to find it...numbers are wholly defined by a set of axioms, it seems > >> that > >> they are more real than fictional characters. > > > But being able to answer question is essentially epistemic. It doesn't > > imply any ontology in itself. The epistemic fact that we can , in > > principle, answer > > questions about real people may be explained by the existence and > > perceptual accessibility > > of real people: > > So the epistemic facts have an ontological implication. If I describe a > man who lives at 10 Baker Street, smokes dope, and works as a detective > you won't know whether he's real or not. But if I tell you there is no > fact of the matter about whether he has a mole on his arm, then you'll > know he's a fiction.
If I can figure out information I haven't been given from information I have been given, I don't need to suppose that I didn't figure it out and instead perceived it by by some sixth sense. > > but our ability to answer questions about mathematical > > objects > > is explained by the existence of clear definitions and rules doesn't > > need to posit > > of existing immaterial numbers (plus some mode of quasi-perceptual > > access > > to them). > > I agree. Although it's interesting that some people with synasthesia > apparently perceive numbers as having various perceptual properties. Some people "perceive" pink elephants too. However, other people don't "perceive" them , leading cynics to suppose that they are not really being perceived at all. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list?hl=en.
