Bruno Marchal wrote:
On 24 Feb 2015, at 22:52, Bruce Kellett wrote:
MWI simply formalizes the fact that such data are "in-principle
unknowable".
Well, usually we say that the SWE formalizes that fact, and that the MWI
interpret this in term of many world. But I am OK with your statement,
as SWE implies formally the MWI,
Statements like this are gaining in currency these days, but this is
strictly false. The SWE operating on vectors in Hilbert space does not
formally imply the MWI. All that the formalism implies is the existence
of superpositions. Schroedinger realized this very early on, hence his
example of the cat being in a superposition of dead and alive states.
Schroedinger thought this was effectively a reductio ad absurdum for the
wave equation.
In order to get MWI one has to add a lot more superstructure. In
particular one has to solve the basis problem and give a plausible
account of the meaning of probabilities in a theory in which every
possible result actually occurs. Both of these areas are still matters
of substantial debate.
if we define world by a structure of
events close for interaction. Then, using the FPI, we have a
dterlministic and local account of why the data appears for the observer
first person (plural) point of view as unknowable, indeterminist and
non local.
Maybe the data appear indeterministic and unpredictable in principle
because they really are that way -- the world is governed by
probabilistic laws. We don't actually need all the superstructure of MWI.
Bruce
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Everything List" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email
to [email protected].
To post to this group, send email to [email protected].
Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
