Jonathan Colvin wrote:
> >>Agreed. But some *worlds* we can imagine may be logically impossible
> >>(inconsistent), may they not? I can imagine (or talk about) a world
> >>where entity A has property X and property Y, but it may be logically
> >>impossible for any existing entity A to simultaneously have
> >property X
> >>and Y. For example, it seems that it would be inconsistent
> >for there to
> >>exist a world where simultaneously I am omniscinent and I
> >consist of a single elctron.
> >>Such a world seems inconsistent (not logically possible).
> >Such a world
> >>may not appear in the set of worlds generated by all
> >instantiated programs.
> >
> >Omniscience is a problematic concept; one can argue that a
> >single electron does indeed have all possible knowledge
> >encoded in one bit. But leaving that aside, why do you say
> >that it is logically impossible for an electron to be
> >intelligent? To show that it is *logically* impossible you
> >would have to show that it entails a logical or mathematical
> >contradiction, such as 2+2=5.
>
>My point is not that it *is* logically impossible, but that it *may be*. It
>is obvious that 2+2=5 is a mathematical contradiction. But if we take
>Tegmark's radical platonism seriously, then such contradictions must "scale
>up" into the categories of things and worlds. All possible things exist;
>and
>all impossible things do not. How do we decide whether "an omniscient
>electron" is a possible thing? It certainly does not appear to be; and the
>point is that it may *in fact* be an impossible thing. It is
>straightforward
>to show that 2+2=5 is contradictory under number theory. It is obviously
>not
>so straightforward to show that "an omniscient electron" is equally
>a-priori
>contradictory. It is not even obvious that "an omniscient electron" is in
>the same category of propositions as "2+2=5". But I'd argue that if we take
>Tegmark seriously, then it should be.
>
>Jonathan Colvin
OK, I agree with your reasoning. But, just for fun, can you think of an
example of a physical reality which is clearly a priori contradictory?
--Stathis Papaioannou
_________________________________________________________________
Are you right for each other? Find out with our Love Calculator:
http://fun.mobiledownloads.com.au/191191/index.wl?page=191191text
Received on Sat Apr 16 2005 - 23:28:50 PDT